Japanese astronaut Soichi Noguchi is the first foreigner appointed to the crew of Elon Musk’s new American manned SpaceX Crew Dragon, which will go to the International space station, the Japanese aerospace research Agency JAXA reported.

In July 2019, JAXA announced the appointment of Noguchi to the crew of a new American manned ship, but without specifying which one – Crew Dragon or Boeing’s Starliner.

“JAXA astronaut Soichi Noguchi, who is currently preparing and training for an expedition to the ISS, will begin training to participate in The first full – time flight of the SpaceX-developed Crew Dragon spacecraft,” a statement on the JAXA website said.

The timing of Noguchi’s flight has not yet been determined.

In March 2019, Crew Dragon made the first test unmanned flight to the ISS. The first test manned flight of the ship to the station is planned in May. The crew includes NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley.