September 29, 2009.
S.P. Korolev Baikonur Branch Office, Baikonur Cosmodrome

The State Commission held its meeting at Baikonur launch site where the primary and backup crews for Soyuz TMA-16 were approved and the readiness of the space launcher system was confirmed.

At the suggestion of the Head of the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center S.K Krikalev, the State Commission approved the proposed composition of the primary and backup crews.

Prime crew: ISS Flight Engineer, Commander of the Soyuz TMA TS, RFAF Colonel, Commander of Cosmonauts Corps Team, NII CTC after Yu A. Gagarin, Russia Maxim Viktorovich Suraev; ISS-21 Flight Engineer, ISS-22 Commander, Soyuz TMA TSC Flight Engineer, US AF Colonel, NASA Astronaut, Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, USA Jeffrey Nels Williams; participant of space flight, Canada Guy Laliberte.

Backup crew: ISS Flight Engineer, Soyuz TMA TSV Commander, RF AF Lieutenant - Colonel, Military Pilot, 1st Class,Test Cosmonaut, NII CTC after Yu.A. Gagarin, Russia Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Skvortsov; ISS Commander, Soyuz TMA TSV Flight Engineer, NASA astronaut, USA Shannon B. Walker; Space Flight participant, USA Barbara McConnel Barrett.

The members of the primary and backup crews reported their readiness for the mission.

The launch of the integrated space vehicle Soyuz-FG/Soyuz TMA-16 is scheduled for September 30, 2009 at 11 hours 14 minutes 42 seconds Moscow Time.