Space capsule carrying American, two Russians blasts off toward Space Station
NASA's Jeff Williams and Russian cosmonauts Oleg Skripochka and Alexey Ovchinin launch en route to the International Space Station. (Inform/Reuters)
Journalists take photos of the Soyuz-FG rocket booster with Soyuz TMA-20M capsule carrying a new crew to the International Space Station, ISS, blasting off at the Russian leased Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Saturday, March 19, 2016. The Russian rocket carries NASA astronaut Jeff Williams, Russian cosmonauts Oleg Skripochka, and Alexei Ovchinin of Roscosmos. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
The Soyuz-FG rocket booster with Soyuz TMA-20M capsule carrying a new crew to the International Space Station, ISS, blasts off at the Russian leased Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Saturday, March 19, 2016. The Russian rocket carries NASA astronaut Jeff Williams, Russian cosmonauts Oleg Skripochka, and Alexei Ovchinin of Roscosmos. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
The Soyuz-FG rocket booster with Soyuz TMA-20M capsule carrying a new crew to the International Space Station, ISS, blasts off at the Russian leased Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Saturday, March 19, 2016. The Russian rocket carries NASA astronaut Jeff Williams, Russian cosmonauts Oleg Skripochka, and Alexei Ovchinin of Roscosmos. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
In this photo taken with long time exposure the Soyuz-FG rocket booster with Soyuz TMA-20M capsule carrying a new crew to the International Space Station, ISS, blasts off at the Russian leased Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Saturday, March 19, 2016. The Russian rocket carries NASA astronaut Jeff Williams, Russian cosmonauts Oleg Skripochka, and Alexei Ovchinin of Roscosmos. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
The Soyuz-FG rocket booster with Soyuz TMA-20M capsule carrying a new crew to the International Space Station, ISS, blasts off at the Russian leased Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Saturday, March 19, 2016. The Russian rocket carries NASA astronaut Jeff Williams, Russian cosmonauts Oleg Skripochka, and Alexei Ovchinin of Roscosmos. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
The Soyuz-FG rocket booster with Soyuz TMA-20M capsule carrying a new crew to the International Space Station, ISS, blasts off at the Russian leased Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Saturday, March 19, 2016. The Russian rocket carries NASA astronaut Jeff Williams, Russian cosmonauts Oleg Skripochka, and Alexei Ovchinin of Roscosmos. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
The Soyuz-FG rocket booster with Soyuz TMA-20M capsule carrying a new crew to the International Space Station, ISS, blasts off at the Russian leased Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Saturday, March 19, 2016. The Russian rocket carries NASA astronaut Jeff Williams, Russian cosmonauts Oleg Skripochka, and Alexei Ovchinin of Roscosmos. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
Journalists take photos of the Soyuz-FG rocket booster with Soyuz TMA-20M capsule carrying a new crew to the International Space Station, ISS, blasting off at the Russian leased Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Saturday, March 19, 2016. The Russian rocket carries NASA astronaut Jeff Williams, Russian cosmonauts Oleg Skripochka, and Alexei Ovchinin of Roscosmos. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
Journalists take photos of the Soyuz-FG rocket booster with Soyuz TMA-20M capsule carrying a new crew to the International Space Station, ISS, blasting off at the Russian leased Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, Saturday, March 19, 2016. The Russian rocket carries NASA astronaut Jeff Williams, Russian cosmonauts Oleg Skripochka, and Alexei Ovchinin of Roscosmos. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky)
BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan — A Soyuz space capsule carrying two Russians and an American is heading for the International Space Station after blasting off from Russia’s manned space launch complex in Kazakhstan.
The launch at 3:26 a.m. Saturday (2126 GMT Friday) appeared flawless and the craft entered orbit nine minutes after liftoff. The Soyuz is to dock with the space station about six hours later.
Russians Alexey Ovchinin and Oleg Skripochka and NASA’s Jeff Williams are aboard for a six-month mission. At the end of it, Williams would notch the American record for cumulative days in space — 534 over three missions.
Russian Gennady Padalka holds the world record at 878.
Aboard the station, they will join American Tim Kopra, Russia’s Yuri Malenchenko and Briton Tim Peake flying for the European Space Agency.
