Soyuz 3 spacecraft in Earth orbit, illustration. This Soviet spacecraft launched on 26th October 1968 carrying the cosmonaut Georgy Beregovoy. The spacecraft was supposed to complete the first Soviet space rendezvous and docking, with the uncrewed Soyuz 2 spacecraft. However, two attempts at docking failed. Soyuz 3 orbited the Earth 81 times over four days, before a successful re-entry on 30th October.