1968-10-26 USSR Soyuz 3

A Soyuz 3 First Day Cover from "KNIGA", postmarked in Moscow with a hand cancel on December 14, 1968, signed by Georgy Beregovoy.

Soyuz 3 was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on October 26, 1968, carrying cosmonaut Georgi Beregovoy. It was the first crewed Soviet spaceflight since the fatal Soyuz 1 mission in April 1967 and served as an important test of the redesigned Soyuz spacecraft.

The mission's main objective was to rendezvous and dock with the uncrewed Soyuz 2, which had been launched the previous day as a target spacecraft. The automatic rendezvous system brought Soyuz 3 to within about 180–200 meters of Soyuz 2, after which Beregovoy took manual control and maneuvered to within approximately one meter. However, the spacecraft could not complete the planned docking because of alignment and control problems.

After the unsuccessful docking attempts, Beregovoy continued with topographical and meteorological observations and other experiments during the remainder of the mission. He completed 81 orbits during approximately 3 days, 22 hours, and 51 minutes in space. Soyuz 3 landed safely in Kazakhstan on October 30, 1968, with the redesigned spacecraft and parachute system performing successfully.