India, Feb. 18 -- British astronaut John McFall has been cleared to become the first person with a physical disability to go to space.
The 43-year-old former Paralympian and surgeon has been medically certified to undertake a long-duration mission to the International Space Station, the European Space Agency has announced.
John, who lost his leg in a motorbike accident when he was 19, was selected to take part in ESA's Fly! Feasibility study in 2022, to look at the challenges of getting an astronaut with a disability to the ISS.
The study concluded in late 2024 and successfully demonstrated it is technically feasible to fly someone with a physical disability, like John's, on a six-month mission to the ISS as a fully integrated crew membe...