First European woman heads for International Space Station

ESA's French astronaut Claudie Haignere will become the first European woman to visit the International Space Station (ISS) after she lifts off from Baikonur on board a Russian Soyuz vehicle on Sunday 21 October at 10:58 CEST (08:58 GMT) for a ten-day space mission.

By Space Daily Editorial Team · Editorial process

Published October 17, 2001 · Updated March 14, 2026

ESA’s French astronaut Claudie Haignere will become the first European woman to visit the International Space Station (ISS) after she lifts off from Baikonur on board a Russian Soyuz vehicle on Sunday 21 October at 10:58 CEST (08:58 GMT) for a ten-day space mission.

The Soyuz will dock with the International Space Station, approximately 48 hours after lift-off, on Tuesday 23 October at 12:43 CEST (10:43 GMT).

Before its arrival, the members of the Expedition Three crew already on board the station — Frank Culbertson, station commander, Vladimir Dezhurov, Soyuz commander, and flight engineer Mikhail Tyurin — will change the location of the Soyuz capsule currently attached to the station to clear the port for the arrival of the visiting crew.

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