Launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome; landing 320 km southeast of Dzheskasgan. It was the fourth Interkosmos mission.

A damage on the main engine of the Soyuz capsule was the reason for the aborted docking maneuver. Premature return to Earth with complicated landing maneuver was needed. During the descent to Earth the backup engine did not shut down at the end of the planned 188 second burn. Since it was not clear if the engine had operated at its correct thrust Rukavishnikov let it burn for a further 25 seconds before shutting it down manually. So it came to a ballistic landing in which the cosmonauts had to protect 9g. The reason for the malfunction was not found.