Uploaded February 2017 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Mission Updates: spaceflight101.com/progress-ms-05
Soyuz U – the world’s most-flown and longest-serving rocket – made its final blastoff from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on Wednesday, capping a 44-year career by lifting the Progress MS-05 cargo spacecraft into orbit on a resupply mission to the International Space Station.
The 46-meter tall Soyuz U rocket lifted off from the iconic Site 1/5 launch pad at 5:58 UTC, rising into clear skies over the Kazakh steppe for a speedy trip into orbit. The rocket’s four liquid-fueled boosters dropped away after two minutes and the large core stage handed off to the Block I third stage four minutes and 45 seconds into the mission using the typical hot-staging sequence.
All eyes, however, were on the Block I as it marked the Return-To-Flight for this particular version of the seasoned upper stage after December’s Progress MS-04 launch failure. Fortunately, Soyuz U was able to head into retirement with a flawless orbital delivery as Progress MS-05 drifted away from the upper stage nine minutes into the mission after a smooth ride into orbit.
Mission Updates: spaceflight101.com/progress-ms-05
Soyuz U – the world’s most-flown and longest-serving rocket – made its final blastoff from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on Wednesday, capping a 44-year career by lifting the Progress MS-05 cargo spacecraft into orbit on a resupply mission to the International Space Station.
The 46-meter tall Soyuz U rocket lifted off from the iconic Site 1/5 launch pad at 5:58 UTC, rising into clear skies over the Kazakh steppe for a speedy trip into orbit. The rocket’s four liquid-fueled boosters dropped away after two minutes and the large core stage handed off to the Block I third stage four minutes and 45 seconds into the mission using the typical hot-staging sequence.
All eyes, however, were on the Block I as it marked the Return-To-Flight for this particular version of the seasoned upper stage after December’s Progress MS-04 launch failure. Fortunately, Soyuz U was able to head into retirement with a flawless orbital delivery as Progress MS-05 drifted away from the upper stage nine minutes into the mission after a smooth ride into orbit.
