FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1963
1963 - 1053.PDF
1022 FLIGHT International, 27 June 1963 The Soviet Union's fifth and sixth cosmonauts are Lieutenant-Colonel Valery Bykovsky and Junior Lieu tenant Valentino Tereshkova, the first woman to achieve orbital flight. The story of their joint flight begins below Missiles and Spaceflight FIVE DAYS IN ORBIT COMPLETION of the Earth-orbital flights by Vostoks 5 and 6 was announced by the Soviet news agency Tass on Wednes day, June 19, in the following communique:— "The joint flight of the spaceship Vostok 6, piloted by the world's first woman cosmonaut, citizen of the USSR Valentina Tereshkova; and the spaceship Vostok 5, piloted by cosmonaut, citizen of the USSR Valery Bykovsky, has ended successfully. In conformity with the programme of the joint flight, the spaceships Vostok 6 and Vostok 5 landed in the preset areas of the Soviet Union on June 19, 1963. The spaceship Vostok 6 landed as planned on the 49th orbit at 11.20 a.m. Moscow time (8.20 a.m. GMT), 620km north-east of Karaganda. "After this, at the 82nd orbit, as calculated, the Vostok 5 space ship landed at 2.06 p.m. (11.06 a.m. GMT), 540km north-west of Karaganda. In accordance with the calculations, both spaceships landed on the same latitude of 53°. "At the landing points the cosmonauts were met by landing crews, friends, doctors, journalists and sports commissars. Cosmonauts Valentina Tereshkova and Valery Bykovsky are feeling well." Bykovsky's flight had lasted for 4 days 23hr 6min, almost a day longer than that of Andrian Nikolayev in Vostok 3 last August. Valentina Tereshkova had logged 2 days 22hr 50min, just 7min less than Pavel Popovich in Vostok 4. The progress of the joint flight is recorded in the following extracts from official Soviet announce ments :— Vostok 5 launching, June 14 The spaceship Vostok 5, piloted by a citizen of the Soviet Union, pilot-cosmonaut Lt-Col Valery Fedorovich Bykovsky, was placed in orbit around the Earth in the Soviet Union at 3 p.m. Moscow time on June 14, 1963. The purpose of the new space flight is:— (1) To continue studies of the influence of different factors of space flight on a human organism; (2) To carry on extensive medico-biological research in conditions of a long flight; (3) Further adjustment and improvement of the piloting systems of a spaceship. The spaceship Vostok 5 has been placed into an orbit close to the calculated one. According to preliminary data the period of its revolution around the Earth is 88.4min, with minimum distance from the Earth's surface (perigee) and maximum distance (apogee) being equal to 181 and 235km respectively. The angle of inclination of the orbit's plane to that of the equator is about 65°. Two-way radio communication is being constantly maintained with the Vostok 5 spaceship. According to a report received from the cosmonaut, Comrade Bykovsky, and the readings of the tele- metric and television systems, he stood up well to the strain of orbiting and the subsequent state of weightlessness. Comrade Bykovsky is feeling well. Pilot-cosmonaut Bykovsky gives his transmissions on the fre quencies of 20.006 and 143.625Mc/s. A "Signal" transmitter operating on the frequency of 19.948Mc/s is also installed aboard the ship. All systems aboard the spaceship are functioning normally. Biographical note, June 14 Lt-Col Valery F. Bykovsky is the same age as Yuri Gagarin, the first Soviet cosmo naut. Gagarin celebrated his 29th birthday on March 9, while Bykovsky is still to celebrate it on August 2. The little town of Pavlovo-Pasad, Moscow Oblast, will bscome famous now, because the Soviet cosmonaut number 5 was born there in 1934 into the rank-and-file Russian family of a transport official. . . Bykovsky became a pilot by calling. On November 3, 1952, Valery Bykovsky completed a course of training at the Moscow City Aeroclub and two weeks later voluntarily joined the Soviet Army. Bykovsky graduated from an aviation school in 1955 and became senior anti-aircraft defence fighter-pilot some four years later. He flies bravely, competently, is calm during flights and resource ful in difficult situations—this is the testimonial given by the command to Valery Bykovsky. This testimonial is substantiated by the honorary medal "for faultless service." Valery Bykovsky is a bearer of the Order of the Red Star. Very few are decorated with this combat award in peacetime. A fervent sportsman, Bykovsky shares his passion for sports with parachutism. He made 72 parachute jumps before becoming a parachute instructor. At present Valery Bykovsky is a student of the Military Engineering Academy named after Zhukovsky, which is attended also by his space brothers Gagarin, Titov, Niko layev and Popovich. Valery is married to a 25-year-old Muscovite, Valentina Bykov- skaya. Valery junior was born into their family slightly more than three months ago. Progress reports, June 14 At 10.12 p.m. Moscow time the spaceship Vostok 5 completed its fifth orbit of the Earth. According to verified data, the period of the spaceship's orbit
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events