NASA And Russia Had Been Planning
To initiate "seat swaps" this fall, with a cosmonaut, Anna Kikina, flying on SpaceX's Crew Dragon vehicle for the first time.
Presently, Kikina Is Scheduled
To launch as part of the "Crew 5" mission in September, which will be commanded by NASA astronaut Nicole Mann.
Around The Same Time
NASA astronaut Frank Rubio would launch on the Soyuz MS-22 mission, commanded by Sergei Prokopyev.
However, A Key NASA Official
Told Ars that there is still no official word on whether the swap will happen.
The Decision
Rests with diplomats in Moscow and Washington, DC, and should be finalized in the coming weeks.
"It's A Process"
"Roscosmos needs to get agreement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and then they go to their Prime Minister. After that, the agreement comes to the US State Department for approval."