Cosmonaut Georgy Grechko born 1931

Georgi Grechko, born May 25, 1931 in Leningrad in the Soviet Union, has been in space three times.

His first mission was aboard Soyuz 17 in 1975 to the space station Salyut 4.  He stayed on Salyut 4 for 29 days, setting a record for that time.

His second mission was aboard Soyuz 26 to the space station Salyut 6 in December 1977. He participated in the first long duration expedition, EO-1.  He returned to Earth aboard Soyuz 27 in March 1978.

His third and final flight was aboard Soyuz T-14 to Salyut 7 in September 1985.  He returned to Earth aboard Soyuz T-13 later the same month.

He passed away in April 2017. 

Soyuz T-14 launched 1985

Soyuz T-14 crew (L-R): Alexander Volkov, Vladimir Vasyutin, Georgi Grechko

Soyuz T-14, launched September 17, 1985, was the ninth expedition to space station Salyut 7.  Its crew consisted of Commander Vladimir Vasyutin, Georgi Grechko and Alexander Volkov.  The trip was cut short due to Vasyutin becoming ill and had to return to Earth for treatment. Grechko stayed aboard the space station and Viktor Savinykh returned with the Soyuz T-14 crew in November 1985.

Soyuz 27 launched 1978

Soyuz 27 crew (L-R): Vladimir Dzhanibekov, Oleg Makarov

Soyuz 27 mission stamp

Soyuz 27, launched January 10, 1978, was the third manned flight to Salyut 6.  It was the first time three spacecraft were docked together and the first visitation mission to the space station. Its launch crew consisted of Commander Vladimir Dzhanibekov and Oleg Makarov.  They were the crew of the expedition EP-1.  They stayed for 6 days before returning to Earth in Soyuz 26.

Soyuz 27 remained docked with Salyut 6 until March when it returned with the crew of EO-1, Commander Yuri Romanenko and Georgi Grechko.

Soyuz T-13, rescue mission to Salyut 7, launched 1985

Soyuz T-13 crew: Vladimir Dzhanibekov, Viktor Savinykh

Soyuz T-13, launched June 6, 1985, was the rescue mission for Salyut 7 space station.  Its crew consisted of Commander Vladimir Dzhanibekov and Flight Engineer Viktor Savinykh.  Salyut 7 had been rendered inoperable due to a solar array problem and ground crews had lost contact with it.

Dzhanibekov maneuvered his ship to match the station's rotation and managed to dock with it.  They first recharged the batteries (two of eight were destroyed) by re-aligning the solar arrays to their proper position.  They wore winter clothes until they could turn on the air heaters, June 10.  They used Soyuz T-13 for the air regeneration system until Salyut 7's system was fixed.

Normal atmospheric humidity was achieved at the end of July, nearly two months after docking.

Soyuz T-13 landed with Dzhanibekov and Georgi Grechko September 26, 1985.  Savinykh returned on Soyuz T-14 in November.

Vladimir Vasyutin, Soyuz and Salyut cosmonaut, born 1952

Vladimir Vasyutin, born March 8, 1952 in the Ukraine, spent just under 65 days in space on Salyut 7.  He flew into space as commander of Soyuz T-14 in September 1985 with Georgi Grechko and Alexander Volkov as part of the EO-4 expedition. 

Shortly after his arrival, Vasyutin became ill, probably due to a prostate infection, and they had to cut their mission short, because he couldn't perform his duties.  Vasyutin, Volkov and Savinykh returned to Earth November 21, 1985.

He did not go into space again.  He died of cancer July 2002.

Soyuz 17 launched 1975

Soyuz 17 crew: Grechko, Gubarev

Soyuz 17, mission to Salyut 4, was launched January 10, 1975.  Its crew was Commander Aleksei Gubarev and Flight Engineer Georgi Grechko.  It was the first crew to enter the space station since it was launched less than a month before, December 26, 1974.

Gubarev and Grechko stayed on board for 29 days which was a record at that time.  They returned to Earth February 9 during a snowstorm with winds of 72 km/h.

Salyut 4 launched 1974

The Soviet space station Salyut 4, launched December 26, 1974, was the first unmanned portion of the experiment.  It successfully achieved orbit after its "twin" DOS-3 failed in May 1973.

Salyut 4 hosted 2 crews, Soyuz 17 and Soyuz 18, during its mission.  The crew of Soyuz 18a had to abort since they failed to achieve orbit.  The first crew, Georgi Grechko and Aleksei Gubarev, stayed for about 29 1/2 days.  The second crew, Pyotr Klimuk and Vitali Svastyanov, stayed for about 63 days.

Salyut 4 was "deorbited" February 2, 1977 and re-entered the Earth's atmosphere the following day.  Do you remember the hype over it burning up in the atmosphere like Skylab in '79? No?