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NASA Announces Revised Plan for Mir Staffing

Michael Braukus                       July 30, 1997
Headquarters, Washington, DC
Phone:  (202/358-1979)

Rob Navias/Ed Campion
Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX
Phone:  (281/483-5111)

RELEASE:  97-163

NASA ANNOUNCES REVISED PLAN FOR MIR STAFFING

     Astronaut Wendy Lawrence (Cmdr, USN) has been replaced by her 
backup, Dr. David Wolf, for the next long duration stay on the 
Russian Mir space station. The change will enable Wolf to act as a 
backup crew member for spacewalks planned over the next several 
months to repair the damaged Spektr module on the Russian outpost.

     Lawrence does not fit in the Orlan suit which Russian 
cosmonauts use for spacewalk tasks and never underwent spacewalk 
training.  Wolf fits in the Orlan suit.

     Lawrence will continue training in the backup role according 
to normal procedures, in the unlikely event that she is needed.  

     To enable Wolf to complete spacewalk training at the Gagarin 
Cosmonaut Training Center outside Moscow, the launch of Atlantis 
on the next Shuttle-Mir docking mission, STS-86 in September, 
could be delayed approximately 10 days.  Wolf had been scheduled 
for launch in January on STS-89 as the prime crew member for the 
final long duration increment on the Mir.

     NASA will be conducting their normal safety reviews in 
preparation for the transfer of a U.S. astronaut to Mir as was 
done before the last shuttle docking mission.  This review will 
imclude an evaluation of all the events that have occurred aboard 
the Mir since the last docking mission.  That final determination 
is expected at the conclusion of the formal U.S. review process at 
the shuttle program Flight Readiness Review in September.

     NASA and Russian space officials have discussed a variety of 
options for backup spacewalk capability since the Spektr module 
was damaged in the collision of a Progress resupply craft on June 
25.  It was jointly agreed by both sides that it would be mutually 
beneficial to have all three crew members on the Mir qualified for 
spacewalks in the event additional assistance is needed from the 
U.S. astronaut on the station.

     "The Russians usually only fly two people trained for 
spacewalks," said Frank Culbertson, Manager of the Shuttle-Mir 
Phase One program.  "Because of the number and the nature of 
spacewalks under consideration by the Russians to repair the 
Spektr, we have discussed at length the advantage of having 
another astronaut qualified for those tasks."

     Culbertson added, "The fact that Wendy does not fit in an 
Orlan suit is not unusual.  When first selected to fly on the Mir, 
it was absolutely normal that she would not be considered to be a 
spacewalk qualified crew member.  Only because of subsequent 
events have requirements on board the Mir changed.  As a result, 
the joint decision was made to have all three crew members on 
board qualified to handle spacewalking tasks."

     Lawrence was informed of the decision by Culbertson, who is 
in Russia for meetings with Russian space officials.

     Because of her knowledge and experience with Mir systems and 
with crew transfer logistics for the Mir, NASA will fly Lawrence 
on STS-86 in September which will deliver Wolf to the Russian 
station.  Wolf is fully trained on both Mir and Soyuz capsule 
systems.

                              - end -