Commander Mike Fincke initiates the Change of Command Ceremony on 12 January 2026
January 14, 2026—Three of the four ham radio team members onboard the U.S. segment of the International Space Station will be returning to earth in a SpaceX Dragon potentially as soon as Thursday, likely causing a delay of some of the upcoming school contacts until at least early March.
Leaving the ISS are NASA astronauts Mike Fincke (KE5AIT) and Zena Cardman (KJ5CMN), along with JAXA Mission Specialist Kimiya Yui (KG5BHP) and cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, all of whom launched to the ISS on August 1 in a SpaceX Dragon. Crew 11 had been expecting to remain on the ISS until the arrival of Crew 12 in mid-February, but NASA last week confirmed the early return due to a medical issue with one of the crew.
NASA held a change of command ceremony onboard the ISS on January 12, with Commander Mike Fincke handing the “keys to the station” to Roscosmos Flight Engineer Sergey Kud-Sverchkov.
Impacts on ARISS Contacts
First and foremost, keep in mind that ARISS is a payload and as such, we are secondary to the ISS flight mission and crew health. While we have the advantage of being a lifeline that helps astronauts maintain their connection to earth, we always must remain flexible.
With the departure of Crew 11, astronaut Chris Williams (KJ5GEW) will be the only ham aboard the U.S. segment of the station until Crew 12 arrives. Newly arriving astronauts spend the first two weeks getting accustomed to the ISS before taking part in contacts. Hams currently assigned to Crew 12 are NASA’s Jack Hathaway (KJ5NIV) and ESA’s Sophie Adenot (KJ5LTN).
Up until the point where Hathaway and Adenot are able to take part in ARISS contacts, Chris Williams, depending on workload, may be able to conduct a limited number of contacts, potentially one per week. There are many variables to consider, so please bear with us!
We will update you on this website as we know more, but as usual, check our social media feeds for the most up-to-date information.
Thank you for your patience during this dynamic time.
Frank Bauer
ARISS International Chair
ARISS-USA Executive Director
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