The next, 13th expedition to the International Space Station launch is scheduled on March 30, 2006 from space-vehicle launching site Baikonur, the Roscosmos official VYacheslav Davidenko has informed on Wednesday.

"Launching campaign on preparation of new pilot expedition to the ISS shall start in the middle of February, right after the spaceship "Soyuz TMA-8" arrives from near Moscow Korolev town. The mission launch is scheduled on March 30", noted he.

The spaceship must take to the Station the crew of the 13th expedition, consisting of Russian astronaut Pavel Vinogradov and NASA astronaut Jeffrey Williams, and the first Brazilian astronaut Marcus Pontes. For the first time NASA is going to pay for the American astronaut`s flight to the ISS and back to the Earth. The payment to Roscosmos constitutes over $21 million.

In 2005 Russia completely fulfilled its international commitments to deliver NASA astronauts to the ISS free of charge.

Pontes is to return back to the Earth after short program of visit to the ISS together with the crew of 12th expedition to the ISS - the Russian Valery Tokarev and American astronaut William McArthur. They have worked at the Station since October, 2005.
sections: World News, Region News, Hi-Tech
areas: Central region