Russian Movie in Space Part 12

 Rogozin wants to send "Вызов" back-up crew members into Space too. 

The Soyuz MS-19, carrying the so-called 'creative crew' of professional cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov and movie makers Klim Shipenko and Julia Peresild was launched successfully on 5th October. A little over three hours later, the Soyuz docked with the International Space Station, although the docking was completed manually, after a problem with the automated Kurs system. 

The flight, so far, has been reported in the global media, so we don't propose to repeat, or compete, with that coverage. However we will report a small sub-plot which emerged during the post-docking media event.

Dmitri Rogozin, Head of Roscosmos, has revealed that the two back-up Spaceflight Participants, for Soyuz MS-19 had been invited to join the professional cosmonaut team. Aleksey Dudin, 40, a camera operator and Alyona Mordovina, 33, an actress, have both received the official invitation. Rogozin explained that both had successfully completed the challenging cosmonaut medical, physical and psychological tests, in the Spring.

They have also completed four months of flight specific training, and passed their final examinations, as part of the back-up crew, with professional cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev. In fact, this crew actually outscored the prime crew, in those examinations. So, they were fully certified to fly the Soyuz MS-19 mission, had this become necessary. 

Mr Dudin would join a fairly long line of male cosmonauts at various stages of preparation for their first spaceflight. However, for Miss Mordovina, the situation would be rather different. 

Roscosmos only has a solitary female cosmonaut in their team, Anna Kikina, 37, an engineer recruited in 2012, and due to make her first spaceflight, next year. No women were successful in the 2018 or 2020 recruitment processses. Rogozin has previously commented on his wish to rapidly expand the available pool of female cosmonauts. 

Another participant in the actress recruitment process, Galina Kairova, 26, who is also a pilot, received an offer to join the cosmonaut squad, in May, when she reached the final stages of the casting process. So the news that Miss Mordovina had received a similar offer was not totally unexpected.

Recently, the Head of the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre (GCTC), Maxim Kharlamov, said that he was in regular contact with Miss Kairova, but it seems that no solid plans for her are yet in place. Perhaps the plan is to sychronise the recruitment of both women, now that Miss Mordovina is free from her back-up duties?

Roscosmos Press Office declined to make any additional comment. However, long before Rogozin's announcement, informal contacts within the GCTC had remarked that Miss Mordovina could well be recruited into the cosmonaut team. Her excellent performance in training, personal qualities, and the general lack of female cosmonauts had created her opportunity. 

So far, the response from Miss Mordovina, and Mr Dudin, has not been reported, although when talking to a TV reporter, prior to the launch and Rogozin's comments, Alyona had said, "We might get that opportunity (to fly in Space) very soon." 

We will keep a close eye on this story, and bring updates, as they occur.

Words - Tony Quine October 2021

Photos - Roscosmos or GCTC Press Offices.

Russian Movie in Space Part 11

 Final Countdown for Russian

“Movie in Space” Project

For ten months, we’ve been following the progress of the Russian ‘Movie in Space’ project “Challenge” (Vyzov). We were the first media outlet to break several aspects of the story, including the names of the successful actresses, back in  April

Now those two actresses, Julia Peresild and Alyona Mordovina are among the six crew members, at the Baikonur cosmodrome, ready for the launch on 5th October. 

As this update was being prepared, all indications are that the prime crew Anton Shkaplerov, Klim Shipenko and Julia Peresild will make the flight, and the Movie. However, a final decision won't be announced until the State Commission meet on Monday 4th October.

The last three weeks have been very busy for both crews as they moved through the carefully scheduled series of milestones which precede every Soyuz launch. On 8th and 9th September, both crew undertook the so called 'Complex Examinations' at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre. This involves tests on the crews' knowledge of the Soyuz and ISS Russian Segment, and requires them to deal with a complex sequence of system failures and malfunctions, under the scrutiny of examiners and instructors.

Both crews achieved the required 'pass' in both exams, with the back-up crew achieving slightly better scores 9.56 to 9.50 (out of 10). However, a few days later the planned crew assignments were confirmed by the Interdepartmental Commission; Prime - Shkaplerov, Shipenko and Peresild; Back-up - Artemyev, Dudin, Mordovina. 

Immediately after this decision, a further sequence of cosmonaut traditions began with a crew Press Conference, followed by a visit to Red Square, where flowers were laid on the tombs of Yuri Gagarin and Sergei Korolev. Unusually, Klim Shipenko did not take part in the Red Square ceremony, which caused surprise among some observers.

Julia Peresild, who had previously used her social media posts to make it clear that she had found the training very difficult, was clearly relieved to have passed the final exams, and was in a very positive and upbeat mood, for the first time in several weeks. Her understudy, Alyona Mordovina, explained that she had found the training experience to be enjoyable and enriching, rather than difficult, although she had been nervous during her cinematic audition with Klim Shipenko.

The next milestone was the departure to Baikonur, a tense occasion which involved the crews saying farewell to family members, which for Julia Peresild included her two daughters. However, the two actresses encouraged the crews to introduce new traditions and photo opportunities, as shown below. 

A few hours later, both crews, who had flown on seperate aircraft, arrived at Baikonur, which was much warmer than Moscow had been. The arrival procedures included clearing Border Control, as they were entering Kazakhstan.

                                                                     

The following day, Sunday 19th September, both crews spent the whole day on the first stage of accepting the Soyuz MS-19 spacecraft, and their Sokol flight suits. This involved each crew boarding the craft in their flight overalls, and undertaking various checks and noting any recommendations for refinements or changes. Later in the day, the crews donned their personally tailored Sokol suits and took their seats in the Soyuz for a second time. This check is usually only performed by the prime crew, but on this occasion, the back-up crew also performed the process.

The following 10 days have seen the crews undertaking a busy schedule of training, medical tests, vestibular preparations and further long-standing traditions such as flag raising, tree planting, and visiting various historical locations around the Baikonur complex.

Alyona Mordovina revealed, on her Instagram, that the crews have created a new tradition, by watching a movie, from Klim Shipenko's collection, each evening. She also wrote about the strong bond and atmosphere of mutual support and fun which has developed between the two crews.

On 29th September, the crews revisited the Building 254 location to complete the final acceptance on the Soyuz MS-19, before it is mated to the booster, ready for rollout to the launchpad, on 3rd October.                         

                                                          

Meanwhile, the TV station participating in the project have started to ramp up their coverage, beginning with retrospective coverage of the selection of the two actresses, back in March, and the spaceflight training which began in May. 

These programmes showed that the demanding and daunting process which Julia Peresild, Alyona Mordovina and Aleksey Dudin came through was exactly the same as used for screening professional cosmonaut candidates, and culminated in a challenging 8-G centrifuge run. Consider that no female applicants were successful in the 2018 or 2020 cosmonaut selection groups, and then the rapid pace of their training, testing and preparation, over the Summer, and Julia Peresild and Alyona Mordovina should feel very proud of themselves, for being where they are now. 

As we finalised this Blog, the back-up crew had just observed another Baikonur tradition by witnessing the rollout of the booster to the launchpad, at T-4 days.

The next Space Sleuthing update on the Soyuz MS-19 mission will come after the launch.

Images by Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre

Words by Tony Quine

Russian Movie in Space Part 10

 

Russian 'Movie in Space' preparations enter the final month.

For nine months, we’ve been carefully following the progress of the Russian ‘Movie in Space’ project “Challenge” (Vyzov). We were the first media channel to break several aspects of the story, including the names of the final four actresses, back in  April

Now, with just a month left until a Russian actress goes into space on Soyuz MS-19, we enter the most critical stages of the preparations. The two crews, Anton Shkaplerov, Klim Shipenko and Julia Peresild (prime) and Oleg Artemyev, Aleksey Dudin and Alyona Mordovina (back-up) have more or less completed their training, in the shortest time attempted by any Russian space crew. On 31st  August, all were passed as fit for spaceflight, by the State Medical Commission. They are now preparing for the final tests, which will determine which crew will be the first all-Russian crew to go into space for over twenty years.

Of course, Shkaplerov, Shipenko and Peresild are currently in the prime seats, but there is a chance that the back-ups may perform better, in the complex examinations, or that the final selection could be a combination of both the training crews. 

As we will explore below, with the accelerated training regime and the unusual nature of the flight, and crew, it is still all to play for. As a cosmonaut told me recently, "Several options are still open!" The Interdepartmental Commission who will determine the final crew line-up, are due to meet in mid-September.

On 5^th September, Moscow’s Channel One TV began broadcasting a ‘behind the scenes’ documentary, which will continue weekly, until after the Soyuz landing on 17^th October. The first episode began to follow the process through which the three thousand applicants for the role were reduced to twenty, then four and finally two, Julia Peresild and Alyona Mordovina. The first episode can be viewed here.

Roscosmos have said that this coverage will allow the viewers to appreciate the ‘professionalism, skill and courage of the many specialists engaged in the Russian space sector.’ 

According to the schedule released by the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre, on 8^th and 9^th September, the two crews will participate in the critical final examinations. This involves each crew performing a simulated Soyuz launch, docking, and landing, while dealing with various off-nominal situations created by  their instructors and examiners. They then perform a similar exercise in the ISS Russian Segment, carrying out routine duties and actions, interspersed with further problems and challenges to resolve. The nature of the emergencies is determined by the crew selecting one of several sealed envelopes which each contain a different combination of challenges. As each crew includes a female cosmonaut, it is the usual protocol that the Commander allows them to choose the envelope!

After this, there will be a period of rest and relaxation, before the Interdepartmental Commission meets on 16^th September to announce which crew will fly, and to authorise the start of the pre-launch phase, and departure to Baikonur, which is planned for 18^th. Between these two events, the crews will perform one of the great Russian pre-flight traditions and visit Red Square to lay flowers at Yuri Gagarin’s tomb.

The extended interval between the examinations and the Interdepartmental Commission, compared to other recent Soyuz launch campaigns, suggests that the Commission members anticipate needing a little longer than usual to determine the crew which will fly. 

Historically, several Spaceflight Participants have been elevated (and others demoted) at this stage, and they may be preparing for a similar situation, here. The Commission includes representatives of the divisions of Roscosmos, RSC Energiya, but does not include anyone from Channel One. It is purely a cosmonautics decision.

There are several indications that Julia Peresild has found the training very challenging. Earlier in the Summer, reports from sources within the GCTC had indicated that she was struggling with the vast amount of technical information she was required to absorb rapidly and was being significantly outperformed by her back-up, Alyona Mordovina. 

In late August, the same sources mentioned that Peresild was "clearly under a lot of pressure from different directions".

The four Spaceflight Participants are not allowed to give formal interviews, but each has used Social Media to convey information about their experiences and thoughts. Julia Peresild, has 400,000 followers, has posted several photographs, texts and videos to her audience and has been remarkably honest and open about how difficult she has found the training. On 27^th August, she wrote “The word hard, does not come close to describing how it is.” Peresild has also mentioned, on several occasions that she is ‘scared’ about what she is going to do. 

On the other hand, Alyona Mordovina has been very positive in her Social Media posts. She is clearly grateful for the extraordinary opportunity and experience which she has had over the last few months. Her technical performance we mentioned above, and she seems to be relaxed and confident and totally ready to step in, if Peresild does falter, or fails to satisfy the Interdepartmental Commission.

Channel One will want to maintain interest in the TV show, throughout September, and will, no doubt, want some unexpected events, and drama, to maintain public interest in the project and their TV coverage. Some changes to the crew, and therefore the star of the movie might deliver that! The coming few weeks will still be interesting!

Incidentally, in a display of typical showmanship, the Head of Roscosmos, Dmitri Rogozin, has invited Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson to attend the Soyuz MS-19 launch. However, so far, he doesn’t appear to have invited Tom Cruise, whose plans to fly to the ISS with SpaceX, caused the Russian authorities to initiate this project in September 2020. 

In tandem with the flight training and preparations, the two crews have been undertaking technical rehearsals for the ISS movie filming, which is planned to produce around 35-40 minutes of screen content. As the plot revolves around a surgical procedure being carried out on the ISS, some photos have been released showing the mock-up of the newly arrived Nauka (MLM) Module, being used as a makeshift operating theatre. Some Russian media sources have reported that the training schedule overlooked the need for these rehearsals and so they have mostly been held at the weekends!

Images by Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre and Sasha Gusov

Words by Tony Quine

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

 

Russian Movie in Space Part 7

 

The crews are selected and training begins!!

Here at the Space Sleuthing Blog we’ve been following the very interesting ‘Movie in Space’ «Вызов» (Challenge) for over six months , and we’ve already written six Blogs, including some exclusive materials!

On 13^th May, the announcement was made of the identities of the Prime and Back-up crews which will now be prepared under the ISS Expedition Crew 66 programme, for launching on Soyuz MS-19 :-

Prime Crew

Anton Skhaplerov, Klim Shipenko, Yulia Peresild.

Back-up Crew

Oleg Artemyev, Aleksey Dudin, Alyona Mordovina

 

As this announcement was widely reported in the mass media, in Russia, and across the World, we did not see that there was any great value in re-writing all this in our Blog. After all, our purpose is to record different perspectives and exclusives.

However, there are some interesting details surrounding the selection of the two crews which have not been widely reported, but which were collected from Social Media, and which sit very neatly within the purpose and scope of our Blog.

For example, recording the final the timeline relating to the selection of Yulia Peresild and Alyona Mordovina.

Although the campaign to attract actresses and other women to apply for the role was initiated in November (link) the twenty ladies chosen to be finalists were only notified on, or around 7^th March, just a couple of days before a public announcement

The actresses, together with a small number of other professionals (pilot, doctor, psychologist) were tested at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre (GCTC) in small groups from 15^th March. It is very interesting to note that the first actress to be confirmed as qualified for training as a cosmonaut was Alyona Mordovina. She remained as the only confirmed candidate for a couple of weeks, until, right at the end of the screening process three more candidates were accepted; Yulia Peresild, Sofya Arzhakovskaya (aka Sofya Skya) and Galina Kairova, a pilot. 

At this point, the four ladies had a tense wait of over a month, until the creative team, headed by Klim Shipenko carried out a casting process, on 12^th May. Unfortunately, Sofya Arzhakovskaya could not attend as her son was ill, and she had to quarantine. The following day, 13^th May, the assignments of Persild and Mordovina were confirmed by the State Medical Commission, at the GCTC.

The position of Klim Shipenko as Director, and a member of the prime crew had been clear for many months, subject to him completing the medical and physical tests.  However, his back-up had not been publicly mentioned until the Medical Commission when Aleksey Dudin was confirmed, alongside Alyona Mordovina, and Oleg Artemyev. Aleksey is an experienced and skilled camera operator, who has been involved in the production on several movies and TV series.

There are a number of notable ‘firsts’ which will now be achieved by the Soyuz MS-19 mission:-

•  The first time that an all-Russian crew has been launched to the International Space Station, even though it has been continuously manned for over 20 years.

• The first time that two Spaceflight Participants (non- professional cosmonauts) have been launched together, on the same Soyuz.

• The first time that Russian citizens have been sent into Space, as Spaceflight Participants.

• And, of course it will be the first full-length feature film to be filmed largely in Space. 

We should also mention, that whether it is Yulia, or Alyona, who eventually goes up on Soyuz MS-19, they will be only the fifth Soviet/Russian woman to be launched into Space.

 

Naturally, the mainstream media tends to focus upon the Prime Crew, Anton, Yulia and Klim, but here at the Space Sleuthing Blog, we hope to be able to bring perspectives and experiences from the Back-up Crew, Alyona and Aleksey.

                              

The role of the Back-up Crew can often be over-looked, but they have a critical role to play in ensuring the success of the mission. At any moment, right up to the launch, they are only a heart beat away from going into Space. So, the Back-up crew have to prepare with the same focus, diligence and courage as the Prime Crew.

Indeed, we can look back to situations involving Spaceflight Participants in 2006, 2008 and 2015, where prime crew SFP’s were replaced, for various reasons. Therefore, it is easy to make the connection that Back-up SFP’s have a much higher chance of flying than their professional cosmonaut colleagues!!

On 24^th May, the four Spaceflight Participants reported to the GCTC for the start of the training and preparation process. The initial stages take place over four weeks, and besides classroom study and tuition and beginning to work on Soyuz and ISS (Russian Segment) simulators, will include several key parts of the overall training process:-

•         Flights simulating Zero-G on an IL-76 aircraft

•              Water recovery and survival training, in preparations for potential Soyuz landing of water

•              Visit to the “Zvezda” company for measuring and assessment for the production of bespoke         “Sokol” spacesuits and Soyuz seat-liners.

After this, the Soyuz MS-19 crews will visit the Baikonur cosmodrome to witness the preparations, and launch of the unmanned Progress MS-17 currently planned for 30^th June. It is likely that some of these activities will also involve the crews of Soyuz MS-20, which is due to take two Japanese ‘space tourists’ to the ISS, in December.

At the Space Sleuthing Blog, we want to wish everyone involved in preparations for the Soyuz MS-19 mission every success and good fortune during their preparations, and we look forwards to reporting again, across the Summer.

 

© Tony Quine May 2021

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

  

 

Mystery of Missing ‘Space Tourists’ explained!

Mystery of Missing ‘Space Tourists’ explained

 

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The announcement, on May 13th, of the crew of the first double-tourist Soyuz spaceflight, Soyuz MS-20, caused some surprise, when neither of the expected candidates were named by space tourism provider Space Adventures.

The Space Sleuthing Blog previously reported that the space tourists on Soyuz MS-20 would be Japanese singer, Yumi Matsutoya, and Austrian pilot Johanna Maislinger, who has been a client at Space Adventures since 2017.

Instead, Space Adventures and Roscosmos, announced that the billionaire behind the proposed DearMoon Project, Yusaku Maezawa, would take the flight to the International Space Station, prior to the manned lunar fly-by, accompanied by his assistant Yozo Hirano.

This development caught ‘space-watchers’ by surprise, particularly, as if Maezawa wanted to make such a ‘dry run’ to low Earth orbit, a trip on a SpaceX Crew Dragon would have seemed a more logical choice. However, as NASA have said recently, docking port availability at the ISS is an issue, and it seems likely that Maezawa has taken the Soyuz option, in order to fly sooner than would have been possible with SpaceX.

 

Previously, Yumi Matsutoya’s name had been linked to the flight when her name was included on documents drawn up on the Russian side, alongside the otherwise unknown Yozo Hirano, in late 2020. It now looks probable that her name was used in an effort to conceal Maezawa’s name, as he presumably wished for his identity to be concealed, until the last possible moment. It is notable that Matsutoya and Maezawa share the same initials, YM, in both English and Russian, which may be why her name was chosen for the ruse.

Regarding Johanna Maislinger, a Boeing 777 captain, she had claimed to be raising her own funding and sponsorship for the Soyuz trip, and had boasted back in 2017 that 'money and media support will be no problem'. 

Regardless of how realistic that claim was, she would clearly have been financially out-gunned by the wealth of the Japanese billionaire, particularly when he decided to buy both Soyuz seats. Space Adventures have no further Soyuz flights booked until 2023.

 

In May 2021, information emanated from one of the ISS partner agencies that  revealed, that in early 2021, they were advised that Maislinger had failed to secure sufficient funding for her spaceflight. However, she was being lined-up up to undertake cosmonaut training in Russia, and then to serve as a back-up to a future Soyuz space tourist. Roscosmos has to get clearance from their International partners for any potential crew members on visiting Soyuz missions, including back-ups, so Maislinger’s credentials appear to have been circulated as part of this process.

Sources in Russia had suggested that Yusaku Maezawa would have a 'non-flying' back-up, similar to previous Space Adventures clients in 2008, 2009 and 2015, when three different people trained as part of a back-up crew, but with no realistic prospect of replacing prime crew member, in the event of a serious problem.

Of course, training as a back-up is a much cheaper option than flying, so this seemed to be a more realistic option for Maislinger. 

During the Medical Commission, in May, where the prime crew of Soyuz MS-20 (and also MS-19 were confirmed) a third Japanese citizen was also approved for spaceflight. He was Shun Ogiso, the PR Director of the Dear Moon Project. Ogiso is understood to be a potential back-up for Yozo Hirano. 

However, there was no fourth candidate presented for approval, leaving the question of Maezawa’s back-up, and Maislinger’s fate, at that point, still unclear.

In July 2021, a representative of the Moscow office of Space Adventures finally confirmed that Maislinger never had the financial support required, and had never been treated as a serious candidate for the Soyuz flight. 

Despite this, between June and December 2020, they had included her name on lists of potential clients submitted regularly to Roscosmos. The most likely scenario is that, by this stage, Maislinger was still hanging onto the believe that she could raise the money, and was enjoying seeing her name, and photograph, being widely quoted, as a potential Space Tourist. 

Copyright Tony Quine May 2021 (Updated August 2021)