In 2026, Colonel Jeremy Hansen became the first astronaut from a country other than the United States ever to fly in deep space and travel around the far side of the Moon. As a member of the Artemis II Mission, he and his colleagues flew farther from Earth than any previous astronauts and became the first crew to travel around the Moon since the last Apollo mission in 1972.

Fellow Canadian astronaut, Chris Hadfield (the first Canadian to Command the International Space Station with 15 hours of spacewalks to his credit), said : “Hansen’s flight incorporated a long catalogue of unproven risk, including the fact that no human had ever been launched on the SLS launch system or flown the Orion spacecraft, (both of which had only been flown on one prior unmanned test), no human had ever flown so far from Earth and only 27 others in history had gone on a flight to the Moon before the Orion crew.” Hadfield also stated that “The perils of the mission flown by Hansen and his three colleagues are staggering.”

Born in 1976, Jeremy Hansen cannot remember a time when he did not dream of being an astronaut, even though the first Canadian to fly in space did not occur until 1984 when Marc Garneau flew on STS 41G.  Growing up on a farm near London, Ontario, he became a Royal Canadian Air Cadet at age 12, earned his glider wings at age 16 and his pilot license at 17, subsequently becoming an officer in the Royal Canadian Air Force. He graduated in 1999 from the Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontario as the top Air Force graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Space Science. He added a Master of Science in Physics there in 2000, with a thesis on Wide Field of View Satellite Tracking.

Hansen completed his jet training in Moose Jaw.  After qualifying on the CF-18 fighter, Hansen served in the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). Graduating from 410 Fighter Training Squadron in 2004, Hansen served as a front-line CF-18 fighter pilot as Combat Operations Officer at 4 Wing in Cold Lake, ensuring the effectiveness of NORAD Air Defense Operations and the operability of Deployed and Forward Operating Locations in the arctic. Until 2009 he flew operations with 409 Tactical Fighter Squadron, leading tactical formations and serving as a Maintenance Test Pilot, including frequent deployments to the United States and Europe.

Hansen became one of two Canadians selected in the Canada Space Agency’s (CSA) third astronaut recruitment in 2009, moving to Houston, Texas, to become one of 14 members of the 20th NASA astronaut class, of which only four remain active, including his Artemis II colleague, Reid Wiseman. He qualified as an astronaut after intensive instruction in International Space Station (ISS) systems, extravehicular activity training, robotics, physiological training, T-38 flight training, and learning Russian.

Upon graduation he began working in Mission Control as a CAPCOM (capsule communicator) on ISS missions. He set his sights early on deep space exploration and.  lived underground with European astronauts for six days in an ESA cave-training programme; a year later he spent a week underwater as an aquanaut in the Aquarius habitat off Key Largo, Florida. In 2017, he became the first non-American to lead a new NASA astronaut class through their two years of training.  Col Hansen also continues to fly the RCAF CF-18 and as a volunteer, has inspired young Canadians as an air display pilot, flying the fully restored and historical Hawk One F-86 Sabre operated by Vintage Wings of Canada, commemorating the 100th Anniversary of Flight in Canada.

As a member of the crew of the first manned flight of the Space Launch System, Jeremy Hansen played a key role in pioneering mankind’s return to the moon over 50 years after the end of the Apollo missions; a fitting achievement for someone who has dreamed of going there since he was a small boy.  In recognition of his very significant and historical achievements in aviation and astronautics, along with his unwavering enthusiasm and encouragement of Canadian youth to pursue interests and careers in engineering, aviation and astronautics, Jeremy Hansen is most deserving of the Award of Honour.

1999/2000 awarded twice:
     Sir Arthur Marshall
     Sir George Edwards

2000/2001 awarded twice:
     Group Captain John Cunningham CBE
     Wing Commander Roland Prosper Beamont CBE

2002  Not Awarded

2002/03  Squadron Leader Neville Frederick Duke DSO OBE DFC** AFC

2003/04 awarded twice:
     Lionel Peter Twiss OBE DSC* QCVSA
     Joseph Sutter Hon FRAeS

2004/05  Sir Michael Cobham CBE

2005/06 awarded twice:
     Neil Armstrong
     Captain Eric Brown CBE DSC AFC KCVSA MA FRAeS

2006/07 awarded twice:
      Sir Michael Knight KCB AFC
      Albert L Ueltschi

2008 - 2009  Not Awarded

2009/10  Sir Maurice Flanagan KBE BA Hon.FRAeS FCILT

2010/11  Duncan Simpson OBE CEng FIMechE FRAeS

2011/12  Wing Commander Kenneth Horatio Wallis MBE

2012/13  Captain James Arthur Lovell USN (Retd)

2013/14  Sir Michael John Marshall CBE DL

2014/15  UK Military Search and Rescue Force

2016  Captain Robert "Hoot" Gibson DSM DFC

2017  awarded twice:
       Air Chief Marshal Sir Patrick Hine GCB GBE FRAeS
      John Tribe BSc(Eng)

2018  The Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, The Red Arrows

2019  Stuart King FRAeS

2020  Greg McDougall

2021  Martin Baker Aircraft Company Ltd

2022  Not Awarded

2023  The Royal Air Force Battle of Britain Memorial Flight

2024  Commemorative Air Force

2025  Tim Peake CMG