Russian spaceship blasts off with first Malaysian

BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan, Oct 10 (Reuters) A Russian Soyuz TMA-11 spacecraft carrying Malaysia's first astronaut Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor, a US astronaut and a Russian cosmonaut blasted off to the International Space Station today.

The rocket lifted off from Russia's Baikonur Cosmodrome in the Kazakh steppe as planned, at 05:22 p.m. Moscow time 1852 hrs ist.

The crew is scheduled to dock to the 100-billion dollars ISS on Friday.

REUTERS PD RK1906