October 14, 2004. Baikonur Cosmodrome.

A Russian manned transportation spacecraft Soyuz TMA-5 developed and manufactured at the S.P. Korolev Rocket and Space Corporation Energia was launched to the International Space Station (ISS), in low-Earth orbit since November 1998.
The launch of the Soyuz-FG launch vehicle carrying the Soyuz TMA-5 spacecraft took place at 7:06:28 Moscow Daylight Saving Time.
The purpose of the launch is the delivery to the ISS of the crew of Expedition Ten (ISS-10), the scheduled rotation of the Expedition Nine crew (ISS-9) and replacement of Soyuz TMA-4, which has been providing assured crew return functionality as a part of the space station since April 21, 2004.
Soyuz TMA-5 is carrying a crew consisting of Russian cosmonauts Salizhan Sharipov (commander of the spacecraft, flight engineer of ISS-10, colonel in the Russian Air Force) and Yuri Shargin (flight engineer 2 of the spacecraft, lieutenant colonel in the Russian Air Force), as well as a NASA astronaut Leroy Chiao (flight engineer 1 of the spacecraft, commander of ISS-10).
The task of the ISS-10 crew is to maintain the functioning of ISS for 196 days, to conduct scientific research under the programs of the Expedition and the seventh taxi mission and under commercial contracts, and to perform two space walks. The crew is also to conduct undocking operations for Soyuz TMA-4, Progress M-50, docking/undocking of Soyuz TMA-5 and US Space Shuttle Orbiters when they resume their missions to ISS, docking, unloading, and attached phase operations with Progress logistics vehicles, Soyuz TMA-6 docking. Yuri Shargin is to work on-board the station under the program of the seventh taxi mission for nine days and return to Earth together with the ISS-9 crew in Soyuz TMA-4.
ISS flight in man-tended mode is supported by Russian manned spacecraft of the Soyuz TMA type and unmanned logistics spacecraft of the Progress type.
Under the ISS program this mission is designated as 9S.
The spacecraft was put into a low-Earth orbit with the following parameters: 51.67° inclination, 204.0 km minimum altitude, 238.1 km maximum altitude, 88.6 min orbital period.
The crew of expedition ISS-9 - a Russian cosmonaut Gennady Padalka (commander) and an American NASA astronaut Michael Fincke (flight engineer) - have completed all the activities needed to prepare the space station for the docking.
The spacecraft docking is scheduled for October 16, 2004. The estimated time of initial contact with the port on the ISS docking module Pirs is about 8:17.

The pre-launch processing of the integrated launch vehicle Soyuz-FG/Soyuz TMA-5 was supervised by the Technical Management (The Technicla Manager is Designer General of S.P.Korolev RSC Energia, a full member of the Russian Academy of Sciences Yu.P. Semenov).
The decision to launch was made by the State Commission (Co-chairmen are deputy director of Roskosmos Moiseev N.F. and deputy director general of the Central Research Institute of Machine-building Grin V.A.) based on the findings of the Technical Management about the readiness of the vehicle and the ground infrastructure elements involved in the ISS program.
Participating in the launch were Director of Roskosmos A.N. Perminov, Commander of the Russian Space Forces V.A. Popovkin, an adviser to the president A.G. Burutin, NASA Deputy Administrator Frederick D. Gregory, representatives of Roskosmos, NASA. The pre-launch processing and launch were observed by deputies of the State Duma of the RF Federal Assembly, representatives of foreign space agencies, representatives of Russian business circles, as well as leading Russian and foreign news agencies and TV companies.
The flight of the spacecraft is controlled by the Lead Operations Control Team located at the Mission Control Center near Moscow and working in cooperation with specialists of the US Mission Control Center (Houston).