Astronauts from the Axiom-3 mission have successfully returned to Earth

Astronauts from Turkey, Italy and Sweden have returned to Earth successfully, completing a private three-week mission to the International Space Station (ISS).
The trio was accompanied by a retired NASA astronaut who now works for Axiom Space, the Houston company that organized the charter flight. The crew returned with a SpaceX capsule that landed by parachute in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida, Anadolu Agency reported.
Turkey celebrated the launch of Alper Gezeravci from Cape Canaveral last month. The former fighter pilot and Turkish Airlines captain became the first person from his country to fly into space.
Gezeravci was joined by Italian Air Force Colonel Walter Villadei, Swede Markus Vand, a former fighter pilot selected as a reserve astronaut by the European Space Agency in 2022, and Michael Lopez-Alegría.
Turkey, Italy and Sweden funded the mission, with each country contributing approximately €50.9 million. This was Axiom's third private mission to the space station, with a fourth planned for later this year.
Before leaving the space station, Gezeravci thanked his country for the "courageous and decisive decision" to send its citizen into space as part of its 100th anniversary as a republic.
While in orbit, the astronauts conducted dozens of scientific experiments and spoke with students and officials from their countries.
They enjoyed a few extra days on the space station, waiting for the weather to improve in the drop zone. /BGNES