Yusaku Maezawa
Moscow. may 13. INTERFAX.RU – Two Japanese space tourists will join the crew of the Soyuz MS-20 spacecraft, which will go to the International Space Station (ISS) in December, Roscosmos reported.
“Space Adventures, a leading provider of space tourism services, announces the start of preparations for a flight to the International Space Station by Japanese entrepreneur Yusaku Maezawa, who successfully passed a medical examination. Maezawa will fly to the ISS with his assistant Yozo Hirano on the Soyuz MS-20 spacecraft. The launch of which is scheduled for December 8, 2021 from the Baikonur cosmodrome, “the state corporation said.
As noted in the message, the flight duration will be 12 days, the commander will be the Russian cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin. Maezawa will begin training at Star City in June.
It is noted that Space Adventures has been cooperating with Roscosmos since the flight of the first space tourist in 2001. To date, seven space tourists have visited the station and paid for their flight on their own. Yusaku Maezawa will become the eighth tourist and the first space tourist from Japan, the state corporation noted.
Maezawa is a Japanese businessman, founder of Zozo Inc., is the 14th richest person in Japan. Hirano is a producer at Space Today. On the ISS, Hirano will be responsible for lighting Maezawa's flight.
Earlier, Maezawa announced plans to fly around the moon in 2023 on SpaceX's Starship.
