This is possible when using a two-turn flight scheme
MOSCOW, April 6. /TASS/. The Soyuz-MS manned spacecraft will be able to reach the International Space Station (ISS) in 2 hours and 45 minutes, using a two-turn flight pattern. This was reported to TASS by the head of the ballistics department of the Rocket and Space Corporation (RSC) "Energia" Rafail Murtazin.
"We have a time reserve that can be gradually "selected" and docked with the station in about 2 hours and 45 minutes. But this is all that we will get out of this flight scheme, " Murtazin said.
According to the ballistics expert, according to this scheme, in October 2020, it was possible to dock with the station in 3 hours and 3 minutes. "And in 2 hours and 20 minutes after the launch, the Soyuz-MS was already at a distance of 2 km from the ISS, from which the astronauts could have quickly docked manually. During the docking with the ISS, you need to meet the safety conditions that require a slow approach to the station for another 40 minutes, " he explained.
The three-hour flight plan to the ISS became possible thanks to the transition to the Soyuz-2.1 a launch vehicle, the accuracy of which is six times better than that of the Soyuz-FG due to the domestic digital control system, the ballistics expert added.
The next launch of the Soyuz-MS spacecraft, which is scheduled for April 9, will also take place according to a two-turn scheme. It is expected that this time the flight to the station will take about 3.5 hours.
