https://apnews.com/article/turkey-erdogan-astronaut-space-0f787aadc7e5ef660e311916c209f550

ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkey’s first astronaut will travel to the International Space Station by the end of the year, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Saturday.

Air force pilot Alper Gezeravci, 43, was selected to be the first Turkish citizen in space. His backup is Tuva Cihangir Atasever, 30, an aviation systems engineer at Turkish defense contractor Roketsan.