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4d ago

Baikonur Pad Collapse Halts Russia’s Soyuz Access to ISS

Contingency planning points to greater reliance on commercial flights given repair timelines that independent experts estimate could stretch for months to years.

A Soyuz rocket launch has dealt significant damage to Russia's Baikonur Cosmodrome, leaving Russia without the ability to launch astronauts.
NASA has acknowledged Russia's Baikonur Cosmodrome sustaining severe damage following a botched Soyuz launch last week.
The Soyuz MS-28 spacecraft carrying NASA astronaut Chris Williams, Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergey Mikaev lifts off to the International Space Station (ISS) from the launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan.
© NASA/Anil Menon

Overview

  • The Soyuz MS-28 crew of Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, Sergey Mikaev and NASA astronaut Chris Williams reached the ISS safely on November 27, but Baikonur’s Site 31/6 suffered a collapse of its mobile service cabin into the flame trench.
  • Roscosmos confirmed damage, said assessments are underway and spare parts are available, while imagery and analysts indicate the critical platform may need full replacement.
  • ISS operations face near-term impacts as Progress MS-33 slips from December 21 to next year and future Soyuz crew launches remain uncertain, with the next crewed mission not scheduled until mid‑2026.
  • NASA acknowledged the incident and said it is coordinating closely with Roscosmos, noting the station retains sufficient capability for reboost and attitude control as partners evaluate crew and cargo contingencies.
  • With Gagarin’s Start retired and other Russian sites unsuitable or uncertified for ISS trajectories, the outage highlights a single-point vulnerability that has prompted broader calls for redundancy, including India’s sanctioned third pad targeted for 2029.