Salyut 5 (Russian: Салют-5 meaning Salute 5), also known as OPS-3, was a Soviet Space Station. Launched in 1976 as part of the Salyutrogramme, it was the third and last Almaz space station to be launched for the Soviet military. Two Soyuz missions visited the station, each manned by two Cosmonauts. A third Soyuz mission attempted to visit the station, but failed to dock, whilst a fourth mission was planned but never launched.
Upon reaching orbit, Salyut 5 was assigned the International Designator 1976-057A, whilst the North American Aerospace Defense Command gave it the Satellite Catalogue Number 08911
Salyut 5 (OPS-3) was launched on June 22, 1976. It was the third and last Almaz military space station. Its launch and subsequent mission were both completed successfully, with three crews launching and two (Soyuz 21 and Soyuz24) successfully boarding the craft for lengthy stays (the second crew on Soyuz 23 was unable to dock and had to abort). Salyut 5 reentered on August 8, 1977.
Following Salyut 5 the Soviet military decided that, with the advent of the era of spy satellites, the tactical advantages were not worth the expense of the program and withdrew - the focus for the later Salyut stations became civilian research and prestige for the Soviet Union
