TOKYO - Toyohiro Akiyama, the first Japanese to fly into space and a former journalist, has died, a relative said Tuesday. He was 84.
The Tokyo native became an astronaut through an internal screening process at Tokyo Broadcasting System Television Inc., staying at the Mir space station in December 1990 and becoming known for his first words in space, "Am I on air?"
After joining the broadcasting company in 1966, he covered politics and international affairs before serving as head of the company's Washington bureau. He applied to become an astronaut after he became an editor at the international affairs department.
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