The next launch of the Soyuz-5 rocket is scheduled for the second half of 2027, and the third for 2028, Roscosmos Deputy CEO for Rocket Projects Dmitry Baranov said on a Vesti TV program.

"We have three flight tests planned: the first was successfully completed on April 30, the second is currently scheduled for the second half of 2027, and the third rocket launch is currently scheduled for 2028, but that will be slightly later," the Russian state space corporation’s deputy CEO said.

He added that the carrier rocket launched in April splashed down in a designated area of the Pacific Ocean to avoid contaminating space and surface areas. The Soyuz-5 medium-class carrier rocket was launched from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan on April 30 at 9:00 p.m. Moscow time (6:00 p.m. GMT). The first and second stages of the rocket operated normally, and the mock payload subsequently splashed down in an area in the Pacific Ocean previously closed to shipping and aviation. One of the rocket’s features is its high precision in delivering payloads into near-Earth orbit; its payload capacity is 17 tons.