Service Platform Collapses At Russia’s Only Crew-Capable Site

The successful launch of three crew members to the International Space Station on November 27 caused serious blast damage to the pad at Baikonur Cosmodrome, Russia’s only active site for crewed spaceflight missions. The launch was otherwise successful in transporting the two Roscosmos cosmonauts and one NASA astronaut safely to the station.

A service platform, also referred to as the maintenance cabin, is located within the flame trench at the Cosmodrome’s Site 31/6 in Kazakhstan. The building collapsed in the wake of the Soyuz MS-28 crew launch on the Soyuz 2.1a rocket to the ISS. The platform is integral to the preparation of booster launches from the pad.

Roscosmos issued a statement late on November 27. It said, "The launch site was inspected, as is done every time after a rocket launch. Damage to a number of launch pad elements was detected. Such damage may appear after launch, so an inspection like this is mandatory in international practice."

The government agency added, "The condition of the launch complex is currently being assessed. All the necessary spare parts are available for restoration, and the damage will be repaired in the near future."

Baikonur houses only one active launch pad since its Site 1, also known as “Gagarin’s Start,” was retired in 2020 due to lack of funding for upgrades. As a result, Site 31/6 has been the exclusive launch pad for crew and cargo missions to the ISS. Site 31/6 has been in use since January 1961 and has supported more than 400 launches.

Journalist Anatoly Zak wrote, "There is some possibility that duplicate hardware could be borrowed from the mothballed Site 1 in Baikonur or from similar facilities at other launch sites. According to preliminary estimates, repairs of the service platform, known as 8U0216, could take up to two years."

At this time, it is unclear if other Russian sites are capable of supporting flights to the space station.

FMI:  https://www.roscosmos.ru/