MOSCOW. June 16 (Interfax-AVN) - The administration of Russian aerospace departments is ready to consider female candidates for the national cosmonaut unit, Alexander Alexandrov from the Energia Aerospace Corporation has said.
"It has not been easy to select experienced, good male specialists, either. We are ready to consider female candidates for the next recruitment," Alexandrov said at a press conference in Zvezdny Gorodok on Monday.
Nine male candidates joined the Russian cosmonaut unit in late May 2003.
The new members of the cosmonaut unit were introduced to the administration of the cosmonaut training center and the press on Monday. Oleg Artemyev, Mark Serov and Andrei Borisenko are representatives of the Energia Aerospace Corporation; Sergei Ryazansky is a representative of the Institute of Medical and Biological problems; Anatoly Ivanishin, Alexander Samokutyayev, Yevgeny Tarelkin and Anton Shkaplerov are Air Force pilots; and scientist Sergei Zhukov is a representative of the Technology Transmission Center.
The applicants took part in a contest, and many were denied admission for health, age or other reasons, deputy head of the cosmonaut training center Andrei Maiboroda said.
"They will start general training today, and the training program will last for two years," Maiboroda said.
"There will be a state exam in May 2005, and the commission will consider their status as cosmonaut-tester or cosmonaut- researcher," Maiboroda said.
Two Kazakh cosmonauts, Aidyn Aimbetov and Mukhtar Aimakhanov, will start training together with the Russians.
This was the first recruitment for the Russian cosmonaut unit over the past five years. The cosmonaut unit is currently made up of 44 members.