Mar 12 1981
From The Space Library
The Soviet Union announced the launch of Soyuz T-4 at 10 p.m. Moscow time to link with the orbiting space complex Salyut 6-Progress 12. Salyut 6, in space since September 29, 1977, had docked January 26 with cargo craft Progress 12, which refueled it automatically on ground command and used its engine to raise the orbit.
Soyuz T-4 carried as commander Col. Vladimir Kovalenok, veteran of Soyuz 25 that failed to dock with Salyut 6 in October 1977 and of Soyuz 29, which docked there for 140 days in June 1978. Also on the T-4 flight was Viktor Savinykh as flight engineer. (FBIS, Tass in English, Mar 12/81)
Tass said March 13 that the Soyuz T-4 had docked with the Salyut 6 Progress 12 complex March 12 at 11:33 p.m. Moscow time and the cosmonauts had transferred into the space station, being the 15th crew to occupy it in the 3'/2 years. They would check on-board systems and equipment, do maintenance, and replace instrumentation a s necessary. (FBIS, Tass in English, Mar 13/81)
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