A brave researcher and reliable companion - that’s how the pilot-cosmonaut who twice received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, George Grechko, appears before our eyes. The biography will impress anyone, because he can rightly be called a fantastic person.
Grechko Georgy Mikhailovich
In the hope of finding traces of alien creatures, he studied along and across the Tunguska taiga, the sands of the Sinai Peninsula and the pyramids of Egypt. He made a flight to the orbital station three times , in one of which he set a record time for a person to be in open space. A planet was named after him.
Few people know that the first long-awaited flight could be the last for the astronaut - his life hung in the balance. Doctors shrugged and were not sure that the patient would live. His chances were nil. But the astronaut turned out to be stronger than circumstances - George quickly got to his feet and continued as if nothing had happened to prepare for the next flight. He could not get out of the race so quickly, for it meant losing. But fate has repeatedly tested the astronaut for strength. He repeatedly drowned, nearly died from an enemy bullet, crashed on a motorcycle and caught fire while being at the orbital station. But, despite all this, George Grechko never lost optimism and faith in the best. He constantly believed and believes in his star and the guardian angel, who, according to the astronaut himself, has already saved him more than once.
Cosmonaut childhood
Many of us in childhood dreamed of becoming astronauts. Many, but not only George Grechko. The Soviet astronaut who just could not imagine himself in the guise of an adult - and a sniper, and a tanker, and a pilot! Love for space came to him only in his teens, when he read a book about interplanetary travel, written by a science fiction writer. After it, he decided for himself - he will be an astronaut!
George buckwheat was born on May 25, 1931 in Leningrad. Before the bloody World War II began, exactly ten days later, the boy was sent by his parents to his own grandmother, who lived in Ukraine. So Georgy Mikhailovich returned to his homeland only in 1943.
According to available sources, Grechko graduated from the Leningrad secondary school in 1949, after which he was enrolled in the Leningrad Mechanical Institute. The young engineer became one of those who was entrusted with the development of a new rocket, which subsequently launched the first artificial Earth satellite into orbit .
And this is just the beginning
Since 1966, George Grechko has been a member of the astronaut group, where he was enrolled with the preliminary passage of the medical commission Korolev. For the sake of conquering the airless space, he was ready to sacrifice many things: his own strength, knowledge, free time, and, if necessary, his life.
A keen inquiring mind and deep theoretical knowledge played a role: Grechko actively participated in the polar exploration party located on the Kola Peninsula. At the same time, he begins to act as an engineer at the SP Korolev Rocket and Space Corporation. And in 1961 he was appointed head of the OKB - 1 group.
Grechko was one of the people who could carry out the first of its kind launch of an artificial satellite. In addition, he also participated in preparations for sending many other Soviet-made apparatuses to the orbital station.
First flight
He had been waiting for his first flight for fourteen years. Waiting drove him crazy. Fate has prepared too many trials.
One fine day, he forgot to appear at a meeting with Sergei Korolev and went to the cinema. This misconduct entailed serious consequences for the astronaut - Grechko was then denied a flight. Then the doctors wanted to dismiss him from the service, but he managed to convince them of perfect physical fitness. After some time, Grechko breaks his leg. But he went through it, bypassing other troubles.
The astronaut continues to train tirelessly, receiving approval from the higher authorities. Being literally one step away from the start, he decides to leave his family, perfectly understanding how his party colleagues will regard such an act. He met his wife while still a student. George Grechko decided not to hesitate and already on the first date made a proposal to the girl. The persistent young man liked Nina. And after some time, they officially formalized their relationship. In marriage, they had a son, whom the couple named Alexei, and four years later, Mikhail was born, the youngest son of George and Nina Grechko.
Just a couple of weeks before the start, Georgy Mikhailovich unexpectedly announces to his wife that he decides to leave for another woman. The authorities did not remove the astronaut from the post. Grechko has already shown himself to be a highly qualified flight engineer, which has earned respect from his superiors and colleagues. He has repeatedly proved that you can rely on him.
The flight took place from January 11 to February 9, 1975 on a spaceship called Soyuz-17.
The purpose of this expedition was the study of the sun. But the telescope, under which the Salyut-4 station was built at one time, failed, and the astronauts received an order from Earth to not touch the faulty device. But Georgy Mikhailovich wanted to finish the work already begun to the end. An ordinary stethoscope came to his aid, which was widely used in medicine. Attaching it to the telescope, he was able to determine the breakdown. Colleagues immediately noted the quick wits of Grechko.
For astronauts, the flight was the best possible. It could never have occurred to them that on Earth a strong squally wind with snow would meet them, which would bring disaster. The ship crashed to Earth at breakneck speed. And now it's time to open the parachute ... But he did not open. The astronauts expected an imminent death. But the blow to the earth did not happen. The capsule began to swing in the wind. About a thousand meters they dragged and lashed to the ground.
Researchers then were hit hard. Grechko broke his right leg, and Gubarev received a serious spinal injury. During his business trip, the Soviet cosmonaut never parted with a video camera. We were fortunate enough to be able to observe this unique expedition through images taken by Grechko himself of airless space.
Second flight
It was held for the Russian cosmonaut from December 1977 to March 1978 on a spaceship called Soyuz-26.
This flight was also not easy for the astronaut. Grechko learned about his father’s serious illness just a week before the start, when he was preparing for the second expedition. He was taken to hospital in a very serious condition. Son could not neglect the flight, and Mikhail Fedorovich perfectly understood this. Within a month, Grechko received absolutely no news about his father's condition. But on January 10, 1978, the ship received news of the death of Georgy Mikhailovich. The only thing he could never forgive for himself was that he did not have time to say goodbye to his father for the last time.
Life has repeatedly tested it for strength, sending more and more tests. But in any situation, whatever it was, George Grechko tried to smile and not lose enthusiasm.
Third flight
The last flight in his life spanned the period from September 17 to September 26, 1985. The crew made an expedition on a spaceship called Soyuz-14.
This flight was for the detachment without any special incidents. In the history of astronautics, Grechko George became known as the oldest researcher to be in orbit. He confidently held this title for the next thirteen years, until Strekalov took his place.
A family
The astronaut met his first wife in his student years. In the marriage, the couple had two beautiful sons - Alex and Mikhail. With his second wife, a charming woman Lyudmila, he met in the city of Tashkent in the fall of 1985 during a space conference. Lyudmila already had two young children from her first marriage, who adopted George as a father.
Other activity
It is impossible to ignore the other merits of the astronaut. Grechko led the television program Fantastic World for a very long time. He was also awarded the degree of candidate of technical sciences. He was awarded many medals and awards for valiant work and devotional service for the good of the motherland, is a winner of the Efremov Prize. Few people know that Georgy Mikhailovich, among other things, is also a traveler, behind whom a considerable number of organized expeditions to little-known, untouched by man places of our planet. This appears to us a wonderful man, a brilliant engineer, a pilot-cosmonaut of the USSR - George Grechko.
Conclusion
Today, the famous cosmonaut lives in Moscow. Grechko, together with his wife and two adult sons, lives in the center of the capital and works as vice president of OTP Bank.
For a long time, they thought about what to name the planet, which he discovered during his first flight. In the end they called her in honor of the discoverer. Grechko, therefore, left his mark not only on Earth, but also in the vast space.