Even though Tito, a California businessman, has trained for months at cosmonaut headquarters in Star City, Russia, he needs six to eight weeks of instruction at the Johnson Space Center to be minimally qualified in NASA's eyes. NASA has suggested that Tito be bumped to the following Soyuz rocket launch to the space station in October, to allow for sufficient U.S. training. That way, NASA reasons, he could go through emergency and other drills with the three men who will be flying on the space station then. Readdy stressed that space flight is fraught with danger and nonprofessionals have no business being there unless thoroughly trained. He pointed to the fire and collision aboard Mir in 1997.
False alarms can be unnerving, too.
On Monday, the three seasoned space fliers aboard the space station sounded exasperated and confused when a false smoke alarm and a computer problem left them scrambling for hard copies of their emergency guidelines. Readdy, who's flown to Mir and worked with the Russian space program, said the Russians have a phrase to describe crew members like Tito and the Japanese TV reporter and British chemist who flew to Mir in the early 1990s. White gloves, which means they're not allowed to touch anything. That's the operational impact that I think we as a partnership are trying to avoid. Tell us what you think.