Alexander Gerst (Germany), Maxim Surayev (Russia) and Reid Wiseman (USA) have landed safely in Kazakhstan. The three astronauts spent 165 days on the International Space Station. They were met by medical personnel shortly after they exited the Soyuz spacecraft, on Monday, near Arkalyk, Kazakhstan.

Gerst told a TV reporter that he had felt good during his first trip into space. According to Reuters, the 38 year-old flight engineer thanked everyone for their support. While still on the ISS, he stated that apart from missing his family, the things he missed the most were jogging and eating pizza.

Russian Maxim Surayev stated that during their 165 days on board the ISS, and while leading powers were in a tense state due to a number of issues, the ISS showed that we can all work together in harmony.

Following their departure, US astronaut Barry Wilmore was named as the new ISS commander, as he and two Russian cosmonauts remained on board the station orbiting our Blue Dot at a height of 418 kilometers.