On December 4, the prime and backup crewmembers of the new-series transport manned vehicle (ТMV) Soyuz МS-07 arrived at Baikonur cosmodrome for final their training before the flight.

The Expedition 54/55 crew (ISS-54/55) consists of ROSCOSMOS cosmonaut Anton SHKAPLEROV, NASA astronaut Scott TINGLE and JAXA astronaut Norishige KANAI. The backup crewmembers are ROSCOSMOS cosmonaut Sergey PROKOPIEV, NASA astronaut Jeanette EPPS and ESA astronaut Alexander GERST.

In Baikonur the cosmonauts and astronauts will fit check spacesuits Sokol-KV, take their seats in the vehicle, get familiar with the onboard data files and perform some tests of the onboard systems. During the final training sessions at the launch site training of the vehicle manual proximity operations to the ISS, audit of scientific hardware kits, testing of upcoming ballistic operations and other preparatory procedures are also planned.

The launch of Soyuz MS-07 carrying the crew of the next long-duration tour to the International Space Station (ISS) is scheduled on December 17, 2017 from Baikonur cosmodrome.