Bulgarian astronaut program
Encyclopedia
The Bulgarian astronaut program began in 1977 when members of the Bulgarian People's Air Force where trained for space tasks. Bulgaria
is the only country from the Intercosmos
program to send two cosmonauts into space
in a time when space missions were reserved to the world powers.
has developed at that time were not up to the requirements for that task.
program, a leading group of countries had sent air force officers for space training. The countries in that group were the former Czechoslovakia
, Poland
and the former German Democratic Republic
(East Germany). Shortly afterwards a second group of countries sent personnel to the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonauts Training Center
. The countries were Bulgaria, Cuba
, Hungary
, Mongolia and Romania
.
to executive officer
of an air regiment. After the final examinations the final group comprised 6 officers, those being:
Of those Dzhourov and Radev left the group for a number of reasons and the remaining four left for Moscow. There, the Soviet physicians found that Yovchev has a cardiological problem. According to their judgement the main trainee would be Georgi Ivanov and the first substitute - Alexander Alexandrov.
The Bulgarian officials made the decision that the financial requirements for that would be met by the constructing of science equipment at the cost of about $14 million, which would be transferred to the Soviet Union. The technology needed for the production was donated by the USSR. After a thorough medical evaluation of more than 300 air force flight officers, ten candidates were approved, of which the Soviet physicians who were sent to Bulgaria approved four:
As in the preparations for the previous Bulgarian mission after the candidates arrived in Moscow the soviet physicians found that Plamen Alexandrov had health problems. Of the remainder Alexander Alexandrov was approved for the main trainee post and Krasimir Stoyanov was destined to be the first substitute.
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
is the only country from the Intercosmos
Intercosmos
Interkosmos was a space program of the Soviet Union designed to include members of military forces of allied Warsaw Pact countries in manned and unmanned missions...
program to send two cosmonauts into space
Space
Space is the boundless, three-dimensional extent in which objects and events occur and have relative position and direction. Physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consider it, with time, to be part of a boundless four-dimensional continuum...
in a time when space missions were reserved to the world powers.
Background
Bulgaria's space activities have their beginning in August 1964, when the Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union, Marshal Malinovski, organized a meeting with the Bulgarian military attaché at the country's embassy in Moscow. Lieutenant-General Zakhari Zakhariev discussed with Malinovski the issue of sending Bulgarians into space onboard of a Soviet spacecraft. Doing so he even proposed sending already checked and approved air force officers. It seems that the time for that hadn't come yet. The space ships the Soviet UnionSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
has developed at that time were not up to the requirements for that task.
Interkosmos
This changed a decade later and, according to the InterkosmosInterkosmos
Interkosmos was a space program of the Soviet Union designed to include members of military forces of allied Warsaw Pact countries in manned and unmanned missions...
program, a leading group of countries had sent air force officers for space training. The countries in that group were the former Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovak Socialist Republic
The Czechoslovak Socialist Republic was the official name of Czechoslovakia from 1960 until end of 1989 , a Soviet satellite state of the Eastern Bloc....
, Poland
People's Republic of Poland
The People's Republic of Poland was the official name of Poland from 1952 to 1990. Although the Soviet Union took control of the country immediately after the liberation from Nazi Germany in 1944, the name of the state was not changed until eight years later...
and the former German Democratic Republic
German Democratic Republic
The German Democratic Republic , informally called East Germany by West Germany and other countries, was a socialist state established in 1949 in the Soviet zone of occupied Germany, including East Berlin of the Allied-occupied capital city...
(East Germany). Shortly afterwards a second group of countries sent personnel to the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonauts Training Center
Yuri Gagarin Cosmonauts Training Center
The Yu. A. Gagarin State Scientific Research-and-Testing Cosmonaut Training Center is a Russian training facility responsible for training cosmonauts for their space missions...
. The countries were Bulgaria, Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
, Hungary
People's Republic of Hungary
The People's Republic of Hungary or Hungarian People's Republic was the official state name of Hungary from 1949 to 1989 during its Communist period under the guidance of the Soviet Union. The state remained in existence until 1989 when opposition forces consolidated in forcing the regime to...
, Mongolia and Romania
Communist Romania
Communist Romania was the period in Romanian history when that country was a Soviet-aligned communist state in the Eastern Bloc, with the dominant role of Romanian Communist Party enshrined in its successive constitutions...
.
First Mission
Tests and evaluations for the Bulgarian group of astronauts started in 1977, with all of the candidates being fighter pilots of the Bulgarian People's Air Force. The reason for that is the requirement stated that all the candidates should be graduates of the Georgi Benkovski Higher People's Air Force School between 1964 and 1972. In other words the absolute requirement is for a science degree (which the school starts issuing in 1964) and at least 3 years of regular flying activity. Hundreds of air force flight officers had filled the papers for that. The Aeromedical Commission of the Air Force evaluated the candidates and those who had qualified were sent to the Sofia Military Hospital for a complete medical examination lasting several weeks. After the severe standards had drastically reduced the number of candidates, the age limit of the volunteers had to raised in order to bring more officers in the evaluation group. The 15 men ranged in their air force experience from squadron leaderSquadron Leader
Squadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these...
to executive officer
Executive officer
An executive officer is generally a person responsible for running an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization.-Administrative law:...
of an air regiment. After the final examinations the final group comprised 6 officers, those being:
- Alexander Alexandrov
- Chavdar Dzhourov
- Georgi Yovchev
- Georgi IvanovGeorgi IvanovMajor general Georgi Ivanov Kakalov is a retired Bulgarian military officer and the first Bulgarian cosmonaut. He was a member of the National Assembly of Bulgaria in 1990.-Early life and military career:...
(although his name is Kakalov he is publicly known by his surname) - Ivan Nakov
- Kiril Radev
Of those Dzhourov and Radev left the group for a number of reasons and the remaining four left for Moscow. There, the Soviet physicians found that Yovchev has a cardiological problem. According to their judgement the main trainee would be Georgi Ivanov and the first substitute - Alexander Alexandrov.
Second Mission
During his visit to the USSR, the Bulgarian Minister of People's Defence Army, General Dobri Dzhourov, had come to an agreement with the Soviet government about sending a second Bulgarian cosmonaut to space onboard a Soviet spacecraft. The official paper concerning the training, and preparation, and execution of a joint Soviet-Bulgarian space mission was signed in Moscow on the August 22, 1986.The Bulgarian officials made the decision that the financial requirements for that would be met by the constructing of science equipment at the cost of about $14 million, which would be transferred to the Soviet Union. The technology needed for the production was donated by the USSR. After a thorough medical evaluation of more than 300 air force flight officers, ten candidates were approved, of which the Soviet physicians who were sent to Bulgaria approved four:
- Alexander Alexandrov
- Plamen Alexandrov
- Nikolay Raykov
- Krasimir Stoyanov
As in the preparations for the previous Bulgarian mission after the candidates arrived in Moscow the soviet physicians found that Plamen Alexandrov had health problems. Of the remainder Alexander Alexandrov was approved for the main trainee post and Krasimir Stoyanov was destined to be the first substitute.
See also
- Bulgaria 1300Bulgaria 1300Interkosmos 22, more commonly known as Bulgaria 1300 , is the first artificial satellite of Bulgaria.- Description :The satellite was developed by the Bulgarian Space Agency around the "Meteor" bus, provided by the Soviet Union as part of the Interkosmos program. Assembly took place in Bulgaria,...