At March 5, the crews of the manned transport spacecraft Soyuz MS-08 started the training phase for the flight to the International Space Station (ISS).

Cosmonauts and astronauts tried on spacesuits Sokol-KV and after their test for pressure integrity they took their places in the spacecraft. The crews checked the radio communication system, the laser rangefinder, got acquainted with onboard documentation, studied the flight program and the list of the cargo planned for delivery to the ISS.

During the final sessions at the cosmodrome training sessions were also planned for the spacecraft manual proximity operations to the ISS, audit of scientific hardware kits, testing of upcoming ballistic operations and other preparatory procedures.

The prime and the backup crewmembers of the Soyuz MS-08 spacecraft arrived at the Baikonur Cosmodrome on Sunday, March 4.

The prime crew of the Soyuz MS-08 spacecraft consists of commander, ROSCOSMOS cosmonaut, Oleg ARTEMIEV, flight engineers, NASA astronauts Andrew FEUSTEL and Richard ARNOLD. The backup crew consists of the spacecraft commander, ROSCOSMOS cosmonaut Alexei OVCHININ and flight engineer, NASA astronaut Nick HAGUE.

This very day, a Technical Management meeting was held, where a decision was taken to fuel Soyuz MS-08 with propellant components and compressed gases.

The launch of the Soyuz-FG launch vehicle with the Soyuz MS-08 manned transport spacecraft is scheduled for March 21, 2018 from Launch Pad No. 1 (Gagarin’s launch pad).