Soyuz-2.1a rocket was installed on the launch pad of Baikonur

The launch vehicle "Soyuz-2.1a" was installed on the launch complex of pad No. 31 (launch complex "Vostok") of the Baikonur Cosmodrome to launch the manned spacecraft "Yu. A. Gagarin "(Soyuz MS-18") with three crew members on board, reports corr. TASS from the scene.

A sticker with the official emblem of the 60th anniversary of the first manned space flight in history is placed on the rocket. It shows the profile of Yuri Gagarin, his autograph, a star and the inscription "60 years of the first manned flight into space".

Work began on the site according to the schedule of the first launch day.

Launch scheduled for 10:42 Moscow time on April 9. On the Soyuz MS-18 spacecraft, which was named after Yuri Gagarin, three crew members will go to the ISS: Roscosmos cosmonautsOleg Novitsky and Peter Dubrov, as well as an American astronaut Mark Vande Hei. The backup crew includes RussiansAnton Shkaplerovand Oleg Artemyev, as well as an American Anne McClain. On March 26, they arrived at Baikonur to complete preparations for the flight.

The rendezvous of the manned spacecraft with the International Space Station will take place according to a two-orbit scheme. It will take about 3.5 hours to get to the ISS.