OREANDA-NEWS  The Soyuz 2.1a launch vehicle launched the Russian Soyuz MS-24 manned spacecraft with a crew flying to the International Space Station (ISS) into near-Earth orbit. This is reported by RIA Novosti.

"There is a department of the Soyuz MS-24 manned transport vehicle. The Soyuz MS-24 transport manned spacecraft has been launched into the orbit of an artificial Earth satellite," the launch commentator said.

The rocket launched from pad 31 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 18:44 Moscow time. Cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub, as well as astronaut Laurel O'Hara, went to the ISS. The Soyuz is expected to dock with the station at 21:56.

Earlier, Oleg Kononenko, deputy head of the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center (CPC), commander of the Roscosmos cosmonaut detachment, said that Russian cosmonauts will go into outer space in October-November. Three more exits will be made in 2024.

On September 9, the ISS orbit was corrected using the engines of the Progress MS-24 cargo ship. It was enlarged for the final formation of ballistic conditions before launching into orbit and docking with the Soyuz MS-24 station.