CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) - A Russian cosmonaut aboard the international 

space station had to bring in a cargo ship by remote control Friday night 

after an automatic system failed. 



Yuri Gidzenko used a joystick to guide the Russian Progress ship to a safe 

linkup with the space station, almost an hour later than planned. 



It was the first Progress docking for the three-man station crew, on board 

for just two weeks. 



Everything was going well earlier in the evening as the Progress, loaded with 

food, boots, brackets, cables, an air conditioner and other supplies, closed 

in on the space station. 



Once the cargo ship was within 300 feet, however, its automatic docking 

system would not lock onto the space station, and Gidzenko was forced to take 

over. 



He brought the cargo ship to within 15 feet of the space station, then 

stopped because of glaring sunlight and a camera lens fogged by ice. Some 40 

minutes later, he finished the job. Because the space station was out of 

communication at the time of contact, Mission Control had to wait another 40 

minutes before knowing whether the docking had been accomplished. 



``I would like to congratulate you for your bravery and heroism and your 

ability to be patient,'' a Russian flight controller radioed up. ``You guys 

have used a lot of adrenaline, huh? OK, well, you guys relax a bit. You've 

earned it.'' 



NASA astronaut Bill Shepherd, the station's first commander, moved into the 

space station for a four-month stay on Nov. 2, along with Gidzenko and 

Russian cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev. 



The three men have just two weeks to unload the cargo ship. Space shuttle 

Endeavour is scheduled to lift off Nov. 30 with new solar wings for the 

station, and the cargo ship must be gone by the time the shuttle arrives.