European Space Agency’s Kourou spaceport SUSPENDS launches over coronavirus pandemic

The French space agency operating the ESA spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, has decided to suspend all launches, citing health concerns over the “rapid spread” of the deadly coronavirus epidemic.

France is currently struggling to stem the spread of the deadly disease officially known as Covid-19, which has already infected almost 4,500 nationwide. Its national space agency (CNES) has now joined the effort, by announcing it would “reorganize” the work of its four centers – including the Kourou spaceport located in the remote overseas territory of French Guiana.

The “business continuity” plan mostly involves relying more on remote work and focusing on “strategic operation functions,” such as the maintenance of existing satellite systems. However, the French spaceport located in the Latin American territory just north of Brazil appears to be the most heavily affected.

All launches at the Kourou spaceport will be suspended while the facility is put into standby mode, according to a CNES statement issued on Monday. The agency’s president, Jean-Yves Le Gall, said it was “absolutely necessary” for CNES to join the nationwide effort aimed at fighting the epidemic and said the measures taken were “essential” in beating the virus.

“The health of our employees is the primary concern of the CNES,” he added.

The suspension could affect several upcoming missions, including a Vega launch planned for March 24, as well as that of Russia's Soyuz with a UAE Falcon Eye 2 satellite scheduled for April 14, and another Soyuz with France's CSO-2 satellite onboard expected in late May.

It is, however, unclear if such draconian measures are really necessary in the case of Kourou since the total number of confirmed coronavirus patients in French Guiana amounts to just seven so far, with all of them linked to people who arrived into the territory from elsewhere.

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