spacetoday.net: NASA makes deal for Soyuz rides

Posted: Fri, Jan 6, 2006, 7:05 AM ET (1205 GMT)
Soyuz TMA-5 approaches the ISS (NASA)

NASA has signed an agreement with the Russian space agency Roskosmos to purchase seats on Soyuz flights for a little over $20 million each, agency officials said Thursday. NASA will pay $21.8 million per seat on Soyuz missions to the ISS starting this spring, with the March flight of Expedition 13 crew member Jeff Williams — officially named to the mission on Thursday. The $43.8-million deal announced Thursday includes a seat for to-be-named NASA member of the Expedition 14 crew, who will fly on a Soyuz this fall if the shuttle has not returned to service, as well as a small amount of cargo space on a Progress spacecraft. Although the deal only covers 2006, Roskosmos has agreed to honor the $21.8-million price through 2011. NASA made the deal after an existing agreement whereby Russia provided free seats on Soyuz missions came to an end. NASA has to wait until Congress approved an amendment to the Iran Nonproliferation Act removing a prohibition against deals with Russia's space program.