Russia's Only Female Cosmonaut Anna Kikina Is All Set For Space Flight

Russia's only female cosmonaut Anna kikina is all set for her upcoming flight to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard Space X's Crew Dragon.The flight is scheduled for October 3.

The flight will be carried as scheduled, despite escalating tensions between Moscow and Washington over Russia's military intervention in Ukraine,.

Kikina, a 37-year-old engineer, will become the fifth professional woman cosmonaut from Russia to fly to space. The first Russian to travel aboard a Crew Dragon spacecraft, as part of a cross-flights deal between NASA and Russia's space agency Roscosmos.

In a report, Kikina said, "Yes, of course, I am ready for the flight. I will leave for America on 8 September for the final training session, pre-flight activities, and procedures." "This is a great responsibility. But I can also say that any flight is a big responsibility for a cosmonaut. So personally, I do not make special distinctions," added Kikina.

Cosmonaut Anna Kikina on her fellow travellers

Japan's Koichi Wakata and NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada will accompany Kikina for Space X's Crew-5 mission to the ISS. On US colleagues, kikina remarked, "I feel loved. I am very happy that I am part of this crew". She also spoke about carrying her toy named Gorodovichok as a token of her Siberian hometown Novosibirsk. Gorodovichok is a hand-made toy of a young boy with orange hair.

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Earlier, Elena Serova spent 167 days aboard the ISS from September 2014 to March 2015. Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman in space when she travelled into orbit in 1963. Svetlana Savitskaya, the second woman in space was the first woman to perform a spacewalk in July 1984. Russia also sent to space an actress, Yulia Peresild for shooting scenes for a movie for 12 days.

Anna Kikina, a test Cosmonaut was born on 27 August, 1984 in Novosibirsk, Russia. Kikina received honors from the Novosibirsk State Academy of Water Transportation Engineering.