Image: USSR Post, 1988, via Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
Soyuz TM-6
Mission Profile
| Launch date | 1988-08-29 |
|---|---|
| Launch site | Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 1/5 |
| Launch vehicle | Soyuz-U2 |
| Spacecraft | Soyuz 7K-STM No. 56 (Soyuz-TM) |
| Target | Low Earth Orbit |
| Type | Crewed |
| End date | 1988-12-21 |
| Duration | Mohmand: 8 days 20 hours; spacecraft: 114 days 5 hours |
| Partners | Soviet Union, Afghanistan, Interkosmos |
Overview
Soyuz TM-6 lifted off on 29 August 1988 carrying the first Afghan in space, Air Force pilot Abdul Ahad Mohmand, on an Interkosmos goodwill flight to Mir. He flew with commander Vladimir Lyakhov and physician-cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov, who stayed aboard to begin a record medical residency. During his week at the station Mohmand observed Afghanistan from orbit, ran experiments, and became the first person to speak Pashto in space. The return nearly turned tragic: re-entering aboard Soyuz TM-5 on 6 September with Lyakhov, faulty infrared horizon-sensor data aborted the deorbit burn twice, stranding the two men in the cramped descent module for an extra day with depleted supplies before a successful third attempt brought them safely down on 7 September 1988. The TM-6 ferry itself later returned the EO-3 crew in December.
Crew
Vladimir Titov
Commander (down)
Mir EO-3 resident; returned aboard TM-6 in December 1988
Musa Manarov
Flight Engineer (down)
Mir EO-3 resident; completed a then-record one-year flight
Jean-Loup Chrétien
Research Cosmonaut (down)
France; flew up on TM-7, returned on TM-6
Abdul Ahad Mohmand
Research Cosmonaut (up)
First Afghan citizen in space; returned aboard Soyuz TM-5
Key Milestones
1988-08-29
Launch from Baikonur with Lyakhov, Polyakov and Afghanistan's Abdul Ahad Mohmand
1988-08-31
Docking with the Mir space station
1988-09-06
Lyakhov and Mohmand begin re-entry on Soyuz TM-5; deorbit aborted twice by sensor fault
1988-09-07
Successful third deorbit attempt; Lyakhov and Mohmand land safely after a day stranded in orbit
1988-12-21
Soyuz TM-6 returns the EO-3 crew, with Jean-Loup Chrétien, to Earth
Key Achievements
First Afghan citizen in space
First person to speak Pashto in space
Survived a two-day landing emergency aboard Soyuz TM-5 caused by a horizon-sensor fault
