aleksandr_samokutyaev

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Aleksandr Samokutyaev

ALEKSANDR SAMOKUTYAEV
PROFILE

Full Name:	Aleksandr Mikhailovich SAMOKUTYAEV.
Rank:	Colonel, Russian Air Force (Deceased).
Cosmonaut Call Sign:	"Tarkhany" (Noble person).
Born:	13 March 1970, in Penza, Penza Oblast, Russian SFSR, USSR (Russian).
Died:	17 June 2026, aged 56.
Education:	1987: Graduated from high school number 56 in Penza; while at high school he took up parachuting. 1987-88: Student at Penza Polytechnic Institute for one year before enrolling in a military aviation school. 1992: Degree in Command Tactical Fighter Aviation from the Chernigov Higher Military Aviation School named after Lenin's Komsomol (HMPS). 2000: Graduated from the Air Force Military Academy named after Yu. A. Gagarin. 2019: Degree in Human Resources Management and Personnel Policy, with honours, from the Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration.
Career Highlights:	1988-92: Student at Chernigov AF pilot school; (1992) graduated as a Pilot-Engineer. 1992-98: Served as an instructor at Chernigov before assignment to a helicopter school in Ukraine; ( ) promoted to senior pilot; subsequently reassigned as a squadron leader to the Far East Military District (FER) 1st Air Army. 1998-2000: Student, Gagarin Air Force Academy; (2000) graduated. 2000-03: Head of 2nd Division (Organisation & Planning) at the Cosmonaut Training Centre (TsPK) named for Yu. A Gagarin. In his flying career, Samokutyaev logged over 680 hours of flying time in various aircraft, including the Vilga-35A biplane, L-13 Blanik glider, L-39 Albatross jet trainer and the SU-34M (NATO "Fullback") fighter/bomber; completed 256 parachute jumps and was qualified as a diver officer.

COSMONAUT ASSIGNMENTS
2003:	(20 Jan) Passed the medical to become a cosmonaut; (29 May) selected for cosmonaut training (TsPK Group 13); (16 Jun - Jun 2005) began OKP basic cosmonaut training course; ( ) became selection group leader; student cosmonaut.
2004:	Student cosmonaut.
2005:	Student cosmonaut; (27 Jun) completed basic training, receiving 'excellent' marks; (5 Jul) qualified as a test cosmonaut; (Aug - Nov 2008) ISS advanced (expedition) training group.
2006:	ISS advanced (expedition) training group.
2007:	ISS advanced (expedition) training group.
2008:	ISS advanced (expedition training group); (Jul) reports indicated that he was to be assigned to the ISS EO-25 BUp crew; (Oct) indication of his assignment to the prime crew of EO-27; (Nov) completed ISS advanced (expedition) training; (Dec - Apr 2010) training as BUp Soyuz Commander/ISS EO-23/24 Flight Engineer (FE); ISS expedition training.
2009:	ISS expedition training; (10 Feb) passed medicals and named to Soyuz TMA-18 BUp crew; ISS expedition training; (1 Aug) transferred from the liquidated RGNII detachment to the FGBU detachment, service continuous; (7 Oct) asssignment to the prime crew for EO-27 confirmed; ISS expedition training.
2010:	ISS expedition training; (11-12 Mar) preflight examinations passed with good and excellent marks; (1 Apr) approved as Commander (CDR) of the BUp crew for Soyuz TMA-18 and FE EO-23/24; (2 Apr) BUp CDR during the launch of Soyuz TMA-18; (26 Apr) re-certified as cosmonaut of the Yu. A Gagarin CTC detachment; (Apr - Apr 2011) EO-27/28 prime crew training; ISS expedition training.
2011:	ISS expedition training; (4 Mar) passed exams relating to the Russian segment of ISS; (4 Apr) confirmed as CDR Soyuz TMA-21; 5 Apr - 16 Sep) flew as CDR Soyuz TMA-21 ("Gagarin") and ISS EO-27/28 FE-1 (164 days 5 hrs); (3 Aug) EVA (6 hrs 22 min); (16 Sep) landed in descent vehicle of Soyuz TMA-21; post-flight debriefing and rehabilitation.
2012:	(25 Jun) Hero of the Russian Federation; (Sep) replaced Kondratyev as prime crew CDR Soyuz TMA and FE ISS EO-41/42; (Oct - Mar 2014) expedition training as BUP Soyuz TMA-M CDR and ISS EO-39/40 FE; ISS expedition training.
2013:	(16 Jan - Oct 2015) Appointed Commander of 3rd Group of (Candidate) Cosmonauts, TsPK; (Jan) completed a 48-hr winter forest survival training course (with Barry Wilmore and Elena Serova) in a swampy forest close to Moscow; ISS expedition training.
2014:	ISS expedition training; (20 Feb) passed medical examinations for flight; (4 Mar) began training as BUp CDR for Soyuz TMA-M/ ISS EO-39/40; (4 Mar - Sep) ISS EO-41/42 prime crew training as Soyuz TMA-M CDR and ISS FE; (25 Sep - 12 Mar 2015) flew as CDR Soyuz TMA-14M and FE-1 ISS EO-41/42 (167 days 4 hrs); (22 Oct) EVA (3 hrs 41 min); IN SPACE.
2015:	IN SPACE; (11 Mar) landed in descent module of Soyuz TMA-14M; post-flight debriefing and rehabilitation; (19 Oct) relieved of his position as CDR 3rd Group of (Candidate) Cosmonauts and appointed Deputy Commander CTC Cosmonaut Detachment; (Dec) reports begin to emerge about his potential appointment as CDR Soyuz MS-09.
2016:	(Jul) Completed water survival training at the 179th Centre of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, Noginsk, Moscow Raion; (Oct) reports indicated that Samokutyaev had been replaced as CDR Soyuz MS-09 by Anton Shkaplerov.
2017:	(22 May) Released from his position as instructor cosmonaut due to undisclosed medical results, but retained his position as Deputy Commander of the CPS Cosmonaut Detachment.
2018:	Deputy CDR CPS Cosmonaut Detachment.
2019:	Deputy CDR CPS Cosmonaut Detachment; (May) reported to be in managerial administrative roles at TsPK.
2020:	Deputy CDR CPS Cosmonaut Detachment; (Sep) left cosmonaut team to enter politics.

POST-COSMONAUT EXPERIENCE
2020-26:	(Sep 2020 - Jun 2026) Deputy of the State Duma of the Federation Assembly of the Russian Federation; (Sep 2021) elected to the State Duma VIII congress as a member of the United Russia party for constituency No. 147, Lermontovsky, Penza Raion, winning 53.65% of the vote; (17 Jun 2026) died at the age of 56.

Aleksander SAMOKUTYAEV Space Flight Missions
Mission	Vehicle	Position	Dates DD/MM/YYYY	Duration DD:HH:MM:SS	EVAs (HH:MM)
ISS EO-27/28	Soyuz TMA-21	Soyuz CDR ISS FE-1	04/04/2011-16/09/2011	164:05:41:19	1 (06:22)
ISS EO-41/42	Soyuz TMA-14M	Soyuz CDR ISS FE-1	25/09/2014-12/03/2015	167:04:42:40	1 (03:41)

Missions Flown:		2	Total Flight Time:	331:10:23:59	2 (10:03)

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This profile is copyright Astro Info Service Limited, 2026.

ISS Expedition 27 crew portrait taken aboard the space station on commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the flight of Yuri Gagarin

The Expedition 27 crew pauses in the galley to commemorate the 50th anniversay of the first space flight by Yuri Gagarin, whose picture they are holding. Front: Dmitry Kondratyev (CDR, Roscosmos,Russia). Middle row l to r: Cady Coleman (FE, NASA, USA) Aleksandr Samokutyaev (FE, Roscosmos, Russia), Paolo Nespoli (FE, ESA, Italy). Back row l to r: Andrey Borisenko (FE, Roscosmos, Russia), Ron Garan (FE, NASA, USA). Image courtesy of NASA.

Samokutyaev in a work apron floating aboard the ISS

Samokutyaev is seen floating in the Unity Module aboard ISS while wearing a work apron, during Expedition 27 in 2011. Image courtesy of NASA.

Samokutyaev works at a glovebox during his second space flight to ISS

On his second flight to the ISS, Samokutyaev works with test samples in a glovebox in the Poisk Mini Research Module 2 (MRM2) during Expedition 41 in 2014. Image courtesy of NASA.

samokutyaev and his Expedition 41 colleagues enjoy a lighter moment with their spacesuits at Baikonur Cosmodrome

Much to the amusement of his Expedition 41/42 colleagues Elena Serova (FE, Roscosmos, Russia, left) and Barry Wilmore (FE, NASA, USA, right), Commander Samokutyaev 'dances' with his Sokol launch and entry suit during fit checks at Baikonur Cosmodrome in September 2014. Image courtesy of NASA/Victor Zelentsov.

Aleksandr Samokutyaev performs an EVA during his second spaceflight to ISS in 2014.

Samokutyaev performed an EVA on each of his two flights to the ISS. Here, he was working with Expedition 40 colleague Maksim Surayev on the Russian segment of the station in October 2014. The EVA was scheduled to last six hours, but the two cosmonauts completed all the work in less than four. Image provided by spacefacts.de

Samokutyaev poses for the camera while working with equipment in the MRM1 module aboard the ISS

Samokutyaev is seen working with Matryoshka-R Phantom hardware in the Rassvet Mini-Research Module 1 (MRM1) aboard the International Space Station during Expedition 27. Image courtesy of NASA.

Cosmonauts Elena Serova and Aleksandr Samokutyaev are seen during a broadcast interview aboard ISS.

Russian cosmonauts Elena Serova and Aleksandr Samokutyaev are filmed for a broadcast interview aboard the ISS during Expedition 42 in November 2014. Image courtesy of NASA.