BREAKING Crew to make emergency landing after Soyuz rocket malfunctions during launch

A problem has occurred during the launch of the Soyuz spacecraft to the ISS with Russian cosmonaut Alexey Ovchinin and NASA astronaut Nick Hague onboard.

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UPDATE 18 Alexander Gerst shared this photo of today’s aborted Soyuz launch taken from the International Space Station.
UPDATE 17 According to reports, at 1st stage separation, there was structural damage to the core stage and shortly thereafter, the crew was ordered to initiate an abort in ballistic mode using the “RUS” hand controller.
UPDATE 16 First picture of Soyuz with 2-man crew on board after forced landing in Kazakhstan.
UPDATE 15 The crew is onboard helicopter to Baikonur Cosmodrome after medical check.
UPDATE 14 First view of #SoyuzMS10 crew members after Soyuz landing.
UPDATE 13 MCC Moscow told the ISS crew “The boys have landed, the ballistic entry was only 6 to 7 G I guess they didn’t accelerate enough on the way up”.
UPDATE 12 Soyuz crew members are on board rescue helicopter.
UPDATE 11 Soyuz incident could have happened when 1 of 4 units of first stage hit second stage.
UPDATE 10 Rescue crew reached the landing site and the crew is out of the capsule.
UPDATE 9 According to reports, Soyuz MS10 landed 20km from Jezkazgan, Kazakhstan.
UPDATE 8 Four Mi-8 helicopters have taken off from Kazakh airports to search for the crew who landed in Kazakhstan – Russian military.
UPDATE 7 The crew feels “good, as well as possible after experiencing such g-forces”.
UPDATE 6 All Russian manned launches suspended after ‘Soyuz’ accident.
UPDATE 5 Mission control in communication with the crew of Soyuz MS-10, they are in good condition.
UPDATE 4 Crew of Soyuz confirmed alive after emergency landing.
UPDATE 3 The crew is alive and experiencing a g-force of 6g.
UPDATE 2 New ISS crew to make ballistic descent and land approximately in Kazakhstan.
UPDATE 1 “The boosters on a second-stage launching vehicle switched off,” the sources at the Baikonur Cosmodrome told Interfax news agency.

The launch of the Soyuz MS-10 spacecraft atop a Soyuz FG rocket manned by a team of two cosmonauts instead of three started at 11:40 a.m. Moscow time (08:40 GMT) on October 11.

NASA Statement on Soyuz MS-10 Launch Abort

The following is a statement about Thursday’s Soyuz MS-10 launch aboard to the International Space Station:

“The Soyuz MS-10 spacecraft launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan to the International Space Station at 4:40 a.m. EDT Thursday, Oct. 11 (2:40 p.m. in Baikonur) carrying American astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Alexey Ovchinin. Shortly after launch, there was an anomaly with the booster and the launch ascent was aborted, resulting in a ballistic landing of the spacecraft.

“Search and rescue teams were deployed to the landing site. Hague and Ovchinin are out of the capsule and are reported to be in good condition. They will be transported to the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia outside of Moscow.

“NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine and the NASA team are monitoring the situation carefully. NASA is working closely with Roscosmos to ensure the safe return of the crew. Safety of the crew is the utmost priority for NASA. A thorough investigation into the cause of the incident will be conducted.”