Astronauts from Turkey, Italy and Sweden landed on Earth today after a three-week private visit to the International Space Station in Earth’s orbit.
The crew returned in the capsule of the private company “SpaceX”, which descended into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida, slowed by a parachute.
The flight to the space station was organized by the company “Axiom Space” (Axiom Space) from Houston, where former NASA astronaut Michael Lopez Alegria works, who accompanied the three passengers.
Turkey, Italy and Sweden financed the flight by paying $55 million per person for the tickets. It was the third such mission of “Axiom Space”, which is planning another one this year.
The former Turkish fighter pilot and Turkish Airlines captain Alper Gezeravci, Italian Air Force Colonel Walter Viladei and Swede Markus Vant, former fighter pilot and astronaut candidate for the European Space Agency, went on the trip.
Gezeravci, the first Turk to be in space, thanked Turkey for its “brave and decisive decision” to send him into space in honor of its 100th anniversary as a republic.
While in the station in Earth orbit, the astronauts performed scientific experiments and spoke with students and officials from their countries. They stayed at the International Space Station a few days longer than planned because they were waiting for the weather to return back to Earth.
