Soyuz T-3

Soyuz T-3 was the first three-person crewed flight of the upgraded Soyuz T spacecraft. Leonid Kizim, Oleg Makarov, and Gennadi Strekalov launched from Baikonur Site 1/5 on November 27, 1980, docked with Salyut 6 the next day, and spent nearly two weeks aboard the station. The mission was organized around both spacecraft checkout and station repair work. Spacefacts lists Kizim as commander, Makarov as flight engineer, and Strekalov as research cosmonaut, with a flight duration of 12 days, 19 hours, 7 minutes, and 42 seconds across 204 orbits. GCTC's biographies for Kizim and Strekalov describe the crew's work on the Salyut 6 thermal-control system, a practical repair visit that helped keep the station usable late in its operating life. Soyuz T-3 undocked from Salyut 6 on December 10, 1980, and landed east of Dzhezkazgan later that day. The flight was Kizim's and Strekalov's first orbital mission, Makarov's final orbital mission, and an early demonstration that Soyuz T could support three suited crew members while still serving the Soviet station program.