Russia sends astronauts back to space after mishaps

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BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan, Nov 14 (AFP): Russia Monday successfully launched three astronauts for the International Space Station, boosting morale after accidents raised doubts about the reliability of its space programme. The launch of two Russians and an American on a Soyuz-FG rocket had been delayed for almost two months after an unmanned Russian Progress supply ship in August crashed into Siberia shortly after its launch on a similar rocket. The problems eroded faith in Russia's status as a space superpower just as it had taken the responsibility for being the sole nation capable of taking humans to the ISS after the retirement of the US shuttle in July. The morning launch of the Soyuz lit up the grey skies over Russia's Baikonur cosmodrome in the steppes of Kazakhstan, which were covered in an early fall of snow, an AFP correspondent reported. "Everything is normal and we are feeling fine," the crew reported back to mission control as television pictures showed a character from the "Angry Birds" computer game dangling in the cockpit as a mascot. Mission control reported that American Dan Burbank and Russians Anton Shkaplerov and Anatoly Ivanishin had successfully gone into Earth orbit in their Soyuz TMA-22 capsule. They are due to dock with the ISS at 0533 GMT on Wednesday, joining the three crew on board the station, which has been at half its usual staffing capacity due to the delays after the Progress accident.