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Chiao replaces McArthur as next station commander NASA NEWS RELEASE Posted: January 12, 2004 Veteran NASA astronaut Leroy Chiao will replace William S. McArthur, Jr., as the commander of Expedition 9, the next mission aboard the International Space Station.
As a member of the Expedition 9 backup crew, Chiao has been training alongside McArthur for months. Chiao joins Russian Flight Engineer and Soyuz Commander Valery I. Tokarev for the six-month mission. The Expedition 9 crew is scheduled for launch aboard a Soyuz spacecraft in April. European Space Agency astronaut Andre Kuipers is the Board Engineer rounding out the three-member Soyuz crew. Kuipers returns to Earth with Expedition 8.
"Obviously, I'm disappointed I won't fly on the Expedition 9 mission, but I understand the necessity of the medical criteria that are in place for long-duration space flight," McArthur said. "I know that Leroy will ensure all of the Expedition 9 objectives are met, and I look forward to flying soon on another Space Station mission." |
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