Soyuz 24

Soyuz 24

Commemorative stamp of 1977 of Viktor Gorbatko and Yuri Glazkov
Operator	Soviet space program
COSPAR ID	1977-008A
SATCAT no.	09804
Mission duration	17 days 17 hours 26 minutes
Orbits completed	285
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft	Soyuz 7K-T No.11
Spacecraft type	Soyuz 7K-T/A9
Manufacturer	NPO Energia
Launch mass	6750 kg [1]
Landing mass	1200 kg
Crew
Crew size	2
Members	Viktor Gorbatko Yuri Glazkov
Callsign	Терек (Terek) Terek River
Start of mission
Launch date	7 February 1977, 16:11 UTC
Rocket	Soyuz-U
Launch site	Baikonur, Site 1/5[2]
End of mission
Landing date	25 February 1977, 09:38 UTC
Landing site	37 km at the northeast of Arkalyk, Kazakhstan
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric orbit[3]
Regime	Low Earth orbit
Perigee altitude	184.7 km
Apogee altitude	346.2 km
Inclination	51.65°
Period	89.52 minutes
Docking with Salyut 5
Docking date	8 February 1977
Undocking date	25 February 1977
Time docked	17 days
Vimpel Diamond patch Soyuz programme ← Kosmos 869 Soyuz 25 →

Soyuz 24 (Russian: Союз 24, Union 24) was a February, 1977, Soviet mission to the Salyut 5 space station, the third and final mission to the station, the last purely military crew for the Soviets and the final mission to a military Salyut.^[4] The cosmonauts Viktor Gorbatko and Yuri Glazkov re-activated the station after toxic fumes had apparently terminated the mission of Soyuz 21, the previous crew.

They performed biological and materials experiments while on board. Other presumed activities included photographic reconnaissance, and finishing tasks the previous crew was forced to abandon when their mission abruptly ended. The Soyuz 24 crew landed after spending 18 days in space, and the Salyut station was de-orbited six months later.