About us

Find out how we revolutionize space flights

Genesis

Our genesis is our founder's dream : "Travelling towards the stars, without polluting, in harmony with elements." To do so, we tackle great challenges on a daily basis and dare to find revolutionary solutions. With a committed approach, we aim to design the future of space flights and push all boundaries by opening the doors of nearspace. Excellence is our every day quest.

History

& Legacy

1783

Hot air balloon invention

Invention of the hot air balloon by the Montgolfier brother. Invention of the gas balloon by Pilâtre de Rozier.

1870

The famous ancestor

Ernest Sézanne, Vincent Farret d'Astiès' ancestor, allows Minister Léon Gambetta to escape from enemy fire by taking off from the Montmartre hilltop in a 16-meter wide balloon.

1931

Altitude record in a balloon

The Swiss Auguste Piccard reaches an altitude of 16 000 meters from Augsburg. The first living being to ever reach the stratosphere.

1959

Mars in sight

With its telescope, Audoin Dollfus rises up to 14 000 meters in the sky and detects the presence of water on Mars.

1961

France at the forefront

The French space agency (CNES) is created under the impulse of the scientific community and Charles de Gaulle. The balloon activity consists in designing and operating aeronautical vehicles to carry scientific instruments.

2016

Zephalto is born

In the pursuit of a child dream, Vincent Farret d'Astiès creates Zephalto in Occitania, France.

2022

The growth

The Zephalto team expands in Paris and Toulouse. The development of the capsule continues and the Zephalto brand name is introduced.

The French space agency, our strategic scientific partner

Along with 60+ years of space balloon research and development, numerous patents and registered procedures, CNES (Centre national d'études spatiales) has granted us exclusive access to their most advanced technologies, acquired during several thousand flights.

Our advisors

Jean-Luc

Diemunsch

Ex Airbus

Technical & Engineering Advisor

Thomas

Fouquet

Head of NewSpace at CNES

CNES Advisor

Vincent

Dubourg

Deputy director at CNES

CNES Advisor

Stéphanie

Lisy-Destrez

Professor at ISAE-SUPAERO

Scientific Advisor

Christian

Mouillon

Former Partner at EY

Strategy & Finance Advisor

Jean-François

Ferret

Ex CEO of Relais & Châteaux

Business & Strategy Advisor

Jochen

Zaumseil

Ex L’Oréal Asia

Luxury Advisor

Florent

Contamine

Ex Dassault

Engineering Advisor

Our team

Vincent

Farret d’Astiès

Founder and Chief Pilot

Astrid

de Piedoüe

Chief Financial Officer

David

Bergotti

Chief Technical Officer

Marie

Bascou

Chief Marketing Officer

Adrien

Tantin

Lead Engineer

Olivier

Authier

Manufacturing Project Manager

Marie-Alix

Martinet

Administrative Assistant

Antonin

Lecomte

Space Systems Engineer

Laura

Rodrigues

Test Technician

Gaspard

Thieulin

Development Engineer

Mazarine

Régis

Brand Project Manager

Sébastien

Roubinet

Composite Technical Designer

Life at Zephalto

Join the crew

We are always looking for new talents ! Go to our careers page to see our offers and join the adventure.

Explore open positions

CAD technician

As a CAD technician at Zephalto, you will be responsible for 3D modeling of the fitted envelope, fitted capsule or subsystems and their interfaces with the capsule ...