Turkey Picks Former Air Force Fighter Pilot As First Astronaut

Alper Gezeravcı (left) and Tuna Cihangir Atasever (right) stand with Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the Teknofest event in Istanbul on April 29.

Credit: Turkish government
Turkey has named a former air force F-16 pilot as its first astronaut. Alper Gezeravcı, 43, will fly to the International Space Station (ISS) later this year as part of the country’s space program, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced at the Teknofest fair in Istanbul on April 29. Gezeravcı will...
Tony Osborne

Based in London, Tony covers European defense programs. Prior to joining Aviation Week in November 2012, Tony was at Shephard Media Group where he was deputy editor for Rotorhub and Defence Helicopter magazines.

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