The newest Russian launch vehicle "Soyuz-5" is installed vertically at the launch complex of the Baikonur Cosmodrome. This was announced by the head of Roscosmos, Dmitry Bakanov. According to him, the launch may take place in the very near future.
The development of the rocket was completed in 2025, after which all the necessary ground and bench tests were carried out. Verticalization on the launch pad is the final stage of preparation: until this point, assembly and testing of systems are carried out in a horizontal position. This is the procedure adopted at Russian cosmodromes.
"Soyuz-5" is a two-stage medium-class rocket created at the Samara Rocket and Space Center "Progress". Its main feature is increased payload capacity: it is capable of launching up to 17 tons of payload into low Earth orbit. This is almost twice as much as its predecessor, the "Soyuz-2.1b". The diameter of the stages is 4.1 meters, which required modernization of the launch infrastructure at Baikonur.
The first stage of the rocket is equipped with an RD-171MV engine with a thrust of about 800 tons, the second operates on RD-0124MS engines. The fuel pair — naphthyl and liquid oxygen — belongs to environmentally friendly components, which meets modern requirements for space technology.
The cost of launching one kilogram of cargo into orbit is estimated at approximately 300 thousand rubles. This is 40 percent lower than that of existing analogues. Efficiency is achieved through the unification of components, automation of assembly, and optimization of logistics.
The rocket is being created as part of the joint Russian-Kazakh project "Baiterek", which involves the use of a modernized launch complex at Baikonur for commercial and scientific launches.
The first launch of "Soyuz-5" will be unmanned: a mass-dimensional model is planned as a payload. The successful completion of the mission will pave the way for regular launches of satellites and interplanetary spacecraft.