Soyuz 16

Soyuz 16 was the crewed Soviet rehearsal flight for the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. Anatoly Filipchenko and Nikolai Rukavishnikov launched from Baikonur Site 1/5 on December 2, 1974 and landed near Arkalyk on December 8 after just under six days in orbit. Spacefacts describes Soyuz 16 as the final rehearsal and first crewed mission in the program that led to the Apollo-Soyuz flight seven months later. The crew tested the modified Soyuz systems needed for the joint Soviet-U.S. mission, including environmental changes, solar panels, control-system updates, radar docking equipment, and the androgynous docking hardware planned for Apollo-Soyuz. The flight completed Filipchenko's second and final spaceflight and Rukavishnikov's second mission, closing an important operational step between early Salyut docking work and the first international crewed docking.