Cargo spacecraft "Progress MS-33" (No. 463)

Description:

• Progress MS-33 (Russian: ???????? ?C-33), Russian production No. 463, identified by NASA as Progress 94, is a Progress cargo spacecraft mission by Roscosmos to resupply the International Space Station (ISS). It will be the 186th flight of a Progress spacecraft and was originally scheduled to launch in late 2025, but was delayed to 22 March 2026 due to damage at Baikonur Cosmodrome Site 31 following the launch of Soyuz MS-28.

Mission Report:

• However, Site 31 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome was severely damaged during the launch of Soyuz MS-28, with the mobile service platform beneath the pad appearing to collapse into the flame trench. The extent of the damage temporarily rendered Russia's only operational crewed launch facility unusable. Roscosmos officials subsequently told NASA that repairs to the site and restoration of launch capability were expected to take at least four months. As a result, the next planned launch from the site—the Progress MS-33 cargo mission originally scheduled for late December—was delayed to no earlier than March. Repairs to Site 31 were completed on 3 March 2026.
• In response to the disruption, NASA adjusted its cargo resupply schedule to the ISS. The agency moved the CRS SpX-34 forward by one month, from June 2026 to May, and advanced the subsequent CRS SpX-35, by three months, from November to August. NASA indicated that the changes were intended to ensure adequate food, water, oxygen, and other critical supplies aboard the station in the event of further delays to visiting Progress vehicles.
• Progress MS-33 was launched on 22 March 2026 at 11:59 UTC (16:59 local time in Baikonur). After the launch, NASA reported that one of the spacecraft's two rendezvous antennas failed to deploy, preventing use of the fully automated Kurs docking navigation system. Instead, Progress automatically flew itself to a position 200 metres (660 ft) away from the ISS. From there, cosmonaut Sergey Kud-Sverchkov used the TORU manual control system to guide the vehicle to docking.

Progress MS-33 docked to the ISS

External links:

• Roscosmos Spaceweb: Progress Information
• Russian Spaceweb: Progress Information
• Wikipedia: Mission Information