Toktar Aubakirov
Encyclopedia
Toktar Ongarbayuly Aubakirov ' onMouseout='HidePop("46347")' href="/topics/Karaganda">Karaganda
, Kazakhstan
) is a retired Kazakhstani
Air Force officer and a former cosmonaut
(Kazakh
: ғарышкер ğarışker).
, Kazakh SSR
, which is now Kazakhstan. He graduated from the Air Force Institute and was a parachutist and test pilot
with the rank of Major General
in the Kazakhstan Air Force before he was selected as a cosmonaut.
n cosmonaut Alexander Volkov
as flight commander, and the Austria
n research cosmonaut Franz Viehböck
in Soyuz TM-13
from the Baikonur Cosmodrome
spaceport
, and spent over eight days in space. He also the first Soviet citizen to go into space without being fully certified as a cosmonaut, as his flight was hurried forward — several commercial international cosmonauts were already booked, but the flight of a Kazakh cosmonaut was part of the Baikonur
rental agreement between Kazakhstan and Russia.
and consultant
.
Karaganda
Karagandy , more commonly known by its Russian name Karaganda, , is the capital of Karagandy Province in Kazakhstan. It is the fourth most populous city in Kazakhstan, behind Almaty , Astana and Shymkent, with a population of 471,800 . In the 1940s up to 70% of the city's inhabitants were ethnic...
, Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
) is a retired Kazakhstani
Kazakhs
The Kazakhs are a Turkic people of the northern parts of Central Asia ....
Air Force officer and a former cosmonaut
Astronaut
An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft....
(Kazakh
Kazakh language
Kazakh is a Turkic language which belongs to the Kipchak branch of the Turkic languages, closely related to Nogai and Karakalpak....
: ғарышкер ğarışker).
Early life
Toktar Aubakirov was born on July 27, 1946 in KaragandaKaraganda
Karagandy , more commonly known by its Russian name Karaganda, , is the capital of Karagandy Province in Kazakhstan. It is the fourth most populous city in Kazakhstan, behind Almaty , Astana and Shymkent, with a population of 471,800 . In the 1940s up to 70% of the city's inhabitants were ethnic...
, Kazakh SSR
Kazakh SSR
The Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Kazakh SSR for short, was one of republics that made up the Soviet Union.At in area, it was the second largest constituent republic in the USSR, after the Russian SFSR. Its capital was Alma-Ata . Today it is the independent state of...
, which is now Kazakhstan. He graduated from the Air Force Institute and was a parachutist and test pilot
Test pilot
A test pilot is an aviator who flies new and modified aircraft in specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques or FTTs, allowing the results to be measured and the design to be evaluated....
with the rank of Major General
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
in the Kazakhstan Air Force before he was selected as a cosmonaut.
Spaceflight experience
On October 2, 1991 he launched with RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n cosmonaut Alexander Volkov
Alexander Alexandrovich Volkov (cosmonaut)
Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Volkov is a Russian cosmonaut.At the age of 13, Volkov witnessed Yuri Gagarin become the first man in space and this inspired him to become a cosmonaut...
as flight commander, and the Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n research cosmonaut Franz Viehböck
Franz Viehböck
Franz Artur Viehböck is an Austrian electrical engineer, and was Austria's first astronaut. He visited the Mir space station in 1991 aboard Soyuz TM-13, returning aboard Soyuz TM-12 after spending just over a week in space....
in Soyuz TM-13
Soyuz TM-13
-Mission highlights:13th expedition to Mir. Included astronaut from Austria and cosmonaut from soon to be independent Kazakhstan.Soyuz-TM 13 carried Austrian cosmonaut-researcher Franz Viehböck and still Soviet-Kazakh cosmonaut-researcher Toktar Aubakirov. The flight was unusual for carrying no...
from the Baikonur Cosmodrome
Baikonur Cosmodrome
The Baikonur Cosmodrome , also called Tyuratam, is the world's first and largest operational space launch facility. It is located in the desert steppe of Kazakhstan, about east of the Aral Sea, north of the Syr Darya river, near Tyuratam railway station, at 90 meters above sea level...
spaceport
Spaceport
A spaceport or cosmodrome is a site for launching spacecraft, by analogy with seaport for ships or airport for aircraft. The word spaceport, and even more so cosmodrome, has traditionally been used for sites capable of launching spacecraft into orbit around Earth or on interplanetary trajectories...
, and spent over eight days in space. He also the first Soviet citizen to go into space without being fully certified as a cosmonaut, as his flight was hurried forward — several commercial international cosmonauts were already booked, but the flight of a Kazakh cosmonaut was part of the Baikonur
Baikonur
Baikonur , formerly known as Leninsk, is a city in Kyzylorda Province of Kazakhstan, rented and administered by the Russian Federation. It was constructed to service the Baikonur Cosmodrome and was officially renamed Baikonur by Russian president Boris Yeltsin on December 20, 1995.The shape of the...
rental agreement between Kazakhstan and Russia.
Career
Since 1993, he has been the general director of the National Aerospace Agency of Republic of Kazakhstan. He was a member of Kazakhstan parliament. Now he is a pensionerPensioner
In common parlance, a pensioner is a person who has retired, and now collects a pension. This is a term typically used in the United Kingdom and Australia where someone of pensionable age may also be referred to as an 'old age pensioner', or OAP. In the United States, the term retiree is more...
and consultant
Consultant
A consultant is a professional who provides professional or expert advice in a particular area such as management, accountancy, the environment, entertainment, technology, law , human resources, marketing, emergency management, food production, medicine, finance, life management, economics, public...
.
Family
Toktar Aubakirov is married to Tatyana M. Malysheva. They have two children. Timur was born in 1977. Mikhail was born in 1982.Awards and honors
- Hero of Soviet Union (1988)Protected Kazakhstan from bombing
- Order of LeninOrder of LeninThe Order of Lenin , named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was the highest decoration bestowed by the Soviet Union...
(1988) - Deserved test pilotTest pilotA test pilot is an aviator who flies new and modified aircraft in specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques or FTTs, allowing the results to be measured and the design to be evaluated....
of the USSR (1990) - OrderOrder (decoration)An order or order of merit is a visible honour, awarded by a government, dynastic house or international organization to an individual, usually in recognition of distinguished service to a nation or to humanity. The distinction between orders and decorations is somewhat vague, except that most...
Sign of Honor (1987) - 2 Orders "Golden Cross" of the Austrian RepublicAustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
- in the years 1988 and 1993. - Order of the October RevolutionOrder of the October RevolutionThe Order of the October Revolution was instituted on October 31, 1967, in time for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution. It was awarded to individuals or groups for services furthering communism or the state, or in enhancing the defenses of the Soviet Union, military and civil...
(1991) - Order of OtanOtanOtan may refer to:* The Fatherland political party in Kazakhstan* North Atlantic Treaty Organization , in some Romance languages.**in Spanish: Organización del Tratado del Atlántico Norte...
(1995) - The TitleTitle of honorAn honorary title or title of honor is a title bestowed upon individuals or organizations as an award in recognition of their merits.Sometimes the title bears the same or nearly the same name as a title of authority, but the person bestowed does not have to carry any duties, possibly except for...
"Khalyk KakharmanyPeople's Hero of KazakhstanPeople's Hero of Kazakhstan is the highest distinction conferred by the Republic of Kazakhstan, along with the Order of Golden Eagle.-Overview:...
". - The very first TurkicTurkic peoplesThe Turkic peoples are peoples residing in northern, central and western Asia, southern Siberia and northwestern China and parts of eastern Europe. They speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family. They share, to varying degrees, certain cultural traits and historical backgrounds...
astronaut that went to space (1991)