Pavel R. POPOVICH

PROFILE

Full Name:

Pavel Romanovich POPOVICH.

Rank:

Major-General, Soviet/Russian Air Force (Deceased).

Cosmonaut Call Sign:

Berkut (Golden Eagle)

Cosmonaut Number:

4.

First Identified:

12 August 1962, when launched as Pilot, Vostok 4.

Born:

5 October 1930, in the village of Uzin, Uzinskogo district, Kyiv Oblast, Ukraine (Ukrainian).

Died:

29 September 2009 from a stroke, in Gurzuf, Crimea, Ukraine, aged 78.

Education:

1947: While still at school he worked with his father at nights, weighing coal in a sugar factory in Uzin.

Jul 1947: Completed seven-year course and completed vocational school in Belaya-Tserkov, gaining the Certificate of Carpenter 5th Category.

Career Highlights:

1947-51: Industrial trainee (apprentice); attended Magnitogorsk Industrial Technical School; (1951) awarded Certificate of Building Technology.

Sep 1951: At the same time as completing college, he attended and completed a training programme at Magnitogorsk aero club, passing with excellent marks; piloted a VT-2 aircraft.

1952: Completed first year course at Stalingrad Military Pilot School, near Novosibirsk.

From 26 Sep 1953: Cadet, Military Pilot School No. 52 VAUL, Vozzhayevka village in the Soviet far east; school disbanded, could not finish the course.

21 Dec 1953 - 25 Dec 1954: Trained at the Military Officers of Aviation training school, Air Force; (30 Oct 1954) Lieutenant; on 30 March 1954, this institute was renamed the Central Aviation Instructors Courses (avianstrucktorskie), designed to improve AF officers, in the city of Grozny.

1951-54: Attended Kacha Higher Military Aviation School for Pilots.

1954-60: Served in various fighter squadrons, initially in the Arctic, then in Moscow; also served in far east Siberia.

25 Dec 1954 - 16 Jun 1957: Pilot, 265 Fighter Regiment (IAP), 336th Fighter Aviation Division (IAD); (24 Apr 1957) Senior Lieutenant; on 13 Jun 1955, the regiment moved into the 113th IAD, 64th Fighter Air Corps (IAC), 22nd Army (VA) Northern VO, Karelian ASSR; (19 Jun 1957) served as senior pilot; squadron assistant (squadron chief of staff).

27 Feb 1958: Served as senior airman, 772nd IAP, 26th IAD, 22nd VA.

31 May 1958 - 1959: Served as senior airman 234 Guards Regiment, Proskurov 9th IN IAD Moscow, based at an airfield in Kubinka; (31 Jan - 10 Oct 1959) squadron adjutant; (30 Mar 1959) Captain; (12 May 1959) Military Pilot 3rd Class.

SELECTION DETAILS

Category:

Pilot

Group:

1960 First Air Force Selection.

COSMONAUT ASSIGNMENTS

1960:

(11 Jan) First to join team; (7 Mar) enrolled as student cosmonaut; acted as quartermaster for the group; elected Secretary, Communist Party Cosmonaut Group; (16 Mar - 18 Jan 1961) basic training; Vostok training; (11 Oct) included in group for training for first crewed space flight; (10 Nov) Instructor parachute training (PDP) Air Force.

1961:

Basic training; (17-18 Jan) passed final exams and assigned position of cosmonaut; (25 Jan) appointed to Top Six group; (12 Apr) Capcom Vostok; (May-Aug) member Vostok 2 training group; (Aug) Capcom Vostok 2; (1 Sep) began studies at Zhukovsky Air Force Engineering Academy (VVIA); (30 Sep-2 Nov) trained to fly on 'Vostok 3', a planned three-day single flight mission; mission cancelled; (5 Nov) Major; (Nov) began training for first group flight.

1962:

First group flight training; (11 Aug) Lt. Colonel; (12-15 Aug) Pilot Vostok 4 in group flight with Vostok 3 (Nikolayev) (2 days 22 hrs 57 min); (15 Aug) Pilot 1st Class; (19 Aug) Hero of the Soviet Union (H of the SU); (30 Nov) Cosmonaut 3rd Class.

1963:

Instructor cosmonaut.

1964:

Instructor cosmonaut.

1965:

Instructor cosmonaut; (30 Apr) Colonel.

1966:

Instructor cosmonaut; (Sep) formed a group of cosmonauts heading training group for Soyuz 7K-VI Military Soyuz "KK Star" training; paired with Kolesnikov; Soyuz 7K-VI training; (Dec) when programme was cancelled he vigorously defended the project.

1967:

(18 Jan) Reassigned to lunar training group; lunar training; training for lunar fly-by missions in L-1 spacecraft.

1968:

Lunar training; (24 Jan) graduated Zhukovsky Academy with qualification as 'Pilot-Engineer Cosmonaut'; thesis: 'Manned air and space vehicle engines for them'; trained as crew commander L-1 spacecraft with Sevastyanov; lunar training.

1969:

Lunar training, paired with Sevastyanov; (Oct) Capcom Soyuz 6, 7 and 8 'Troika' mission; (late) reassigned to Almaz (military Salyut) training group; preliminary Almaz training.

1970:

Almaz training; (Jan) replaced Belyayev (who had died) as Almaz group commander.

1971:

Commander, Almaz training group; Almaz training; (Nov) paired with Dyomin; Almaz training through to April 1972.

1972:

Commander, Almaz training group; Almaz training with Dyomin through to April; (11 Sep) trained with Artyukhin as Commander, main crew for flight of OPS-101 'Diamond' (Salyut 2 / Almaz).

1973:

Commander, Almaz training group; Almaz training; (Apr) would have flown to failed Salyut (Almaz) 2; flight cancelled; (13 Aug) trained as Commander, main crew for flight of OPS-101-2 Salyut 3 / Almaz, with Artyukhin.

1974:

Commander, Almaz training group; Salyut 3 / Almaz training; (early Jul) replaced as Commander, Almaz training group; (3-19 Jul) flew as CDR Soyuz 14-Salyut (Almaz) 3 EO-1 (15 days 17 hrs 30 min); (20 Jul) 2nd H of the SU; (24 Jul) Cosmonaut 2nd Class; retired active flight status and assumed administrative duties, though still held cosmonaut rating.

1975:

ASTP support.

1976:

(5 May) Major-General; Controller Salyut (Almaz) 5; Capcom Soyuz 21.

1977:

Director, TsPK; (22 Sep) defended thesis at NII-45 and received degree of Candidate of Technical Sciences.

1978:

1979:

1980:

1981:

1982:

(26 Jan) Retired from the cosmonaut team.

POST-COSMONAUT EXPERIENCE

Jan 1982 - Dec 1989:

Deputy Chief TsPK; in charge of scientific research support and testing; (1988) identified as in charge of maintenance and testing scientific support.

29 Dec 1989 -

20 Aug 1993:

Seconded to the State Commission of the USSR Agro, leaving active service; Director, Inzhenar Production Association; simultaneously served as Director, VNIC 'AIUS-Agroresurs'.

1991:

Director of Institute Rossiyskogo, monitoring ecosystems and land management; then worked as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the All-Russia Institute of Agricultural aerofotogeodezicheskih research (VISKhAGI; this later became the Federal State Unitary Enterprise 'State Design and Research Institute' of land and cadastral surveys - UFGP 'Goszemkadastrsvomka', which deals with the compilation of land cadastre of Russia using space imagery.

20 Aug 1993:

Retired from the armed forces by order of the Defense Ministry; retired from Air Force; (23 Sep) Major-General in the reserves (aviation stock).

Pavel POPOVICH Space Flight Missions

Mission

Vehicle

Position

Dates

DD/MM/YYYY

Duration

DD:HH:MM:SS

Orbits

EVAs

Vostok 4

R-7

Pilot

12/08/1962-15/08/1962

02:22:57:00

48

0

Salyut 3

Soyuz 14

Commander

03/07/1974-19/07/1974

15:17:30:28

255

0

Missions Flown:

2

Total Flight Time:

18:16:27:28

303

0

Space Explorer Achievements

(Aug 1962) As Pilot of Vostok 4, he participated in the first 'team flight' with Andrian Nikolayev in Vostok 3.

(Jul 1974) Participated in the first space flight performed under USSR Ministry of Defense interests - Soyuz 14/Salyut 3 Almaz.