The European Space Agency (ESA) is Europe’s gateway to space. Its mission is to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space continues to deliver benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world.
Find out more about space activities in our 23 Member States, and understand how ESA works together with their national agencies, institutions and organisations.
Exploring our Solar System and unlocking the secrets of the Universe
Go to topicProtecting life and infrastructure on Earth and in orbit
Go to topicUsing space to benefit citizens and meet future challenges on Earth
Go to topicMaking space accessible and developing the technologies for the future
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Members of ESA’s astronaut support teams participating in a helicopter underwater escape training which is mandatory for people involved in astronaut landing operations, including flight surgeons and photographers.
The course lasts for a full day, divided into theoretical and practical components. The practical part of the underwater escape training grows in intensity after the first introduction to the water. On the first round, a helicopter replica is gently submerged into the water and then increasing speed and even adding rotations on next attempts.
Once escaping from a submerged helicopter, participants receive training on further survival techniques such as boarding a life raft and mitigating the risk of hypothermia.
A successful certification for helicopter emergency water landings is valid for two years.