Russia's Soyuz MS-29 spacecraft was successfully launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan and carried the crew bound for the International Space Station (ISS) into orbit. Roscosmos Director General Dmitriy Bakanov announced that the spacecraft had entered its planned orbit.
The Soyuz-2.1a rocket launched at 17:48 Turkey time and, 8 minutes and 49 seconds later, placed the Soyuz MS-29 carrying the Russian-American crew into orbit. Bakanov said, 'Our crew is in the planned orbit and we hope they will dock with the International Space Station (ISS) within three hours.'
After the launch, Bakanov congratulated the launch team and also thanked Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) head Kirill Dmitriyev, and NASA management, who were present at the spaceport.
On board Soyuz MS-29 are Roscosmos cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina, along with NASA astronaut Anil Menon. The three-person crew will stay on the ISS for 261 days. Docking is scheduled for 20:56 Turkey time.