DATE=8/13/98 TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT NUMBER=2-237039 TITLE=RUSSIA SPACE (L ONLY) BYLINE=RENE SCHNEIDER DATELINE=MOSCOW CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: THREE RUSSIANS HAVE BLASTED INTO ORBIT -- AMONG THEM, A FORMER TOP AIDE TO RUSSIAN PRESIDENT BORIS YELTSIN. RENE SCHNEIDER REPORTS FROM MOSCOW. TEXT: RUSSIA LAUNCHED ITS FIRST BUREAUCRAT INTO ORBIT THURSDAY EN ROUTE TO THE MIR SPACE STATION. A SOYUZ CAPSULE CARRYING FORMER NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER YURI BATURIN BLASTED OFF FROM THE BAIKONUR COSMODROME IN THE FORMER RUSSIAN REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN. ALONG WITH MR. BATURIN ON THE MISSION, ARE TWO PROFESSIONAL COSMONAUTS, FLIGHT COMMANDER GENNADY PADALKA AND ENGINEER SERGEI AVDEYEV. THE PAIR WILL REPLACE TWO OF THEIR COLLEAGUES WHO HAVE BEEN LIVING ON THE MIR ORBITER FOR THE PAST SIX MONTHS. MR. BATURIN TRADED IN HIS KREMLIN JOB LAST FEBRUARY FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO LIVE HIS CHILDHOOD DREAM. SPACE OFFICIALS ADMITTED MR. BATURIN'S PREVIOUS OFFICIAL ROLE HELPED HIS SELECTION FOR THE MISSION, BUT ADDED THAT THE FORMER YELTSIN AIDE IS A QUALIFIED COSMONAUT. THE 49-YEAR OLD MR. BATURIN STARTED HIS CAREER IN THE SPACE INDUSTRY, WORKING FOR RUSSIA'S ENERGIYA ROCKET CORPORATION IN THE 1970'S. BUT HE LATER TRAINED AS A LAWYER AND WENT INTO POLITICS. HE LOST EIGHT KILOS AND UNDERWENT RIGOROUS TRAINING IN THE PAST YEAR FOR THE MISSION. IN PREPARATION FOR TAKE-OFF, HE JOINED OTHER COSMONAUTS IN SEVERAL RUSSIAN SPACE FLIGHT TRADITIONS, LEAVING AUTOGRAPHS ON THE DOOR OF HIS HOTEL ROOM AND DRINKING A GLASS OF CHAMPAGNE BEFORE TAKE-OFF WITHOUT TOASTING HIS COLLEAGUES. THE SOYUZ CAPSULE CARRYING THE TRIO IS SCHEDULED TO DOCK WITH THE MIR ORBITER ON SATURDAY. MR. BATURIN WILL SPEND 10 DAYS ON THE SPACE STATION, CONDUCTING VARIOUS TECHNICAL AND SCIENTIFIC EXPERIMENTS BEFORE RETURNING TO EARTH WITH TWO MEMBERS OF THE CURRENT MIR CREW ON AUGUST 25TH. (SIGNED) NEB/RS/JWH/JO 13-Aug-98 3:03 PM EDT (1903 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America .
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