RUSSIA: RUSSIAN SPACE OFFICIALS HOPE THE TWO COSMONAUTS TO REACH THE CRIPPLED MIR SPACE STATION WILL FINISH REPAIRS BEFORE U.S. SPACE SHUTTLE DOCKS WITH IT

Record ID: 646121

  • Title: RUSSIA: RUSSIAN SPACE OFFICIALS HOPE THE TWO COSMONAUTS TO REACH THE CRIPPLED MIR SPACE STATION WILL FINISH REPAIRS BEFORE U.S. SPACE SHUTTLE DOCKS WITH IT
  • Date: 24th July 1997
  • Summary: KOROLYOV, RUSSIA (JULY 24, 1997) (RTV-W) - ACCESS ALL) 1. LV/SV/CU INTERIOR MISSION CONTROL; WORKER AT SCREEN; MODEL OF RUSSIAN SPACE STATION MIR (3 SHOTS) 0.16 2. MCU FLIGHT DIRECTOR VLADIMIR SOLOYOV SAYS: "NOW WE ARE WORKING ON TWO PLANS. THE FIRST IS PREPARATIONS FOR THE NEXT CREW, AND THIS IS A LOT OF WORK. STARTING WITH THE TRIVIAL WORK OF RESTORING ORDER UP TO THE MORE SERIOUS WORK OF THE ORIENTATION SYSTEM, LOADING THE SHUTTLE, WORKING ON THE LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS. AND THE SECOND IS FOR THE COSMONAUTS, WHO ARE ALSO LIVING PEOPLE, PREPARING FOR THEIR RE-ENTRY LANDING ON EARTH" (RUSSIAN) 0.55 MOSCOW, RUSSIA (JULY 24, 1997) (RTV (A) - ACCESS ALL) 3. LV OFFICIALS AT MOSCOW SPACE CENTRE PRESS CONFERENCE 1.00 4. SV MEDIA 1.05 5. MCU RUSSIAN SPACE AGENCY CHIEF YURI KOPTYEV SAYING : "OUR MOST IMPORTANT WORK NOW IS BLAST OFF, AND AS WE SEE IT NOW, THERE ARE NO OBSTACLES TO THAT BLAST OFF. IT WILL TAKE PLACE AS PLANNED ON THE 5TH" (RUSSIAN) 1.26 6. SV MEDIA 1.30 7. LV OFFICIALS AT PRESS CONFERENCE 1.35 STAR CITY, OUTSIDE MOSCOW, RUSSIA (JULY 24, 1997) (RTV-W) - ACCESS ALL) 8. LV CENTRIFUGE 1.40 9. CU FACE OF GERMAN ASTRONAUT THOMAS REITER IN MONITOR OF VITAL SIGNS 1.47 10. SV MEDIA 1.50 11. SV REITER STEPPING OUT OF CENTRIFUGE 2.00 12. MCU CAMERAMAN 2.06 13. MCU REITERS SAYS: "I HOPE THAT I HAVE MORE THAN A 99 PER CENT CHANCE OF FLYING AGAIN. IF THAT WILL BE FROM HERE OR IN THE U.S., IT WILL BECOME CLEAR. I HOPE THAT SINCE I HAVE FELT SO GOOD HERE, I WILL RETURN TO THIS FAMOUS AREA" (GERMAN) 2.22 14. SV INTERIOR OF CENTRIFUGE 2.26 Initials P3 S3/2 Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
  • Embargoed: 8th August 1997 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: KOROLYOV, MOSCOW AND STAR CITY, RUSSIA
  • City:
  • Country: Russia
  • Reuters ID: LVA9QY4IC9MLEUEEP91A3Y6LHT1J
  • Story Text: Russian space officials have said they hope the two cosmonauts due to reach the crippled Mir space station in two weeks time will finish risky repairs before a U.S. space shuttle docks with it in mid-September.

    Russian mission director Vladimir Solovyov said on Thursday (July 24) work to restore the power supply, damaged in a collision a month ago, would start soon after the cosmonauts arrive on Mir in August 7.

    Speaking at the Korolyov Mission Control, outside Moscow, he said cosmonauts aboard Mir were preparing the space station for the next crew. They are also preparing themselves to come back to earth, he added.

    Russian Space Agency chief Yuri Koptev told a news conference the collision on June 25 that knocked out half of Mir's power supply may mean a loss of three to four months from the experimental programme on the station and cost 15-20 million United States dollars to repair -- money his civilian body simply did not have.

    Accepting that a failure to restore power could mean the end of lucrative cooperation with the Americans, Koptev said he would be looking to the Russian government to help out, either from its special reserve fund for disasters or by reducing the extent of planned cuts in the space agency's 1997 budget.

    German Thomas Reiter became the first foreigner authorised to command the Russian-made Soyuz spaceships which carry crews to and from the space station Mir.

    Reiter spent the final stages of his training programme in a Soyuz model in the Zvyozdny Gorodok Cosmonauts Training Centre outside Moscow. Shortly after stepping out of the model he said he was pleased.

    Last year Reiter spent almost six weightless months on Russia's Mir space station with two Russian crew-mates, Sergei Avdayev and Yuri Gidzenko.


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