Turkey's first astronaut, a Swede and an Italian have set off for the International Space Station on a chartered SpaceX flight.The Falcon rocket blasted off from Nasa's Kennedy Space Centre in late afternoon, carrying the three men, all with military pilot experience and representing their homelands.Their escort on the trip is a retired Nasa astronaut who now works for the company that arranged the private flight.

Turkey's first astronaut, a Swede and an Italian have set off for the International Space Station on a chartered SpaceX flight.The Falcon rocket blasted off from Nasa's Kennedy Space Centre in late afternoon, carrying the three men, all with military pilot experience and representing their homelands.Their escort on the trip is a retired Nasa astronaut who now works for the company that arranged the private flight.