Expedition 11 will put two hams aboard the ISS

The licensing in February of US Astronaut John Phillips, KE5DRY, will put two radio amateurs aboard the International Space Station (ISS) this spring.

Heading the Expedition 11 crew will be space veteran and Russian cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev, U5MIR, who will be doing his second tour of duty aboard the ISS.

Phillips' licensing eliminates complications for Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) school group contacts. The FCC granted Phillips' new Technician ticket February 2. Phillips and Krikalev were scheduled to begin their six-month stay aboard the ISS in April.

A seasoned space traveller, Phillips, who visited the ISS in 2001, will serve as flight engineer and as NASA ISS science officer during Expedition 11.

Krikalev served as flight engineer on the very first ISS crew and did duty tours aboard the Russian Mir space station in the late 1980s and early 1990s. By the time his Expedition 11 stay is over, he'll have spent more time in space than any other human

Source: ARRL Letter - courtesy of The American Radio Relay League

• Find out how Sergei Krikalev became the subject of an opera.

Other recent stories..