In the last few days two astronauts from Axiom space, the American Michael López-Alegría, commander of the Ax-3 mission which in recent months has also seen the Italian Air Force astronaut, Colonel Walter Villadei, as protagonist, and the Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata, with five space missions under his belt, spent two intense weeks at the experimental flight department of Pratica di Mare for a Space Orientation Program (POST).
This program included a theoretical phase on the ground and a practical phase in flight with the T-346A aircraft, on which the AXIOM astronauts flew together with the experimental pilots of the 311th flight group of the RSV, a unit dependent on the air division of aeronautical and space experimentation which has the task of supporting the operational departments of the Air Force through the experimentation, development, integration and validation of new weapons systems or those undergoing modification.
The main objective of the POS was to expose astronauts to maneuvers under high load factor and to a complex flight environment to develop a greater awareness of the cognitive load during flights, putting to good use teamwork and decision-making skills under stress. The activity will be followed by additional sessions planned during the next year as preparatory activity for AXIOM astronauts already scheduled for space missions.
Once again, aeronautical and space skills overlap and strengthen, through the valuable professionalism of the Air Force.