Russian ISS crew to be reduced to two cosmonauts - Krikalyov
MOSCOW. Aug 11 (Interfax) - The Russian crew of the International Space Station (ISS) will be reduced from three to two cosmonauts, Sergey Krikalyov, director of manned programs at the state corporation Roscosmos, told the newspaper Izvestiya.
"We have sent letters to the ISS program participants, we want to hear their opinion on how we should reduce the crew and when, there are nuances here. We are interested in the opinion of Mission Control, the Institute of Medical and Biological Problems [the head establishment of the Russian Academy of Sciences on manned program issues], our partners in the ISS. The intention to reduce the crew is due to the fact that we now have fewer supply spacecraft sent to the ISS, and also the realization of the need to boost the effectiveness of the program."
He said this decision will help reduce the cost of ISS operation. The paper reported that the draft federal space program for 2016-2025 envisages the provision for these purposes of 252.1 billion rubles from the budget for ten years, and also 12.6 billion rubles from extra-budgetary sources.
