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Brigadier General Michel Tognini of the French Air
Force (born September 30, 1949, in Vincennes,
France) is a France|French test pilot and
astronaut who currently serves as Head of the
Astronaut Division of the European Space Agency. A
veteran of two space flights, Tognini has logged a
total of 19 days in space. Tognini has 4000 flight
hours on 80 types of aircraft (mainly fighter
aircraft including the MiG-25, Tupolev 154,
Lightning MK-3 and Lightning MK-5|MK-5, Gloster
Meteor, and F-104). He is fluent in English
language|English and Russian language|Russian.

==Biography==

Following graduation in 1973 from the Ecole de
l'Air (the French Air Force Academy), Tognini was
posted to advanced fighter pilot training at a
squadron based at Normandie-Neman where he served
for one year before obtaining his advanced fighter
pilot training. From 1974–1981, he served in
the French Air Force as an operational fighter
pilot (Cambrai Air Base), at the 12th Escadre de
Chasse, flying SMB2 and Mirage F1 aircraft. During
this tour of duty he served as flight leader in
1976, and flight commander in 1979. 

In 1982, he was admitted to the Empire Test Pilot
School in Boscombe Down, United Kingdom, and later
that year was awarded his test pilot diploma. He
was awarded his military studies diploma in 1983.
Tognini was then posted to the Cazaux Flight Test
Center, France, initially as a test pilot and
subsequently as chief test pilot. During his time
there, he helped test a great deal of French
flight hardware. He did the weapon systems testing
for the Dassault-Breguet Mirage 2000|Mirage
2000-C, Dassault-Breguet Mirage 2000N and
2000D|Mirage 2000-N, Jaguar ATLIS, and FLIR
aircraft, and was also responsible for flight
safety for pilots, experimenters and flight
engineers. 

In 1985, France opened a recruitment program to
expand its astronaut corps, and Tognini was one of
seven finalists selected. In July 1986, he was one
of four candidates to undergo medical examinations
in Moscow. In August 1986, he was assigned as the
back-up for the Soyuz TM-7 mission. Although
Tognini remained a French Air Force officer, he
was placed on detachment to CNES for his space
flight activities from September 1986 onwards. In
November 1986 he reported to the Yuri Gagarin
Cosmonaut Training Center, Star City, Russia, for
alternate astronaut training, including
Extra-vehicular activity|EVA, for the
Soviet-French ARAGATZ mission. 

During 1989–1990 he supported the Hermes
(shuttle)|Hermes program in Toulouse, France. In
1991 he returned to Star City, Russia, to start
prime crew training for the 3rd Soviet-French
ANTARES mission. During his stay in Russia,
Tognini also gained piloting experience of BURAN
simulators (MiG-25, Tupolev 154).

Tognini made his first space flight on July 27,
1992, aboard Soyuz TM-15 (returning on Soyuz
TM-14, August 10). Together with Anatoly Solovyev
and Sergei Avdeyev he linked up with Mir (ANTARES
mission) and joined the crew of Alexander
Viktorenko and Alexander Kaleri already on board.
They spent 14 days carrying out a program of joint
Soviet-French experiments before returning to
Earth. He returned to France following the
mission. During 1993–94, he attended a
training cycle of the French Institute for High
Studies of National Defense (IHEDN).

Tognini attended ASCAN Training at the Johnson
Space Center during 1995. He was initially
assigned to the Operations Planning Branch of the
Astronaut Office working technical issues on the
International Space Station, and was subsequently
assigned to the Robotics Branch. Tognini was then
assigned as ISS capsule communicator|CAPCOM in
Mission Control Center|Mission Control. Tognini
flew aboard Space Shuttle Columbia on STS-93 (July
22–27, 1999). During the 5-day mission his
primary task was to assist in the deployment of
the Chandra X-Ray Observatory, and to conduct a
spacewalk if needed.

==Honors and awards==
* French Aeronautics Medal
* Chevalier de Ordre National du Mérite
* Commander dans l'Ordre de la Légion d'Honneur
* Soviet Order of Friendship between the People
* Russian Order of Friendship between the People


Source:
http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/tognini.html

NASA