SOYUZ-2 Launch Vehicle

Soyuz-2, equipped with a Fregat or Volga upper stage, is able to inject spacecraft into all possible orbits: low, medium, high elliptical, sun-synchronous, geotransfer, and geostationary.

Based on the Soyuz launch vehicle, Soyuz-2 was developed in two phases (Phase 1A and Phase1B).

Phase1A:

· Engines of the 1-st and 2-nd stages use nozzle heads with improved mixture formation;

· Based on a high-performance computer, a single control system is developed for all the three stages;

· A digital radio-telemetering system is installed;

Additionally to the Phase-1A improvements, a new engine with higher performance is used for the 3-rd stage. This improved the accuracy of injection, launch vehicle stability and controllability and allowed using an assembly-protective unit with the 11.43-m nose fairing of 4.11-m diameter.

The first test launch of the Soyuz-2.1A launch vehicle was successfully performed on 8 November 2004 from the Plesetsk cosmodrome.

The first commercial launch of Soyuz-2.1A with the European MetOp meteorological satellite atop was performed in 2006.

The Soyuz-2.1B flight tests were started on 27 December 2006 with a launch of the French CoRoT research satellite from the Baikonur cosmodrome. At present, flight tests of Soyuz-2.1A and Soyuz-1.B are finished and their serial production is about to begin.