Georgy Beregovoy - the only twice Hero in history Soviet Union, who received one "Gold Star" for military exploits, and the second - for the conquest of space.
Tamer of the "Union". How a war hero saved the USSR space program
By the second decade of the 21st century, astronautics began to be regarded as an everyday phenomenon. There is no trace of the former enthusiasm and admiration for the conquerors of space, much more talk about space tourism and the next setbacks of the Russian space industry.
In these realities, the names of those who paved the way into space are gradually erased from the memory of the majority.
Of the "pioneers of the Universe", they remember Gagarin, Leonov, Tereshkova, Titov, and it would be difficult to name a couple of more surnames ... Georgy Beregovoy will probably not be among them.
This man was not among the very first, but at a critical moment for the history of Soviet cosmonautics, it was he who took on perhaps the most difficult mission. He took responsibility for himself, being the oldest in the detachment, the only one who came to him with the star of the Hero of the Soviet Union on his chest, having military experience and the experience of a test pilot behind him.
Dream and War
Georgy Beregovoy was born in the Poltava region, in the village of Fedorovka, in April 1921. Soon the parents moved to Donbass, to the city of Yenakiyevo, where the future cosmonaut spent his childhood.
However, in Zhora's youth, the boys did not even hear about space, but they dreamed of becoming pilots. Zhora also dreamed - he started with aircraft modeling, becoming older, enrolled in the flying club. At the same time, he received a more mundane profession, working as a locksmith apprentice at a metallurgical plant.
Before the army, Georgy Beregovoy completed his studies at the flying club, so the recruit had a direct road to military pilots.
He graduated from the Voroshilovgrad school of military pilots named after the Proletariat of Donbass in 1941, when the war began.
Beregovoy, like many of his comrades, was assigned to the reconnaissance aircraft. After the heaviest losses at the beginning of the war, there were more pilots than serviceable vehicles. As a result, Beregovoy spent time waiting for the queue for a combat mission, languishing because he could not do more for the Motherland.
For graduates flight school, including Beregovoy, were awarded the rank of sergeants, officer shoulder straps were given only after the start of combat missions. But on sorties, the pilot had to be in boots, and not in windings, in which sergeants wore. A vicious circle - to have boots, you need to become an officer, and to become an officer, you need to fly, and you cannot fly if there are no boots.
He solved the coastal problem by secretly getting AWOL and sewing himself from a local craftsman a kind of boots from boots and the remnants of torn bootlegs. It looked terrible, but he was allowed to fly.
Georgy Beregovoy got to the front, in the very heat, in August 1942 as a pilot of the Il-2 attack aircraft.
It was not for nothing that this aircraft received the nickname "Flying Tank" - a reliable and formidable machine supported attacks soviet troopsdestroying Hitler's manpower and technique.
But it was among the pilots of attack aircraft that there were the greatest losses during the war years. The explanation was simple - he attacked the Il-2 at a low altitude, and fired at it from all possible types of weapons.
Not only to inflict damage on the enemy, but also to return alive himself - that was the task of the attack pilots.
Georgy Beregovoy was shot down three times during the war. Once he made his way to his own people for more than four days, and when he came to the airfield, he surprised his comrades pretty much - by that time everyone was sure that he was dead.
But the pilot Beregovoy knew how to squeeze the maximum out of the car, find a way out of the most difficult situations.
Once the Il-2 squadron, commanded by Georgy Beregovoy, was attacked by German fighters when returning to the airfield. In such a battle, stormtroopers have little chance of success.
Beregovoy reacted instantly - he took his subordinates to the minimum height. IL-2 flew over the sunflower fields literally one and a half meters above the ground, chopping off the petals with jets of air, which formed a whole cloud. The German fighters were unable to chase the Russian madmen flying "not by the rules". The squadron returned to base thanks to its commander.
During the war years, Georgy Beregovoy made 186 sorties on the Il-2, which is a very high figure for an attack aircraft. For heroism, courage and courage shown in air battles of the Great Patriotic War On October 26, 1944, Georgy Timofeevich Beregovoy was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
The time of peace came, many heroes of the last war dreamed of peace. But Georgy Beregovoy never dreamed of peace, but dreamed something completely different - the profession of a test pilot.
In 1948, after completing courses for test pilots, he begins to master new technology. During his career as a test pilot, 60 different types of aircraft passed through his hands.
He was the first in the USSR to master flying in a pressure helmet; he was the first to prove in practice that getting a jet plane into a "spin" is not certain death, but a working moment.
In October 1959, during tests of the Su-9 high-altitude fighter-interceptor near Beregovoy, the aircraft control stick was jammed. The uncontrolled car had to be abandoned, but the pilot fought to the end, having managed to regain control. When the fighter returned to the airfield, the engineers found that the cause of the emergency was not some cardinal design flaw, but a single bolt that interfered with the movement of the control stick. This defect was eliminated as soon as possible, and the aircraft continued testing. And leave the Coastal Machine, the question of what is the reason for the refusal would excite the minds of the designers for weeks and months.
Georgy Beregovoy knew how to take reasonable risks in pursuit of an important goal, but he never crossed the fine line, where smart risk turns into empty daring and hussariness.
Engineers and designers were sometimes infuriated by Beregovoy's corrosiveness, but they also admitted that his professionalism fully made it possible to reveal all the advantages and disadvantages of the machine. Beregovoi has always set the task of bringing a new aircraft to such a state that combat pilots can easily and conveniently fly on it.
In 1961, Georgy Beregovoy was awarded the title "Honored Test Pilot of the USSR". In the Kremlin, he was awarded by the future Soviet leader, and then Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, Leonid Brezhnev. Both the politician himself and those around him drew attention to the portrait resemblance between Brezhnev and Beregov. Eight years will pass, and this similarity will save Brezhnev's life ...
As a test pilot, Georgy Beregovoy mastered 60 different types of aircraft
By the early 1960s, Beregovoy had accomplished feats that would have been enough for five lives full of adventure.
But Beregovoy does not dream of peace - in 1963 he becomes one of those who are enlisted in the Soviet cosmonaut corps in the so-called "Air Force group number 2".
In the "space squad" Georgy Beregovoy looked like a real "black sheep". He is thirteen years older than the first cosmonaut on Earth, Yuri Gagarin. Among the young pilots, jealousy arose in relation to an experienced colleague. It sounds funny, but the Hero of the Soviet Union and the honored test pilot was considered a "thug". The fact is that the commander of the first cosmonaut corps, Nikolai Kamanin, commanded a unit during the war, which included the Beregovoy squadron. On this basis, many believed that Kamanin had smuggled his pet into the astronauts.
Legend has it that Yuri Gagarin, in the heat of the moment, once threw: "As long as I live, Beregovoy will not fly into space." By the will of fate, this is exactly what happened - Georgy Beregovoy went into space after the death of the first cosmonaut on Earth.
Training in the cosmonaut corps was not easy for Beregovoy. He was accustomed to controlling airplanes, and in the first spaceships, the pilot remained more of an observer. Beregovoy, accustomed to fighting for the car to the end, did not like parachute jumps, which were an obligatory part of cosmonaut training.
But he was not used to retreating, continuing to work hard on himself, catching up with younger comrades-competitors.
Flight of a lifetime
Meanwhile, a "black streak" began in the Soviet cosmonautics. In 1966, Sergei Korolev died. Work on the new Soyuz spacecraft was slow, American competitors were rapidly moving forward.
The government hastened the designers who did not have the authority that Korolev used. They began to rush, which led to more and more mistakes. The first three unmanned Soyuz spacecraft ended their flights in an emergency. It was obvious that the "raw" ship was not ready for flight, however, in April 1967, Vladimir Komarov set off for flight on "Soyuz-1". The result of the haste was the death of the cosmonaut and the actual suspension of the USSR manned program.
The engineers continued to work with the Soyuz, but on Earth it was impossible to "teach to fly" the spacecraft. A new flight was needed, for which no one dared to give the go-ahead.
Failures undermined the determination and confidence that reigned in Russian cosmonautics in the early 1960s.
But it was impossible to be afraid indefinitely. In October 1968, the unmanned Soyuz-2 and Soyuz-3 were to go into space with a pilot on board, who was supposed to dock the ships in space.
The Soyuz-3 pilot was appointed Georgy Beregovoy - the oldest, the most experienced, the only one who had the richest experience as a test pilot.
Soyuz-3 was launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome on October 26, 1968. At that time, 47-year-old Beregovoy was the oldest space explorer. Moreover, Beregovoy was born earlier than all people who have ever been in orbit, on April 15, 1921, and this achievement will definitely remain with him forever.
The launch was successful, but in orbit everything went wrong. At the very beginning of the flight, Beregovoy was supposed to dock with Soyuz-2, and it had to pass in the shadow of the Earth, in the absence of communication. The rendezvous proceeded normally, but then the Soyuz-2 deviated from the established docking parameters. Beregovoy made several attempts, having spent almost all the fuel allocated for the operation, but did not achieve success.
The reason was found out later - as it turned out, the cosmonaut brought the Soyuz-3 to docking in an “inverted state”. In essence, this was not the mistake of Beregovoy, but of the physicians, who by that time did not have sufficient information about the effects of weightlessness. At the first orbits, the cosmonauts get used to the weightlessness of the vestibular apparatus, so manual docking is an extremely difficult task. The coastal, brilliant pilot, in the presence of gravity, could not face the problem that arose in his orbit.
But even this failure turned out to be useful - doctors and engineers took into account this factor, identified by Beregov, in the future.
On October 30, 1968 Soyuz-3 with Georgy Beregov landed safely in the Kazakh steppe.
The test pilot was able to pacify the temper of the "Union", on which someone hastened to put an end to it. To this day, a multiply modified version of Soyuz delivers astronauts to the ISS.
On November 1, 1968, Georgy Beregovoy became twice Hero of the Soviet Union - the only one who received the first "Gold Star" for the Great Patriotic War, and the second for a flight into space.
On January 22, 1969, Beregovoy again risked his life, but this time not of his own free will. On this day, the Kremlin honored the crews of Soyuz-4 and Soyuz-5, which successfully docked in orbit and returned safely to Earth. The heroes of space, according to tradition, were taken through the streets of Moscow, where they were greeted by the people, and then taken to the festive events in the Kremlin.
In addition to the participants in the last flight, other cosmonauts, as well as the leaders of the Soviet state, also followed in the cortege.
At the entrance to the Kremlin, the motorcade was awaited by the terrorist Viktor Ilyin, who planned to kill Leonid Brezhnev. Seeing the general secretary in the front seat of one of the cars, Ilyin opened fire.
But the terrorist was wrong. It was not Brezhnev who was sitting in the car, but Georgy Beregovoy, who looked like him.
Shards of glass cut Beregovoy's face, but he was not taken aback here either. Taking over the steering wheel of the fatally wounded driver, he managed to stop the car safely.
This story was not talked about in the Soviet Union for two decades, keeping it under the heading "secret".
Word and deed
In 1972, Georgy Beregovoy headed the Cosmonaut Training Center and directed it for 15 long years, possibly the most successful years in the history of Soviet cosmonautics.
He left behind many scientific works in the field of applied astronautics, several books of memoirs and the good memory kept by friends, colleagues, students.
War hero, tester, cosmonaut, scientist, writer, public figure - Georgy Beregovoy lived a brightest life, not chasing fame and popularity. In his life, the word was always supported by deed.
Georgy Timofeevich Beregovoy died on June 30, 1995 during heart surgery. Buried in Moscow at Novodevichy cemetery.
G.T.Beregovoy
Twice Hero of the Soviet Union (10/26/1944, 11/01/1968), Pilot-Cosmonaut of the USSR (11/01/1968), Honored Test Pilot of the USSR (04/14/1961), Lieutenant General of Aviation (02/14/1977).
Laureate of the State Prize for the training of crews for flights under the "Intercosmos" program (December 29, 1981), Hero of Socialist Labor of the NRB (1970).
Born April 15, 1921 in the village. Fedorovka, Poltava region. He graduated from the Voroshilovograd School of Military Pilots named after the Proletariat of Donbass in June 1941. A year later he mastered piloting the Il-2 attack aircraft and began fighting as a squadron commander of the 90th Guards Assault Aviation Regiment.
Member of the Great Patriotic War. During his participation in hostilities from May 1942, he flew 186 sorties, bombed and stormed enemy tanks, artillery batteries, river crossings and echelons, was shot down 3 times, burned 3 times in an aircraft, but always returned to service.
During the battles for the Sandomierz bridgehead, Captain Beregovoy took part in the legendary "star" raid soviet aviation to the fascist airfield near Lvov. And he served in the 5th assault aviation corps, which was commanded by one of the first seven Heroes of the Soviet Union, Major General N.P. Kamanin. In October 1944, Beregovoy was also awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
From July 9, 1947 to August 23, 1948, he was a student of the command faculty of the Red Banner Air Force Academy (KVVA). Then transferred to extramural, which he graduated on December 25, 1956, receiving a specialty "Air Force officer with higher command and staff education."
From August 23, 1948, he served as a test pilot, and from June 30, 1949 - senior test pilot of the flight test department of the Aircraft Testing Department of the V.P. Chkalov Air Force GKNII.
On January 19, 1951, he was transferred to the 3rd divisions of the fighter aircraft flight test department. On April 5, 1952, he was transferred to the 2nd department of this department to the post of deputy chief of the department for flight operations. On October 29, 1953, he was dismissed from the post of deputy head of the department, while retaining the post of test pilot. On July 8, 1957, he was appointed deputy head of the 1st department for flight work, while retaining the position of senior test pilot.
On August 8, 1959, he was appointed chief test pilot of the 1st Test Aviation Squadron of the Office for Testing Interception Systems and Fighter Aircraft.
From February 25, 1961, he served as a senior test pilot, from March 23, 1962, served as deputy squadron commander, from April 13, 1963, until he was enrolled in the cosmonaut corps, served as commander of the 1st aviation test squadron, senior test pilot of the flight test service of the 1st control of GKNII VVS, military unit 15650.
Raised on the first flight (as a 2 pilot) and performed tests of R-2 (I-320; 09.09.1949). Participated in the tests of the MiG-19P, SM-12, SM-30 (MiG-19), Yak-27K, Su-9 (1958), Tu-128 (1962), the leading test pilot for state tests of the Yak-25.
Once in flight on the Su-9 Beregovoi felt a partial jam in the control system - the handle did not move "towards itself." Such a malfunction usually requires a catapult. After several attempts to overcome the emphasis, Beregovoi pulled the handle with force, and it went! It turned out that a bolt got into the wiring element of the control system (before the booster), and with a strong jerk, it jumped out. P.O. Sukhoi awarded Georgy Timofeevich with a movie camera for his endurance and saving the plane.
He was the first to use the GSH-4 pressure helmet in practice. He tested more than 60 types of aircraft.
In 1964 he was enlisted in the Soviet cosmonaut corps. The help of the former front-line commander N.P. Kamanin, who then supervised the training of the first detachment of Soviet cosmonauts, helped the 43-year-old tester overcome the age limit (35 years).
In 1968, a group of new future cosmonauts arrived at the Mission Control Center in Yevpatoria, among whom were the Hero of the Soviet Union, 47-year-old Colonel Georgy Beregovoy and 41-year-old Lieutenant Colonel Vladimir Shatalov. Without showing the usual respect for the technical leadership of flights, these officers said that experienced pilots, as is customary in aviation and the navy, should be involved not only in training for flight on a ready-made spacecraft, but also in the development of manned space technology itself.
Beregovoy boldly stated that the members of the State Commission, technical management and other leaders are showing excessive caution, they are stretching unmanned launches for years (after the death of V.M. Komarov). If you force the launches of spacecraft with a man on board, then new manned structures will be created much faster.
On August 28, 1968, another 7K-OK spacecraft was launched under the name Kosmos-238, which returned safely to Earth. All 5 unmanned flights of ships of this series were successful, and the government commission decided to prepare a manned flight. It was necessary not only to repeat the flight that V. Komarov performed, but also to go further - to dock the two spacecraft, which would make it possible to begin preparations for the launch of long-term space stations.
On October 25, the unmanned target ship 7K-OK N 10 Soyuz-2 was launched without comment. Its onboard systems worked fine. It was decided that the long-range rendezvous with the unmanned spacecraft would be carried out automatically using the Igla search system, and from a distance of 150 meters, the pilot of the active Soyuz-3 spacecraft would begin the rendezvous manually. Since the ballistics specialists calculated the docking in the darkened, night part of the orbit, the signal lights will light up for a visual reference on the Soyuz-2 in the form of a pyramid. Many did not agree with the docking in the unlit part of the orbit. Many people understood that without a certain period of adaptation to weightlessness and getting used to the sensations of a real flight, it would be very difficult to complete the task on the move ...
The launch vehicle was launched on October 26 at 11 hours 34 minutes 18.1 seconds.
The cosmonaut reported: "Range - 40". That is, six-ton \u200b\u200bspacecraft were separated from each other by only 40 meters, and at that time they left the radio visibility zone of ground tracking points. As soon as the ships reappeared in the communication zone, everyone realized that the "blind" docking had failed ...
When Beregovoy was asked about his health, he replied:
- The state of health is excellent, the mood is lousy.
What happened is that when the manned vehicle approached it, the Soyuz-2 turned out to be 180 degrees upside-down along the longitudinal axis. Having just endured the starting overloads and excitement, having no time to get used to the unusual state of weightlessness, the unpleasant sensations of nausea, the cosmonaut had to dock manually, although before him the automation had coped well with this task. Beregovoy had difficulty adapting to the rapidly falling darkness and “chased” the four trapezoidal lights on the approaching Soyuz-2. When he braked at a distance of 30 meters, he realized that he needed to turn his Soyuz, otherwise the pin of his “active” ship would not dock with the cone of the “passive” twin. Then he decided to go into the light zone and accidentally hooked one of the control sticks. His "Soyuz-3" started spinning. Within 3 minutes, the astronaut corrected the roll, consumed about 40 kg of fuel and realized that it was already dangerous to continue the approach of space objects.
Much that Beregovoy had to experience in that heroic flight, no one on Earth foresaw, much was not taught on simulators, and someone else, in addition, made a mistake in calculations and assumptions. At that time, designers, ballistics and automation specialists unwittingly created such conditions for a space raid by a brave man that he became the most "tense" link in a complex orbital flight control chain.
Nevertheless, the astronaut returned to Earth with a huge number of valuable comments that helped to eliminate errors and shortcomings in preparation. new shift astronauts and the design of better spaceships.
Beregovoy was awarded the second Gold Star medal and was awarded the title of twice Hero of the Soviet Union for the successful completion of the orbital flight and for the courage and heroism shown at the same time.
On January 22, 1969 in the Kremlin, during a solemn meeting of the cosmonauts, officer Viktor Ilyin fired at the car in which Beregovoy was traveling, mistaking it for Brezhnev's car (the mistake was also facilitated by the slight external resemblance of Beregovoy to Brezhnev). The driver sitting next to Beregovoy was mortally wounded; Beregovoy himself was lightly wounded by fragments of a windshield.
On April 9, 1969, he was appointed senior instructor-cosmonaut, deputy head of the 1st Research Institute of the CTC.
From June 26, 1972 to January 3, 1987, he served as the head of the 1st Research Institute of the CTC named after Yu.A. Gagarin.
Expelled from the cosmonaut corps on February 25, 1982. He continued his service at the Research Institute of the CTC
On January 3, 1987, with the rank of lieutenant general, he was transferred to the reserve by age. He worked at the VITs "Lidar" of the USSR Academy of Sciences, and then in a joint venture.
He had works in the field of astronautics and engineering psychology. PhD in Psychology. He was a co-author of scientific discoveries in the field of physics of the upper atmosphere.
Elected deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 8-10 convocations (1974-1989); was the commander of the All-Union Komsomol military-sports game "Eaglet", the commander of the All-Union Yunarmeysky movement; he was Deputy Chairman of the Soviet-Hungarian Friendship Society, a member of the Presidential Council of the USSR-France Society, Chairman of the Soviet-Polish Friendship Society; was elected Chairman of the Council of the Inter-Republican Union of Veterans and Reserve Soldiers. Author of the books "Angle of Attack" (1971), "The Sky Begins on Earth" (1976), "About Time and Me" (1982), "Three Heights" (1986), "Earth - Stratosphere - Space", "Space - earthlings "," Edge of courage "," At the call of the heart. " Co-author of books " Optical phenomena in the atmosphere from observations from manned spacecraft "(1972)," Space Academy ". Moscow: Mechanical Engineering, 1987
He died on June 30, 1995 after coronary artery bypass surgery. He was buried at the Novodevichy cemetery in Moscow.
Laureate of the USSR State Prize (1981); He was awarded two Gold Star medals of the Hero of the Soviet Union and two Orders of Lenin (October 26, 1944, November 1, 1968), two Orders of the Battle Red Banner (1942, 1943), the Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky, III degree (1944). the Order of Alexander Nevsky (1943), two Orders of the Patriotic War I degree (1945, 1985), two Orders of the Red Star (1954, 1955), the Order For Service to the Motherland in the Armed Forces of the USSR, III degree (1975). The medals "For Military Merit" (1949), "For Victory over Germany" (1945), "For the Capture of Budapest" (1945), "For the Capture of Vienna" (1945) and 11th Jubilee Medals.
Awards of foreign countries:
He was awarded the Gold Star medal of the Hero of Socialist Labor of the NRB and the Order of Georgy Dimitrov (NRB, 1970), the 25 Years of People's Power (NRB) medal, the 100th Anniversary of the Fall of the Ottoman Yoke (NRB, 1979), the 100 years since the birth of Georgy Dimitrov "(NRB, 1983), the Order of the State Banner (Hungarian People's Republic, 1985), the Order of the Red Banner with Diamonds (Hungary), the Gold Medal" For Combat Friendship "(Hungary, 1980), the Grunwald Cross III degree (Poland ), the Order of Tudor Vladimirescu V degree (SRP), the Order "People's Hero of Yugoslavia" II degree.
Cosmonaut: Beregovoy Georgy Timofeevich (15.04.1921-30.06.1995)
- 12th cosmonaut of the USSR, call sign "Argon"
- Flight duration: 3 days 22 hours 50 minutes 45 seconds (1968)
Georgy Timofeevich was born on April 15, 1921 in the village. Fedorovka, now Poltava region, Ukraine. A little later he changed his place of residence in the town of Yenakiyevo, Donetsk region. Also in high school Georgy began to get involved in aviation sports in the city flying club, as well as in aircraft modeling, and became the head of this section. After completing 8 years of school, he got a job as a mechanic for a local metallurgical plant... After graduating from the flying club at the age of 17, Georgy went to the Voroshilovgrad school of military pilots for a 3-year training.
Pilot career
In 1942, after completing military school, the young man was sent to war as a pilot. In the period from 1942 to 1944, he was shot down three times and once wounded in the shin. He conducted 185 combat flights on various vehicles, including the famous Il-2. For heroism and courage shown in battles in 1944, he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
At the end of the Great Patriotic War, he continued to serve in the Air Force, where he achieved the rank of Colonel of the Guard. After graduating from the courses of test pilots in 1948, he was engaged in testing various aircraft. In 1961 he was awarded the title "Honored Test Pilot of the USSR". At the award ceremony, Georgy Beregovoy met with another famous person, surprisingly similar to him in appearance - Leonid Brezhnev.
Space training
The 42-year-old war hero, Georgy Beregovoy, twice applied for admission to the cosmonaut corps, and, despite having passed a medical examination, was not accepted. However, in January 1964, Air Force Commander K.A. Vershinin single-handedly decided to enroll G. Beregovoy in the cosmonaut corps.
Test pilot underwent control training spacecraft "Voskhod-3", but after the closure of the program was involved in the program "Soyuz". At that time, this program faced a number of problems: the first unmanned spacecraft exploded on launch, the other two did not start, the fourth, with the cosmonaut Vladimir Komarov on board, crashed.
When these problems were presented to Leonid Brezhnev, the secretary general reminded the leaders of the project that there is an honored test pilot in their cosmonaut corps. In the fall of 1968, Georgy Timofeevich completed his training for the role of pilot-commander of the Soyuz-3 spacecraft.
Space mission
No records found
On October 26, 1968, Georgy Beregovoy took off aboard Soyuz-3. The pilot's goal was to test the ship of the new model, to determine its shortcomings, as well as to dock with the Soyuz-2 unmanned aerial vehicle. Previously, the docking was carried out automatically by the vehicles, but this time the cosmonaut had to perform this maneuver with his own hand.
Soyuz-3 took off without incident from Baikonur and at an altitude of 4,000 km Georgy Beregovoy switched over to manual control. Being at a distance of 200 meters from the Soyuz-2 spacecraft, Georgy Timofeevich began preparations for docking. Since the operation took place in the shadow of the Earth, the orientation of the Soyuz-3 was to be based on light signals installed on the unmanned spacecraft. However, the astronaut incorrectly determined the position of the spacecraft and tried to dock "Soyuz-3" with "Soyuz-2" - "upside down". Beregovoy made several more attempts at rapprochement, which did not lead to anything. The astronaut only managed to detect the problem when both ships emerged from the shadow of the Earth. But the fuel supply was not enough to carry out another maneuver and Georgy Beregovoy had to return to Earth.
Space mission results
Cosmonaut Beregovoy performed a flight with a total duration of 3 days 22 hours 50 minutes 45 seconds. Also Georgy Timofeevich became the oldest person at that time who visited the orbit of our planet.
As a result of the experience gained during the Soyuz-3 mission, two main conclusions were drawn:
- Do not dock in the shade
- Do not dock on the first orbit around the Earth
Despite a detailed report with many nuances and a detailed description of the ship's shortcomings, which was carefully compiled by Georgy Beregov, the cosmonaut was not satisfied with his work. Today, the result of modernization of the ship of this series is obvious, the Soyuz spacecraft carried out 47 flights in order to deliver the crew to.
Future life
For testing the spacecraft and carrying out a complex and dangerous mission, the cosmonaut Beregovoi was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for the second time.
Due to its external resemblance to the then General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev, in 1969, the car with Georgy Beregov was mistakenly fired upon. As a result of the assassination attempt, the driver was seriously injured, and the astronaut suffered only minor injuries from broken glass.
After finishing space mission Beregovoy continued to work in the cosmonautics industry, having worked for some time as the head of the Cosmonaut Training Center. Georgy has written several scientific and artistic books in the field of astronautics.
The life of 74-year-old Georgy Beregovoy was cut short in 1995 during heart surgery. In honor of the test pilot and cosmonaut, monuments were erected, the inscription on the bell in the St. George Church (Yenakiyevo) was dedicated, the streets, the Donetsk planetarium, the Poltava-Moscow train were named, a 5 hryvnia coin was issued in 2011, dedicated to him. There are also suggestions that it was Georgy Beregovoy who served as the prototype for the protagonist of V. Vysotsky's "Song of the Test Pilot".
(13.04.1921-30.06.1995) - USSR cosmonaut, honored test pilot of the USSR (1961), twice Hero of the Soviet Union (1944, 1968), State Prize laureate, Lieutenant General of Aviation.
Member of the Great Patriotic War since 1942. He fought in the 90th Guards. shap. He flew 186 sorties.
In 1948-1964. was a test pilot.
In 1963 he was enlisted in the cosmonaut corps. On October 26-30, 1968 he made a space flight aboard the Soyuz-3 spacecraft. In 1972-1987. was the head of the Cosmonaut Training Center.
Was a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 8-10 convocations, worked in many public organizations.
He was awarded with many domestic and foreign orders and medals.
Author of the books: "Earth-Stratosphere-Space", "Space - to Earthlings", "Three Heights", "Edge of Courage", "The Sky Begins on Earth", "At the Call of the Heart". Beregovoy, Georgy Timofeevich Rod. April 15, 1921, in the village. Fedorovka, Poltava region, mind. July 4, 1995, in Moscow.
Soviet pilot, a participant in the Great Patriotic War (attack aircraft), in peacetime, a test pilot, then an astronaut.
Twice Hero of the Soviet Union (1944, 1968). Pilot-Cosmonaut of the USSR (1968), Lieutenant General of Aviation (1977), Honored Test Pilot of the USSR (1961). In 1948-64 he worked at the Research Institute of the Air Force (tested over 60 types of aircraft, including the first Soviet fighter-bomber SU-7B), on October 26-30, 1968 he tested the Soyuz-3 spacecraft, was the first in the USSR to maneuver to approach the Soyuz-2 unmanned spacecraft. Since 1972, the head of the Cosmonaut Training Center.
Laureate of the State Prize of the USSR, also awarded the gold medal of K. E. Tsiolkovsky, gold medals "Cosmos" and them. Yu.A. Gagarin.
Beregovoy, Georgy Timofeevich Pilot-Cosmonaut, twice Hero of the Soviet Union, Honored Test Pilot of the USSR; was born on April 15, 1921 in the village. Fedorovka, Poltava region, died June 30, 1995; graduated from the Voroshilovograd School of Military Pilots named after the Proletariat of Donbass in 1941, higher officer courses and test pilot courses in 1948, the Air Force Academy (now named after Y. Gagarin) in 1956, candidate of psychological sciences; participant of the Great Patriotic War (1942-1945, 186 sorties, Hero of the Soviet Union); in 1963 he was enlisted in the detachment of Soviet cosmonauts; On October 26-30, 1968, he performed a test space flight on the Soyuz-3 spacecraft, lasting 3 days 22 hours 50 minutes; 1972-1987 - Head of the Cosmonaut Training Center; in 1987, he retired with the rank of lieutenant general; was elected a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 8-10 convocations (1974-1989); he was the commander of the All-Union Komsomol military-sports game "Eaglet", the commander of the All-Union youth army movement; he was deputy chairman of the Soviet-Hungarian Friendship Society, a member of the Presidential Council of the USSR-France Society, chairman of the Soviet-Polish Friendship Society; was elected Chairman of the Council of the Inter-Republican Union of Veterans and Reserve Soldiers; wrote the books "Earth - Stratosphere. Space", "Space. Earthlings", "Three Heights", "Edge of Courage", "Heaven Begins on Earth", "At the Call of the Heart"; laureate of the USSR State Prize (1981); was awarded two Orders of Lenin, two Orders of the Red Banner, the Orders of Alexander Nevsky and Bohdan Khmelnitsky, 3rd degree, two Orders of the Red Star, two Orders of the Patriotic War of the 1st degree, medals, as well as many foreign awards;
Hero of Socialist Labor NRB; was awarded gold medals to them. Tsiolkovsky (USSR Academy of Sciences) and them. Gagarin (FAI); was an Honorary Citizen of the cities of Kaluga (Russia), Lugansk, Yenakievo, Vinnitsa (Ukraine), Pleven, Sliven (Bulgaria).
15.04.1921 - 30.06.1995
Twice Hero of the Soviet Union
| Monuments | |
| Tombstone | ||
| Memorial plaque in the village of Chkalovsky | ||
| Commemorative stele in Yenakiyevo | ||
| Train "Georgy Beregovoy" | ||
| Bronze bust in Yenakiyevo | ||
| Bronze bust in Yenakiyevo (detail) | ||
| Memorial sign in Yenakiyevo | ||
| Bust in Kiev | ||
| Bust in Kiev (detail) | ||
| Bust in Fedorovka | ||
| Memorial plaque in the Star City |
Beregovoy Georgy Timofeevich - squadron commander of the 90th Guards Assault Aviation Regiment (4th Guards Assault Aviation Division, 5th Assault Aviation Corps, 5th air army), guard senior lieutenant;
commander spaceship Soyuz-3, Colonel.Born on April 15, 1921 in the village of Fedorovka, Karlovskaya volost, Constantinograd district, Poltava province (now Karlovskiy district, Poltava region, Ukraine). Ukrainian. From the autumn of 1921 he lived in the city of Yenakiyevo (now Donetsk region, Ukraine). In 1937 he graduated from the 8th grade of the school. He worked at the Yenakiyevo Metallurgical Plant. In 1938 he graduated from the Yenakiyevo flying club.
In the army since December 1938. In June 1941, he graduated from the Voroshilovgrad Military Aviation Pilot School. He served in the Air Force as a pilot in the reserve and short-range bomber aviation regiments (in the Volga Military District).
Member of the Great Patriotic War: in June-November 1942 - flight commander of the 451st assault aviation regiment, in November-December 1942 - flight commander of the 235th assault aviation regiment. He fought on the Kalinin front. Participated in the Rzhev-Sychev operations.
In December 1942 - March 1943, he underwent retraining in the 5th training aviation regiment (Kalinin Front).
In July 1943 - May 1945 - Deputy Commander and Commander of the Air Squadron of the 671st (from May 1943 - 90th Guards) Assault Aviation Regiment. He fought on Voronezh (July-October 1943), 1st (October 1943 - September 1944) and 2nd (September 1944 - May 1945) Ukrainian fronts. Participated in Battle of Kursk, the liberation of the Left Bank Ukraine, the Kiev offensive, Zhytomyr-Berdichev, Korsun-Shevchenko, Proskurov-Chernivtsi, Lvov-Sandomierz, Debrecen, Budapest, Vienna, Bratislava-Brnovo and Prague operations.
On July 28, 1943, his plane was shot down by an enemy fighter and escaped by parachute. During one of the sorties he was lightly wounded by a bullet in the shin of his left leg.
In total, during the war, he flew 185 sorties in an Il-2 attack aircraft to inflict bombing strikes on enemy personnel and equipment.
For courage and heroism shown in battles against the Nazi invaders, by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of October 26, 1944 to the captain of the Guard Beregovoy Georgy Timofeevich awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal.
In November 1945 he graduated from the Lipetsk Higher Officers' Tactical Flight School. Until 1947, he continued to serve in the Air Force as navigator and head of the air rifle service of an assault aviation regiment, navigator of a fighter aviation regiment (in the Odessa Military District).
In 1947-1948 he studied at the Air Force Academy (Monino), in 1956 he graduated from it by correspondence.
In August 1948 - January 1964 - test pilot of the State Red Banner Scientific Testing Institute of the Air Force. Conducted state tests of supersonic interceptors MiG-19P, Su-9 and Tu-128; tests of combat jet aircraft Yak-25, Yak-27R, Su-7B and Su-9 for a spin, tests of the training jet MiG-15UTI for an inverted spin. Participated in state tests of the I-320 (R-2), MiG-17F, SM-7, MiG-19S, SM-12, SM-30, Yak-25RV-I and others.
From January 1964 to February 1982 he was a member of the cosmonaut corps.
On October 26-30, 1968 he made a space flight as the commander of the Soyuz-3 spacecraft for 3 days 22 hours 50 minutes.
For the successful implementation space flight and the shown courage and heroism by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of November 1, 1968, the colonel was awarded the second Gold Star medal and the Order of Lenin.
From April 1969 - Deputy Head, and in June 1972 - January 1987 - Head of the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center. Since January 1987, Aviation Lieutenant General G.T. Beregovoy has been retired.
He worked in the computing information center "Lidar" of the USSR Academy of Sciences.
Deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of the 8-10th convocations (1970-1982).
He lived in the village of Chkalovsky (now within the city of Shchelkovo), since 1966 - in the Star City of the Shchelkovsky District of the Moscow Region. He died on June 30, 1995. He was buried at the Novodevichy cemetery in Moscow.
Honored Test Pilot of the USSR (14.03.1961), Pilot-Cosmonaut of the USSR (1.11.1968), Lieutenant General of Aviation (1977), Honored Master of Sports of the USSR (1969), Cosmonaut of the 3rd class (1968), Candidate of Psychological Sciences ( 1975).
Awarded 2 Orders of Lenin (26.10.1944; 1.11.1968), 2 Orders of the Red Banner (26.08.1942; 28.09.1943), Orders of Bogdan Khmelnitsky, 3rd degree (16.04.1944), Alexander Nevsky (20.10.1943), 2 Orders of the Patriotic War, 1st degree (01/14/1945; 03/11/1985), 2 Orders of the Red Star (04/30/1954; 02/22/1955), the Order For Service to the Motherland in Armed Forces USSR "3rd degree (04/30/1975), the medal" For Military Merit "(06/20/1949) and other medals.
Hero of Socialist Labor People's Republic Bulgaria (1970). He was awarded the Bulgarian Order of Georgi Dimitrov (1970), the Hungarian Order of the Banner of the Hungarian People's Republic of the 1st degree (04.1970), the Mongolian Order of the Red Battle Banner, the Polish Order of the Grunwald Cross of the 3rd degree, the Romanian Order of Tudor Vladimirescu of the 5th degree, and foreign medals.
Laureate of the USSR State Prize (1981, for crew training under the Intercosmos program). He was awarded the FAI Gold Space Medal (1977) and the Yuri Gagarin Gold Medal (FAI, 1968).
Honorary Citizen of the cities of Kaluga (1968), Baikonur (1977, Kazakhstan), Lugansk (1968), Enakievo, Vinnitsa (1969, Ukraine) and Starokonstantinov (Khmelnitsky region, Ukraine), Pleven and Sliven (Bulgaria).
A bronze bust of G.T. Beregovoy was installed in the city of Yenakievo, busts were also installed in Kiev and the village of Fedorovka, Poltava region. In Yenakiyevo, on the building of the school in which he studied, in the village of Chkalovsky and in Star City, memorial plaques were installed on the houses in which he lived.
Note: Awarded for completing 108 combat missions (as of April 1944).
Works:
Earth - stratosphere - space. M., 1969;
Attack angle . M., 1971;
The sky begins on Earth. M., 1976;
Space flight safety (co-authored)... M., 1977;
At the call of the heart. M., 1981;
Space for earthlings. M., 1981;
Cosmonaut's in-flight activities and increasing its efficiency (co-authored)... M., 1981;
About time and myself. M., 1982;
Space for earthlings. 2nd edition. M., 1981;