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In his Oral History, U.S. Mir astronaut Andy Thomas describes staying behind on Mir, after the shuttle has left.
"Actually, by the time the shuttle left," Thomas says, "I was actually glad to see it go, because while the shuttle is docked at Mir, you're in sort of a no-man's-land. You're partly the shuttle crew, partly the Mir crew, and you always have an out. [That is,] you know you could go back with them -- in principle.
"Furthermore, according to Thomas, "While the shuttle is there [still docked with Mir], things are very crowded. You're not able to set things up. You're not able to really move in, because it's still there. It's like when you're moving into a new house and the moving truck is still parked outside and you can't get on with what you're doing . . ."
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Links:
Thomas Increment
Profile: Andy Thomas
Andy
Thomas Oral History (PDF)
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Curator:
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Responsible NASA Official: John Ira Petty