André Kuipers during the Russian State Commission

On 20 December 2011, André Kuipers, ESA astronaut, talks during the Russian State Commission's meeting to approve the Soyuz launch of Expedition 30 crewmembers.

André is scheduled to be launched on 21 December 2011 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, in Kazakhstan, on a Soyuz TMA-03M spacecraft as flight engineer for Expeditions 30 and 31. He travels together with Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko and NASA astronaut Don Pettit. They will remain in space for nearly five months as part of the international crew of six aboard the ISS.

The crew is behind a glass during the meeting because of medical quarantine.