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Crew of Soyuz TMA-14M returned to Earth after a six-month mission

March 12, 2015

The descent vehicle of the manned spacecraft Soyuz TMA-14M made a successful landing 147 km to the South East of Dzhezkazgan (Kazakhstan). The touch-down occurred at 05:14 Moscow Time. The crew consists of Russian cosmonauts Alexander Samokutiyaev and Yelena Serova, as well as a NASA astronaut Barry Wilmore.

The manned transportation spacecraft Soyuz TMA-14M built by RSC Energia was launched to the ISS using Soyuz-FG launch vehicle on September 26, 2014 from the Baikonur launch site.

It was the first space mission for the flight engineer of ISS-41/42, the Russian cosmonaut Yelena Serova. In the history of our country's space flight, Y.Serova became the fourth woman to go into Earth orbit and the first Russian woman onboard the International Space Station (ISS). Y. Serova is an employee of RSC Energia, she joined the cosmonaut corps in December 2006.

Altogether, the crew of ISS-41/42 has spent 167 days in orbit. The cosmonauts took part in operations with unmanned transportation spacecraft Progress M-24M, Progress M-25M, Progress M-26M, European logistics spacecraft ATV-5, supported preparations for return to Earth of the crew of ISS-40/41 onboard Soyuz TMA-13M, together with the ground services conducted operations to control the docking of Soyuz TMA-15M. During the mission there was a spacewalk under the program of the Russian Segment of the ISS.

Within the framework of the research program, Alexander Samokutiyaev and Yelena Serova performed about 50 science experiments.

Until the participants in the next expedition arrive to the ISS, the station will be manned by the crew consisting of Anton Shkaplerov (Roscosmos), Terry Virts (NASA) and Samantha Cristoforretti (ESA).

OAO RSC Energia is a leading enterprise of rocket-space industry, the prime organization for manned space systems. The Corporation is engaged in the development of unmanned space - rocket systems (launch vehicles and interorbital transfer), high-tech special-purpose systems for use in non-space fields. Since August 2014, the Corporation is headed by Vladimir Lvovich Solntsev.