MOSCOW. Dec 20 (Interfax-AVN) - The Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) and NASA have reached preliminary agreements on delivering foreign astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) on board Russian Soyuz spacecraft after 2016, chief of Roscosmos's manned spaceflight programs Alexei Krasnov told Interfax-AVN.
"The existing contract envisions the use of Russian Soyuzes for delivering astronauts to the ISS in the period up to 2017, but a Roscosmos delegation reached an agreement with NASA on extending the agreement to the end of 2017. Foreign astronauts will fly along with Russian cosmonauts on board our Soyuzes in 2017 and slightly longer," Krasnov said.
NASA expects that commercial manned spacecraft will carry out one or two test flights to the ISS at the end of 2017, Krasnov said. However, before the completion of the entire set of safety tests, these spacecraft would not be used to send people into space, and NASA will use Russian Soyuzes for this purpose, he said.
Energia space rocket corporation President Vitaly Lopota told Interfax-AVN earlier that Roscosmos and NASA were discussing the extension of the contract until 2018. He said the contract's worth would be identical to the previous one, adjusted for anticipated fluctuations in the financial-economic situation in the world and inflation.
Roscosmos and NASA concluded a $306-million agreement in 2009, covering flights of six astronauts to the ISS in 2012.
In April 2010, NASA and Roscosmos concluded another $335-million contract, under which Russia was supposed to send six astronauts to the ISS and ensure their return in 2013.
In March 2011, NASA announced the conclusion of a $753-million contract with Roscosmos for 12 flights of astronauts to the ISS and back on board Soyuz spacecraft in the period between 2014 and June 2016.