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Roscosmos to extend flight duration of Soyuz manned spacecraft to 7-9 months next year

Next year, Roscosmos and NASA are set to sign the third supplement to the agreement on seat swap flights to the International Space Station

MOSCOW, December 28. /TASS/. Russia’s State Space Corporation Roscosmos will extend the flight duration of Soyuz MS manned spacecraft to seven-nine months from the current six months next year to economize on a spaceship every two years, the federal space agency told reporters on Saturday.

"Beginning with 2025, the flight duration of Soyuz MS spacecraft is set to be increased from six to seven-nine months, which will help economize on a spaceship every two years," Roscosmos said in a statement.

Next year, Roscosmos and NASA are set to sign the third supplement to the agreement on seat swap flights to the International Space Station. This move will ensure the guaranteed presence of at least one astronaut and at least one cosmonaut aboard the orbital outpost, it said.

"The agreement will additionally stipulate two flights by NASA astronauts aboard the Soyuz MS-28 and Soyuz MS-29 spaceships in 2025 and 2026, correspondingly, and three flights by Roscosmos cosmonauts on board Crew Dragon spacecraft (another additional flight in 2025, one flight in 2026 and one flight in 2027)," Roscosmos explained.

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