Anna Kikina, the only active female astronaut from Russia, is set to fly to the International Space Station (ISS) in October, becoming the first Russian to participate in a SpaceX space mission.
The flight is scheduled for October 3rd. Kikina will be the fifth female astronaut from Russia, previously the Soviet Union, to travel into space. She will also be the first Russian to journey aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft, founded by billionaire Elon Musk.
“Of course, I am ready. I will arrive in the U.S. on September 8th for final training, completing some procedures and tasks before the flight,” she stated, as reported by AFP on August 26th.
When asked about her feelings as the first Russian to join a SpaceX mission, she described it as a “great responsibility.”
“But I also want to say that any flight carries a significant responsibility for astronauts. For me, there is no distinction,” the astronaut emphasized.
Astronaut Anna Kikina. (Photo: TASS).
Kikina will participate in the Crew-5 mission of SpaceX, flying to the ISS on October 3rd. She will be joined by Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata and two NASA colleagues, Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, on this journey.
The last time a Russian female astronaut flew into space was Elena Serova, who spent 167 days on the ISS during the 2014-2015 period.
Russia is one of the countries with the greatest potential for space missions. Previously, Soviet astronaut Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman to fly into space in June 1963.
In October, Russia will also send actress Yulia Peresild to the ISS for 12 days to film a movie.
Recently, cooperation in space between the U.S. and Russia has shown signs of strain as Moscow announced plans to withdraw from the ISS in 2024 to build its own space station.
