MOSCOW. Feb 22 (Interfax) - The first flight of a Belarusian female cosmonaut to the International Space Station (ISS) has been postponed until the beginning of 2024, Roscosmos Executive Director for Manned Space Programs Sergei Krikalev said.
"It [joint work with Belarusian cosmonauts] was initially scheduled for the end of this year, but the plan now is to postpone all of these efforts for about six months. This work continues to be planned, but it will take place a little later, at some point in early 2024," Krikalev said in a video circulated by the Roscosmos press service on Wednesday.
Roscosmos said on December 28, 2022 that the main medical commission had selected six candidates from Belarus for a space flight. Recommendations for the selection of the main cosmonaut and backup were sent to the Belarusian side.
Cosmonaut Training Center head Maxim Kharlamov said on December 24 the name of the candidate from Belarus for a space flight and their backup will become known in 2023. Russian President Vladimir Putin at recent talks with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko confirmed the intention to send a Belarusian cosmonaut to the ISS in 2023.
Belarusian Academy of Sciences President Vladimir Gusakov said the training of a Belarusian cosmonaut in Russia should be completed in September 2023 and the first Belarusian cosmonaut should be a woman.