Which Swiss Army Knife Do NASA Astronauts Use? (And Does Victorinox Still Make It?)

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When you imagine the gear NASA packs for space missions, you probably picture high-tech marvels: zero-gravity toilets, robotic arms, and a laptop duct-taped to a wall. But nestled among the cutting-edge gadgets and million-dollar equipment is something surprisingly down-to-earth, a humble Swiss Army Knife. Astronaut Chris Hadfield wrote about the benefits of a Swiss Army Knife in space in his book 'An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth'. In 1995, he couldn't get into the Mir space station using the usual equipment because the doors had been sealed too tightly, so he relied on his trusty Swiss Army Knife to gain access. "Never leave the planet without one," he said.

Hadfield was writing about an incident that took place in the 1990s, but the history of NASA and Victorinox Swiss Army Knives goes back further than that. While the rest of us might have problems taking a Swiss Army Knife onto a regular aircraft, astronauts have been bringing the iconic multi-tool on space missions for almost fifty years.

In 1978, NASA purchased 50 Master Craftsman Swiss Army Knives from Victorinox. A letter to Victorinox from NASA's Communications Manager stated, "These knives will be aboard the Space Shuttle Orbiter as part of crew equipment." Starting in the mid-1980s, Victorinox began producing the Astronaut model of the Swiss Army Knife, which was functionally identical to the Master Craftsman. During the same period, they also released a special edition Shuttle Master Craftsman featuring an inlaid image of a space shuttle on the top scale."

Astronauts have continued taking Swiss Army Knives into space. A 1980s Victorinox TV advert included the tagline, "The original Swiss Army Knife from Victorinox is aboard every space shuttle mission because you never know when you'll need one next." In 1991, astronauts aboard the Discovery shuttle used the knife to strip wires and reconnect vital computer equipment, saving an important experiment. It seems likely that the Swiss Army Knife is currently a standard piece of equipment on the International Space Station.

Victorinox no longer makes the Master Craftsman. It discontinued the line around 2006. The Astronaut and Shuttle versions of the model were discontinued before that and are now in-demand collector items. If astronauts are currently using Swiss Army Knives up in the International Space Station, we don't know what model they are using. This information is usually kept fairly quiet because NASA maintains strict guidelines to avoid any appearance of endorsing commercial products or services. Even the 1978 letter to Victorinox specified that "this confirmation must not be considered a commercial endorsement of your product by NASA."

So, what model of Swiss Army Knife are astronauts likely to use today? The Master Craftsman had 15 tools, including large and small blades, a wood saw, scissors, a can opener, a screwdriver, a reamer, tweezers, and a toothpick. If you're looking for the closest thing to a Master Craftsman for sale today, a good choice would be the Victorinox Handyman, which has everything the Master Craftsman had, plus a few extras, like a corkscrew and nail cleaner. These additional tools would be handy if you needed to open a bottle of wine or give yourself a quick manicure while you're orbiting around the Earth in the International Space Station.