U.S. man joins crew on Russian rocket trip

BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan -- A Russian rocket blasted off Saturday carrying a three-man replacement crew bound for the international space station, standing in for a U.S. shuttle program that remains on hold because of the Columbia disaster.

The crew consists of an American, a Russian and a Spaniard, marking the second time a Soyuz capsule has carried a U.S. astronaut to the space station since the Columbia disintegrated in February on its way back to Earth.

Russians and Americans burst into applause as the Soyuz-FG rocket blasted off on schedule from the once-supersecret Baikonur cosmodrome.

"It is huge -- it is testament to our partnership and how deep it really is," NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe said at the launch pad deep within the stark Kazakh steppe.

The launch came three days after China became the third nation to launch a manned spacecraft, joining Russia and the United States.

But while the Chinese launch was a symbol of national pride, Russia -- which, as the Soviet Union, pioneered space travel -- portrayed Saturday's flight as a demonstration of international cooperation.

The Soyuz spacecraft is taking the next U.S.-Russian replacement crew to the $60 billion space station, and giving a European Space Agency astronaut a ride into space.

"Our Russian partners stepped up at a time when we needed them the most," O'Keefe said. "They are shouldering a particularly heavy burden and we are grateful for that."

NASA now depends on Russia to keep its astronauts flying. The Russian Soyuz, whose primary role was to serve as an emergency evacuation craft for the station, is now the only ship capable of carrying crews to and from the 16-nation space outpost.

"We are happy to have the opportunity to help our partners in the space station," said Sergei Gorbunov, spokesman for the Russian Space Agency.