VIDEO: Expedition 42-43 mission preview

Two Russian cosmonauts and a U.S. Navy test pilot will buckle into custom-molded seats inside a Soyuz spaceship Wednesday, undock from the International Space Station and head for a parachute-assisted landing in Kazakhstan to close out a 167-day space voyage.

The next Expedition 42 trio waiting to join the International Space Station crew conducted final Sokol launch and entry suit fit checks at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

Three space station fliers — the outgoing NASA commander and two Russian cosmonauts — undocked and returned to Earth Wednesday, ending a 167-day stay in space with a communications blackout that left the crew out of contact with flight controllers during much of the trip home.