France's CNES Reaffirms Full Confidence in ISRO Despite PSLV Setbacks
CNES says it fully trusts ISRO for the upcoming TRISHNA launch despite recent PSLV failures, with French instruments already delivered for integration.
The French space agency, Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES), has stated that recent back-to-back failures of ISRO's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) have not shaken its confidence in its Indian counterpart. The PSLV is slated to carry the Indo-French TRISHNA satellite into orbit next year.
Lionel Suchet, Chief Operating Officer of CNES, acknowledged the inherent risks of spaceflight but emphasized the importance of trust in international collaboration. "ISRO is a huge space player in the world, they know what to do. So we trust them for the launch and the satellite also," he said.
The PSLV has experienced two recent anomalies, both traced to its third stage. The PSLV-C61 mission in May 2025 failed to complete its objective, and the PSLV-C62 mission in January 2026, carrying the EOS-N1 satellite, also deviated from its intended trajectory.
Christophe Venet, Director of Europe and International Affairs at CNES, echoed this sentiment, noting that while CNES is not responsible for the launch vehicle, it has full faith in ISRO's capabilities. "Setbacks sometimes happen with vehicles... we trust our Indian partners ISRO in particular to launch the mission," he stated.
The TRISHNA (Thermal Infra-Red Imaging Satellite for High-resolution Natural Resource Assessment) mission is a collaborative project designed to monitor Earth's surface temperature and manage water resources. It will carry two main payloads: a thermal infrared instrument from CNES and a visible-to-shortwave-infrared imager from ISRO.
Venet confirmed that the French-built instruments have already arrived in India and are undergoing integration. "We are having regular technical exchanges with our colleagues at ISRO and everything is looking pretty fine as of now," he added.