The station flight program generation through combination of prime expeditions providing crew permanent stay on board with more short-term visiting expeditions made possible operational planning of the research program depending on modified priorities of tasks to be solved and hardware readiness. Owing to this it has become possible to change operatively the lines of research on demand of experiment customers and suppliers and to extend them in the course of the station flight taking into account interests of other research institutions and countries.
Throughout the station operation period the experiment were being implemented in accordance with long-term programs of applied scientific research approved by directive bodies.
In 2000 the experiments were conducted in accordance with the "Agreement…." between RSC Energia and MirCorp on a lease of the Mir OC resources. The financing of the flight of the 28th prime expedition was performed on a commercial basis.
For lack of financing to continue the man-tended flight the Mir OC was transferred to an autonomous flight mode from mid-June 2000.
Development and agreement of the last Federal program of applied scientific research scheduled for implementation aboard the Mir on-orbit complex at the period of 1997-1999 was performed in close cooperation with the Coordination Scientific and Technological Board that was established in 1994 by the joint decision of RSA and RAS.
CSTB of RSA and RAS includes 10 sections headed by leading Russian scientists and managers of prime scientific institutions.