French Space Defence Academy

The constitution of a pool of experts in space defence and the creation of attractive new career paths will be key factors in guiding and achieving the ambition expressed in France’s Space Defence Strategy. In this context, the aim of France’s new French Space Defence Academy (FSDA) is to provide education opportunities for personnel from the Ministry of the Armed Forces and to utilize the synergies between these courses to provide a personalized approach to space training.

As the Ministry’s expert resource centre in this domain, the FSDA can provide targeted top-level training with recognized qualifications. The available courses range from short conversion courses to specialist master’s degrees within various institutions, especially elite engineering schools under ministry oversight, generating a foundation of expertise.

The FSDA was established in 2023 and is composed of a partnership of three entities coordinated on a rotating basis by one of its members. The three members are ISAE-SUPAERO (Institut Supérieur de l’Aéronautique et de l’Espace - National Higher Institute of Aeronautics and Space), EAE (École de l’Air et de l’Espace – French Air Force and Space Academy) and CFOSM (Centre de Formation aux Opérations Spatiales Militaires – Space Operations Education and Training Centre), which is part of French Space Command (Commandement de l’Espace - CDE).

This pooling of resources provides a clear and shared training framework, covering both the academic and operational aspects of space defence (scientific and technological expertise at ISAE-SUPERO, scientific and military at EAE and space operations at CFOSM).

The FSDA is open to partners from other ministries and other countries, as well as to other stakeholders in the sector (CNES, ONERA, industry etc.). It will constitute a prime forum for exchanges and encounters with key academic and industrial players in the space sector.

Contact : asd.contact.fct@def.gouv.fr

"The French Space Defence Academy aims to establish a pool of experts in space defence, from theory to implementation. The academy is open to a broad public. As part of the proposed courses, the CDE is contributing its vision of the future stakes and challenges facing military operations." - GDA Philippe Adam - Space Commander

"In 2021, the French Air Force Academy became the French Air and Space Force Academy and has since then been France’s key resource centre for specialists in the military space domain. By joining forces with the CDE and ISAE-SUPAERO in running the French Space Defence Academy, the EAE will be able to offer training courses in an international context rich in opportunities." GBA Pierre Real - General Director of the Air and Space Force Academy

"The space sector is rapidly developing and is marked by technological breakthroughs and new methods of action. The french space defence academy has been established to meet the new challenges of educating personnel in the military space domain, and isae-supaero will be contributing its full scientific expertise and its experience in the training of civilian and military engineers." - IGA Olivier Lesbre - General Director of ISAE-SUPAERO

The CDE, EAE and ISAE-SUPAERO will soon be holding a seminar on the challenges of space. This seminar will cover the full spectrum of space-related concerns and will provide a holistic summary of the challenges that must be met in the technological, military and operational spheres.

It will be held over two days, partly at the facilities of the Air and Space Force Academy in Salon de Provence and partly at the ISAE-SUPAERO site in Toulouse, at the end of 2023. It will highlight the prospects and challenges of space and will tackle major topics such as space surveillance, earth observation, launchers, orbiting services, space data processing, security and economic and geopolitical changes.

These topics will be examined and illustrated with the expertise of each of the three members constituting the French Space Defence Academy:

> ISAE-SUPAERO was founded in 1909 and has established its place as one of the acknowledged global leaders in the training of civilian and military aviation and space engineers. With its focus on the future needs of the aerospace sector, the Institute will explain the technological breakthroughs and disruptions currently in progress.

> EAE was created in 1935. It provides training not only to the officers of the French Air and Space Force but also to civilian students, with the aim of establishing control over increasingly uncertain situations and in a context of complex, multi-faceted conflicts.

> Space Command (CDE), as the Ministry’s source of military expertise in this domain, will lead reflections on key concerns of military space operations - such as support for space capabilities, operations support, space surveillance and actions in space.

The CFOSM is the entity of the CDE tasked with generating expertise in the operational aspect of space defence. It contributes to the establishment of professional training curricula of the personnel assigned to this domain.

The CFOSM provides general training courses termed “Space Courses” for Ministry personnel and for members of other ministries and external organizations (CNES, ONERA etc.). These courses comprise three independent sessions tailored to the functional level of the participants (basic, advanced and strategic). They provide a 360° view of the specific challenges of the space domain for national defence and are adapted to the needs of each participant.

The aim of these courses is to provide participants with a shared fundamental space culture and a global understanding of the space domain (technological, industrial and institutional). The courses will also provide an understanding of space technologies and, in conclusion, the military uses of these technologies.

These courses are available in French. One “Space course advanced” is also provided in English. The CFOSM is based in Toulouse, at the site of the French National Centre for Space Studies (CNES). This location puts it close to key operational players and to partners from the space industry.

For further information : https://air.defense.gouv.fr/cde

The EAE is a French military higher education establishment that trains the officers of the French Air and Space Force. On the basis of its expertise and the excellence of its research, the school also provides training courses to a broader military and civilian public.

The EAE’s degree-level and master’s courses are open to officers of other nations, who can follow all or part of these courses. These training opportunities cover all aspects of space and provide a range of recognized qualifications (certificates, master’s degrees etc.).

Additionally, the EAE, in partnership with the CDE, CNES and ONERA, offers a specialized master’s degree - specialized master® “Defense and Security in Space”. This degree is designed to train senior military officers and civilian executives with an integrated vision of the security of space systems in civilian and military space operations. This expertise can subsequently be applied to space programme research and development, the implementation and operational use of space systems and crisis analysis, prevention, monitoring and management.

The “Mécanique Spatiale et Systèmes Spatiaux” (Space Mechanics and Space Systems) module provides key foundations for defining and identifying a space system and its missions and environment. This module includes practical training in operational scenarios, using digital reconstitution and simulation tools to develop and consolidate awareness of the space situation and thereby refine decision-making.