Space Rocket History #440 – Salyut 3 – Soyuz 14 & Soyuz 15 Part 2
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Description
Initially, the rendezvous with Salyut 3 proceeded smoothly. However, as the Soyuz spacecraft approached the station, a critical problem arose. The Igla rendezvous system, designed to guide the spacecraft to the station, malfunctioned.
In April of 1972, George Low returned to Washington from Moscow and briefed Henry Kissinger. He conveyed NASA’s assessment that a joint space mission in 1975 was feasible.
In a re-evaluation of the proposed test mission, the Soviets concluded that utilizing the Salyut spacecraft would not be technically and economically viable.