NASA Names Crew for Artemis III Earth-Orbit Test Flight, Including ESA Astronaut Luca Parmitano as Pilot

NASA announced Tuesday that ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano will serve as pilot for the Artemis III mission, the first time a European astronaut has been assigned to a crewed Artemis flight. The four-person crew also includes NASA astronaut Randy Bresnik as commander and NASA astronauts Frank Rubio and Andre Douglas as lander specialists. NASA astronaut Bob Hines was named backup crew member.

The mission is now planned as a crewed test flight in Earth orbit to demonstrate systems and operations required for future lunar landing missions from Artemis IV onward. The crew will begin a rigorous training schedule to learn Orion spacecraft systems and human landing systems operations. Artemis III will launch aboard NASA’s Space Launch System rocket.

Luca Parmitano has spent 366 days in space across two long-duration missions to the International Space Station, performed six spacewalks totaling more than 30 hours, and served as station commander. He participated in NASA’s Underway Recovery Test 12 off the coast of California last year.

Before joining the European astronaut corps, he was selected in 2007 by the Italian Air Force to become a test pilot, trained at EPNER in Istres, France, and was promoted to colonel ahead of his 2019 Beyond mission.

He has logged more than 2,000 hours of flight time and is qualified on more than 20 types of military aircraft and helicopters. ESA is providing its third European Service Module for the mission. The module departed Bremen in August 2024 aboard the Canopée transport vessel, was integrated with the crew module adapter, and was officially handed over to NASA in September 2025.

It recently completed acoustic testing at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida and will soon be connected to the Orion crew module before launch next year. The first two European Service Modules powered the uncrewed Artemis I mission in 2022 and the crewed Artemis II mission earlier this year.

The structure is produced by Thales Alenia Space in Turin, Italy, with final assembly by Airbus in Bremen, Germany.

The Artemis III module involved contributions from 13 ESA Member States, 20 main contractors, and over 100 suppliers. “Artemis III will push the boundaries of spacecraft operations in orbit. ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano’s assignment as pilot reflects the depth of European expertise in human spaceflight and draws on his extensive operational experience in high-pressure situations,” said Josef Aschbacher, ESA’s Director General.

“Today we take another bold step in humanity’s return to the Moon, building on the extraordinary foundation laid by the Artemis II astronauts,” said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman. “I am honored to be part of this crew, and humbled at the same time: my crew mates bring a wealth of different experiences, and I’m looking forward to working with them, eager to learn and to contribute as much as I can in my role.

As a test pilot, this is truly a dream mission,” said Luca Parmitano.

“Europe will play not only one but two decisive roles in this upcoming Artemis mission,” said Daniel Neuenschwander, ESA’s Director of Human and Robotic Exploration.