NPO Lavochkin engineer, three servicemen win Cosmonaut Crops open recruiting competition - Roscosmos

MOSCOW. May 28 (Interfax) - An engineer from Lavochkin Research and Production Association (NPO), Anastasia Burchuladze, has won a fourth open recruiting competition for the Cosmonaut Corps, alongside three other candidates, who are members of the Russian Armed Forces, according to data on the Roscosmos website.

Burchuladze was born in Arkhangelsk on May 13, 1996, the website said. In 2020 she graduated from Moscow Aviation Institute and received a PhD in Aircraft Engines. She has been design engineer at NPO Lavochkin since February 2019.

The second winner, Elchin Vakhidov, was born in Novosibirsk on April 17, 1993. In 2014 he graduated from St. Petersburg State Marine Technical University where he trained for Naval Engineer. The same year he completed military training for cadre officer. Since September 2014 Vakhidov has been senior engineer at the Russian Defense Ministry's 109th military representative office in Vilyuchnsk, Kamchatka Territory.

The third future cosmonaut, Vladimir Vorozhko, was born in Krasnodar Territory on September 14, 1997. In 2020 he graduated from the Serov Krasnodar Higher Military Aviation School of Pilots. From October 2020 to February 2021 he was a senior instructor pilot. Since February 2021 he has been ship commander.

The fourth winner, Alexander Zherebtsov, was born in the Azerbaijani Soviet Socialist Republic (now Azerbaijan) on November 8, 1990. In 2012 he graduated from the Zhukovsky - Gagarin Air Force Academy. In 2018 he graduated from Rostov State University of Economics. Since June 2015 he has been senior pilot and air squadron flight commander.

Following the fourth open recruiting competition the interagency commission recommended to the Cosmonaut Training Center four candidates - three men, one woman - for Roscosmos' Corps, Roscosmos said earlier on Tuesday.

"Very soon, Burchuladze, Vakhidov, Vorozhko and Zherebtsov will embark on two-year general space training," the state corporation said. Depending on the results of training and a state exam, the candidate test cosmonauts will be assigned the test cosmonaut qualification, it said.