Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of Kyrgyzstan Adylbek Kasymaliev presented a passport of a citizen of the Kyrgyz Republic to a cosmonaut, Hero of the Kyrgyz Republic Salizhan Sharipov.
«It is a great honor for me to present a passport to such an outstanding person. Salizhan Sharipov is the pride of our country. For us, you have always been and remain a people’s cosmonaut,» Adylbek Kasymaliev said.
In response, Salizhan Sharipov thanked for the attention and noted that he has always felt a connection with Kyrgyzstan and is proud of his origin.
Salizhan Sharipov is a cosmonaut, Hero of the Kyrgyz Republic, Major General of aviation. He was born on August 24, 1964 in the village of Uzgen, Osh region. He graduated from the Kacha Higher Military Aviation School of Pilots, served in the Air Forces of the USSR and Russia.
In 1990, he was enrolled in the cosmonaut corps. Salizhan Sharipov made two space flights: in 1998 on the Endeavour spacecraft (STS-89) as part of the NASA crew and in 2004-2005 as the commander of the Soyuz TMA-5 spacecraft and the 10th main expedition to the ISS. The total duration of the flights was 201 days.
He was awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation, Hero of the Kyrgyz Republic, orders and medals of Russia, Kyrgyzstan and a number of other countries.
