Soyuz TM-5 crew (L-R): Viktor Savinyhk, Anatoly Solovyev, Aleksandr Aleksandrov
Mission patch
Soyuz TM-5, launched June 7, 1988, was the fifth manned mission to the space station Mir. Its crew consisted of Commander Anatoly Solovyev, Viktor Savinnykh and Aleksandr Aleksandrov. They were the crew of Mir EP-2.
Soyuz TM-5 returned to Earth in September with Vladimir Lyakhov and Abdul Ahad Mohmand.
Anatoly Solovyev, born January 16, 1948 in the former Soviet Union, is a veteran of five space flights and holds the world record for number of spacewalks performed, sixteen.
His first mission was aboard Soyuz TM-5 to he space station Mir as part of expedition Mir EP-2 in June 1988. He spent about 10 days before returning to Earth Soyuz TM-4.
His second flight was aboard Soyuz TM-9 in February 1990 as part of Expedition Mir EO-6. He remained aboard until August 1990. He conducted two EVAs to effect repairs.
His third flight was aboard Soyuz TM-15 to Mir in July 1992 as part of expedition Mir EO-12. Solovyev conducted four EVAs. He returned to Earth in February 1993.
Solovyev's fourth flight was aboard Atlantis (STS-71) as mission specialist to Mir in June 1995. He was part of expedition Mir EO-19. During the mission, he conducted three EVAs. He returned to Earth aboard Soyuz TM-21 in September 1995.
His fifth and final fligh was aboard Soyuz TM-26 to Mir in August 1997 as part of expedition Mir EO-24. He conducted seven EVAs to set the record at sixteen. He returned to Earth in February 1998.
Soyuz TM-4, launched December 21, 1987, was the fourth manned mission to the space station Mir. Its crew at lift-off consisted of Commander Vladimir Titov, Musa Manarov and Anatoli Levenchenko. Titov and Manarov were part of the expedition Mir EO-3 and stayed in space for a year returning to Earth. Levchenko returned to Earth on Soyuz TM-3 a week later.
Soyuz TM-4 returned in June 1998 with crew of Mir EP-2:Commander Anatoly Solovyev, Viktor Savinykh and Aleksandr Aleksandrov. They had arrived a week earlier on Soyuz TM-5.
Vladimir Lyakhov, born July 20, 1941 in the former Soviet Union, spent almost a year in space on three different missions.
His first mission was as commander on Soyuz 32 to Salyut 6, launched February 25, 1979. He returned to Earth June 13.
His second mission was as commander on Soyuz T-9 to Salyut 7, launched June 27, 1983. He returned to Earth November 23.
His third and final mission was commander of Soyuz TM-6 to the space station Mir, launched August 29, 1988. He commanded Mir EP-3, a week long (short term) mission after which he returned to Earth on Soyuz TM-5.
Viktor Savinykh, born March 7, 1940, is part of the team that rescued Salyut 7, which had stopped responding to ground signals. His first mission into space was aboard Soyuz T-4 launched March 12, 1981, the sixth and last long-duration stay aboard Salyut 6 as EO-6, with fellow cosmonaut Vladimir Kovalyonok. They stayed on board about a month and a half before returning to Earth.
His next trip was aboard Soyuz T-13, June 6, 1985, the eighth expedition to Salyut 7, the first time a spacecraft docked with a 'dead' space station. Commander Vladimir Dzhanibekov piloted his ship and matched the station's rotation and managed to connect with the forward port. Savinykh and Dzhanibekov, wearing winter garb and fur-lined hats entered the dark station. The air was breathable but extremely cold. On June 10, they turned the heaters on after restoring electric power and three days later, managed to reactivate the attitude control system, which allowed the supply spacecraft to dock with Salyut 7.
Water tanks were thawed by the end of June and normal atmospheric humidity was achieved after almost two months after docking. These events have been dramatized in a 2017 Russian film, Salyut 7.
Savinykh's next trip was to the space station Mir, aboard Soyuz TM-5 in June 1988. He was part of expedition EP-2, which lasted about a week and he returned to Earth on Soyuz TM-4.
Abdul Ahad Mohmand, born January 1, 1959 in Afghanistan, is the first Afghan astronaut and the fourth Muslim in space. It is believed he is the first Muslim to take the Qur'an to space.
He served in the Afghan Air Force and then trained in the Soviet Union as a pilot and astronaut. He went to space aboard Soyuz TM-6, which was launched August 29, 1988 to Mir as part of expedition EP-3. He remained on Mir for 9 days, during which he took pictures of Afghanistan, talked to Afghanistan's president and his mother, and brewed Afghan tea for the crew.
