Russian Movie in Space Part 9

The ISS-66 back-up crew were "launched′′ to the ISS, for the first time

In our last two Blogs, we mentioned that we would focus our attention on the back-up crew for Soyuz MS-19. The mainstream media tend to cover the prime crew, so we want to restore some balance.

This week, the whole crew, including the Soyuz commander, Oleg Artemyev took part in joint training, in the Soyuz MS simulator, for the first time. Let's see how this important session worked out.

′′It seems that they are excellent!", cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev shared his impressions of the first joint training, of the back-up crew the ISS-66 mission. The previous day, he and his colleagues on the upcoming expedition which is part of the movie, scientific and educational project ′′ Challenge ", held a their first full session on the ′′Soyuz MS ′′ simulator, at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training, while wearing their Sokol (Falcon) spacesuits.

During the training of the crew of Artemyev, camera operator for the film ′′ Challenge ′′ Alexey Dudin and actress Alena Mordovina performed the programme related to a routine launch to the ISS. This involved preparation for the launch followed by the ascent to orbit, of the Soyuz MS, inspection of sealing of compartments and systems of the ship after separation from the carrier rocket, orbital maneuvering and preparation for docking with the International Space Station. At all stages the crew worked competently and as a team.

Oleg Artemyev, being in the middle seat of the descent module, does not have the ability to reach all the controls of the ship, so some functions are carried out by the other crew members, even though they are not professional cosmonauts.

During the routine, Alena Mordovina, sitting on the right, had to operate valves, including those supplying oxygen to the descent module, and to control the pumping of any condensate. When checking the spacesuits for tightness, Alexey Dudin worked the valves that supply oxygen in spacesuits.

′′There was no tension just because they were not professional astronauts in the adjacent seats, and on the contrary, as a commander I was able to organize the work of the crew." said Oleg Artemyev.

"It was important to check what they have learned over the last two months, and it turned out that they know everything, learn quickly, they can carry out the work allocated, according to my instructions ".

He added that he was fortunate to have in his crew two people who are focused, and who want to learn.

"Alexey, will help me in case of emergency situations" added Artemyev. "He has onboard documentation ready, and will be able to open anything necessary at a moments notice. In addition to her main responsibilities, Alyona will have to record all the situations arising onboard on her tablet that will have to be reported to Earth. It's also a great responsibility and help ".

Writing on her own Social Media channels, Alyona Mordovina hinted that she is still focused on a prime crew seat (and the lead role in the Movie) by writing, "So proud to be part of our team. With this crew, I know I won't be scared when we go up in the rocket! It's like a miracle"

In total, the main and duplicate crews of the ISS-66 will undertake six such joint training sessions in the Soyuz MS simulator. As these progess, off-nominal, or emergency situations will be introduced and the crew will have to adapt to deal with these scenarios.

In September, just after the final examination are undertaken, the decision will be taken on whether the prime crew, or back-up crew, will make the flight, on 5th October.

Images by courtesy Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre

Words by Tony Quine

Russian Movie in Space Part 8

 

Could the crew assignments be changed, after Krikalev crisis?

For almost nine months, we’ve been following the Russian ‘Movie in Space’ project «Вызов» with several exclusive stories and updates. During the early stages, we talked to several actresses and aviation sports enthusiasts who joined the other 3000 women who applied for the lead role.

In April, we were the first media outlet in the World to reveal the names of the final four candidates; Alyona Mordovina, Yulia Peresild, Sofya Arzhakovskaya and Galina Kairova.

As everyone now knows, on 13^th May, Yulia Peresild was cast in the leading role, and therefore would join the prime crew of Soyuz MS-19 alongside experienced cosmonaut, Anton Shkaplerov and the movie’s director, Klim Shipenko. Shipenko’s position in the prime crew had been announced many months before, subject to his acceptance by the State Medical Commission.

If all follows the published timeline, Shkaplerov, Peresild and Shipenko will be launched to the ISS on 5^th October, which requires a training and preparation programme of only four months.

So, what has happened in the two months since that announcement?

Well, the prime crew ‘spaceflight participants’ Peresild and Shipenko, and their back-ups Alyona Mordovina, and camera operator Aleksey Dudin reported for training on Monday 24^th May. After an initial burst of photos, interviews and publicity, there has been little mention in the Russian media of exactly what aspects of training they have completed. Even individual Social Media accounts give little away, although many photos show that the candidates are living, from Monday to Friday, at the Cosmonaut Training Centre.

Although the Roscosmos and First Channel media offices have said that interviews are not possible, at this time, Yulia Peresild did give a lengthy Q &A session, on 11th June, using Instagram during which she revealed, that she was ‘obviously scared’ when she found out that she was to be offered the role.

On 19th June, First Channel showed a report of the two crews performing Water Survival Training, a difficult and strength sapping activity.

But, an aspect we want to examine, in this Blog, is how certain are the crew assignments? Is it possible that the back-up crew might actually be assigned to the mission?

At the Space Sleuthing Blog, we’ve been looking back at previous Soyuz flights which included ‘spaceflight participants’ and where there was a genuine trained, and funded, back-up available.

The evidence suggest that the back-up crew have a good chance. Both Soyuz TMA-9 and TMA-12  saw the back-up SFP’s (Anousheh Ansari and Soyeon Yi) reassigned to their respective prime crews, around three weeks before the launch. 

In each case, the trainers, instructors and management, at the Cosmonaut Training Centre, pushed through the crew changes. Such changes were based on training performance and psychological evaluations, and weaknesses in the performance of the prime crew member. 

We should also consider that the back-up SFP on Soyuz TMA-18M, Satoshi Takamatsu, would have flown if he’d been able to bring the money together in time, after British singer, Sarah Brightman dropped out.

So, based on previous events, we can probably say that there is a 50% chance that one, or both, members of the back-up crew will eventually be reassigned to the prime crew, before the launch.

We should also consider the possible impact of recent events surrounding Sergei Kriklev, Head of Manned Programmes at Roskosmos, who was removed from his post, allegedly, for speaking out against the concept of the movie project at a Roskosmos Management Board meeting, before being reinstated a few days later. This occurred after very public protests from many prominent ex-cosmonauts, and more subtle, but equally strong protests from the current cosmonaut squad.

No doubt part of the terms of his reinstatement will require Krikalev give unqualified support the to movie project, but he will also want to ensure that his objections had some influence, and that the people he sends into space are the best qualified, and best prepared.  

In other words, for the back-up crew, anything could still happen. The training assessments and recommendations of the professionals at the GCTC should, in the end, out-weigh ‘artistic’ preferences.

Although First Channel, and Shipenko, may have cast Persild, the actress who completes the training and impresses the GCTC assessors will be the one who sits in the rocket on 5th October.  From the point of view of Alyona Mordovina, everything is still to play for!

We have nothing but admiration for Yulia Peresild. She is clearly a very good, and very popular actress. It maybe that the GCTC specialists will still give her the thumbs up. But, here at the Space Sleuthing Blog, we do love to see an underdog come out on top, and so we are firmly backing Alyona Mordovina to make the flight!

What is not widely known, is that Alyona was the first of the twenty actresses to pass all the medical and psychological tests, and be confirmed as qualified for cosmonaut training. 

For several weeks, she was the only candidate eligible to make the flight, until the other three were added at the last moment. In those circumstances, she may have been a little disappointed to end up with the back-up role.  

If she was, it does not show in her Social Media posts. Alyona seems to be enjoying the experience of getting ready to make a Spaceflight. At this stage, the crews have only completed around 30% of their training, but Alyona looks focused, relaxed and ready to go. 

One of the other actresses who met her at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre in March described her to us as "a shining light", and explained "Alyona was clearly the one who had prepared best, and who wanted it the most."

© Tony Quine July 2021