NEW DELHI, February 28. /TASS/. The process of preparations for flights on the Soyuz spacecraft is significantly more intricate and demanding than training for Crew Dragon missions, according to cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev, who is slated to fly on the US Crew Dragon spacecraft for the Crew-12 mission in 2026. He shared his insights with TASS.
"When preparing to fly on Soyuz, you are trained to both control and steer the spacecraft. Since the era of Sergey Korolev, the system has had triple redundancy; the vehicle can operate autonomously, in semi-automatic mode with crew assistance, or under complete manual control. In contrast, the Crew Dragon offers limited opportunities for crew involvement; the crew primarily monitors the process rather than controls it. As a result, training for Crew Dragon is less intensive, with fewer theoretical components and more emphasis on self-training. In preparing for a Soyuz flight, you must pass approximately 150 exams, compared to just a dozen for Crew Dragon," he explained.
Artemyev expressed his eagerness for his upcoming flight. "All cosmonauts aspire to fly, provided they pass the medical examinations. I feel fortunate to have passed once again and been assigned a mission. I’m a bit impatient to return to my second home in space. With each flight, the pull to return grows stronger," he remarked.
"It is truly a great joy and a genuine delight for me. The only disappointment is that this flight is not happening soon. Currently, I am part of the standby crew, which will serve as a reserve in the summer, after which I will join the primary crew. I have to pass at least four medical assessments before the flight. Each test could potentially be my last at my age, as you know. As luck would have it," he added.
Roscosmos and NASA are conducting cross-flights as part of their International Space Station (ISS) program. Some American astronauts travel to the ISS aboard Russian Soyuz vehicles, while Russian cosmonauts fly on American Crew Dragon spacecraft. According to earlier reports from Roscosmos, cosmonauts Oleg Platonov and Oleg Artemyev have been assigned to the crews of the Crew-11 and Crew-12 missions, scheduled for launch in the latter half of this year and the first half of next year.
Artemyev has completed three space missions throughout his career - in 2014, 2018, and 2022 - with a total flight time exceeding 560 days. He has conducted eight spacewalks. He traveled to New Delhi to participate in the NXT Global Development Forum, where he shared his thoughts on the development of Russia-India relations in the space industry.