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Gepard

50 years ago, the first man in space lost his life

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Yuri Gagarin, the man who was the first who had seen our planet from orbit an April 12th 1961, lost his life on this day 50 years ago. He was flying a MiG-15UTI training plane, that crashed after the plane was forced into a spin. The recovery of the spin failed. Some sources stated, that the flight recorder showed, that if the spin would have entered 150 meters higher the recovery would have been successfull.

Why the MiG-15UTI with Gagarin on the controlls crashed was investigated, but the results were never published. Alexey Leonow, a college of Gagarin and the first man who left a spacecraft, said, that two Su-7 crossed the fight way of  Gagarins MiG at very close distance and caused the spin, who cost the life of the man who was the first in space.

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13 hours ago, Gepard said:

Yuri Gagarin, the man who was the first who had seen our planet from orbit an April 12th 1961, lost his life on this day 50 years ago. He was flying a MiG-15UTI training plane, that crashed after the plane was forced into a spin. The recovery of the spin failed. Some sources stated, that the flight recorder showed, that if the spin would have entered 150 meters higher the recovery would have been successfull.

Why the MiG-15UTI with Gagarin on the controlls crashed was investigated, but the results were never published. Alexey Leonow, a college of Gagarin and the first man who left a spacecraft, said, that two Su-7 crossed the fight way of  Gagarins MiG at very close distance and caused the spin, who cost the life of the man who was the first in space.

Tragic loss to the Soviets and to mankind as well. Such a meaningless death. You would think that the Soviets would have regarded him so highly that they would have banned him from flying in order to protect him from such accidents as this.

He had achieved a great deal for the Soviets and of course was elevated to the status of a hero, but even that did not save him on that fateful day.  I dread to think what he was thinking just before his plane hit the ground, perhaps he thought ''how can this happen to someone like me''. Life is a folly and is full of mystery and things which we do not understand and life can be snuffed out in a mere second even for those of us who have gone above and beyond the call of duty to achieve so much for humanity. Can't explain it. ?????????

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Gagarin had a flight "ban" for some years. He was not allowed to fly planes anymore. He became the chief of the cosmonaut group and was sent to foreign countries for good will tours. After some years he started to fight against the flight prohibition and in end 1967 he was allowed to fly again. After 7 years of non flying Gagarins flight skills were not good anymore, so he began the jet flight training from scratch again. Starting with L-29 trainers, then MiG-15UTI, as next step the MiG-21 was announced. .... It ended in a grave at the Kremlin wall at Red Square in Moscow. IIRC side by side with his college Komarow who died in the Sojus-1 crash in 1967.

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15 hours ago, Gepard said:

 side by side with his college Komarow who died in the Sojus-1 crash in 1967.

I think I have seen the photographs of this crash, very little remains of his body which was charred and burn in the crash and reduced to no more than a handful of parts. What a horrible end. Apparently the Soyuz 1 was a disaster waiting to happen having been rushed through and launched before it was ready.

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6 hours ago, RUSTYMORLEY said:

I think I have seen the photographs of this crash, very little remains of his body which was charred and burn in the crash and reduced to no more than a handful of parts. What a horrible end. Apparently the Soyuz 1 was a disaster waiting to happen having been rushed through and launched before it was ready.

Could have ended much more tragic. In the flight plan was the start of Soyuz-2 ordered some hours after Soyuz-1. Soyuz-2 had a 3 man crew (IIRC). It was planed that Soyuz-1 and 2 link up. Two cosmonauts had to make an EVA, go from Soyuz 2 to Soyuz-1 and had to land with Soyuz-1.

When shortly after the launch of Soyuz-1 mailfunctions appeard the launch of Soyuz-2 was canceled.

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On 29/03/2018 at 6:38 PM, Gepard said:

 

When shortly after the launch of Soyuz-1 mailfunctions appeard the launch of Soyuz-2 was canceled.

I should think so.  Komarov knew he was doomed and spent the last few remaining minutes of his life falling back to Earth in a malfunctioning spaceship cursing the designers and the men who had manouvered him into taking the Soyuz 1 position. 

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I've always had a fascination for the space race and Gagarin is a true hero - they all were I guess.

I always thought he died when a goose smashed through his windscreen. That seemed to be the story at, or just after, the time of his tragic death.

 

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