A Russian rocket that will carry three astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) was on its launch pad on Saturday, local media reported.

After a two-hour trip, the 40-meter Soyuz FG rocket, with the Soyuz TMA-4 spacecraft attached to it by Russian engineers, was transferred from the assembly hangar to Yury Gagarin launch pad atthe Baikonur cosmodrome, western Kazakhstan, at 7 a.m. (0300 GMT) on Saturday.

The rocket will blast off on Monday, with Russian Gennady Padalka, American Mikhael Fincke and Dutchman Andre Kuipers aboardthe spacecraft, from the cosmodrome, Russia 's launch site for manned space missions.

As the rocket waited in the departing position, the crew members continued to go through preflight drills with the Americanand Dutch astronauts preparing for their first space flight.

Sergei Brobunov, a spokesman for the Russian Space Agency, saidon Saturday that everything has gone as planned.

Kuipers will stay for two weeks to conduct experiments for the European Space Agency, while Padalka and Fincke will replace US astronaut Michael Foale and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Kaleri, who have been working in the ISS since October.

The two are expected to stay for six months and carry out two space walks in June and August to install equipment necessary for a European-built new automated transfer vehicle, due to arrive at the station in April 2005.

Source: Xinhua