CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Astronauts from Turkey, Italy and Sweden returned to Earth on Friday, ending a private three-week mission to the International Space Station.
The trio were accompanied by a retired NASA astronaut who now works for Axiom Space, the Houston company that arranged the chartered flight. The crew returned in a SpaceX capsule that parachuted into the Atlantic off the Florida coast.
Turkey celebrated Alper Gezeravci’s launch from Cape Canaveral last month. A former fighter pilot and captain for Turkish Airlines, he became the first person from his country to fly in space.
Gezeravci was joined on the trip by Italian Air Force Col. Walter Villadei, Sweden’s Marcus Wandt, a former fighter pilot chosen as a reserve astronaut by the European Space Agency in 2022 and Michael Lopez-Alegria, their escort.
Turkey, Italy and Sweden financed the mission, paying roughly $55 million apiece. It was Axiom’s third private mission to the space station; the fourth is planned later this year.
Celebrity birthdays for the week of May 26
Chad kicks off presidential campaign
Xictionary: Putting People at the Center
Bolivia urges UN to facilitate peace in Middle East
Interview: Somalia seeks drought relief funding in worst humanitarian crisis
Red Sea crisis mounts pressure on Asia trade
Roundup: Ethiopian gov't, rebels agree to ceasefire
Lafrenière continuing his breakthrough season as a solid contributor for Rangers in NHL playoffs
Roundup: Experts warn hunger, food insecurity rising in Africa
Tamara Ecclestone is criticised as her daughter Fifi, 10, heads out wearing heavy make
Xi pays visit to grassroots officials and residents in Tianjin ahead of Spring Festival