MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 31st May, 2020) Dmitry Rogozin, the director general of the Russian state space corporation, on Sunday congratulated NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk on the successful docking of the manned Crew Dragon at the International Space Center (ISS).
On Saturday, SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket with two NASA astronauts, Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, was launched from the Florida space center, putting the Dragon module on its way toward the ISS. The capsule successfully docked with the space station earlier in the day.
"Dear @JimBridenstine, it's safe to congratulate you at this point with a successful launch and docking. Bravo! I know how anxious you were for this major event to become a success. I wish @NASA team to successfully finish up reconstructing its national space transportation system to the #ISS. Please convey my sincere greetings to @elonmusk (I loved his joke) and @SpaceX team. Looking forward to further cooperation!" Rogozin wrote on Twitter.
The Dragon capsule and the Falcon 9 carrier rocket were constructed by SpaceX for NASA, which has been seeking domestic capabilities since it retired the shuttle fleet in 2011 and relied on Russian spacecraft to fly its people to space. The launch of the Crew Dragon is the first manned launch by the US since 2011.
