Vladimir Mikhaylovich Komarov tragically became known as 'the man who fell from space' after the catastrophic crash of a Soyuz-1 spaceflight during the Soviet space programme led to a harrowing funeral. In 1967, Komarov and Soviet icon Yuri Gagarin were both allocated to the same Earth-orbiting mission, with both men aware the space capsule was unsafe for flight.
Komarov confided in friends that he anticipated he would likely die, but refused to withdraw because he didn't want his friend Gagarin to take his place. Gagarin examined the Soyuz 1 craft his colleague was scheduled to pilot and discovered 203 structural defects. The difficulty was that nobody wished to inform Leonid Brezhnev, the Soviet leader determined to triumph in the space race.
Final Wishes Before the Flight
Komarov met with Venyamin Russayev, the KGB agent, and said: "I'm not going to make it back from this flight. If I don't make this flight, they'll send the backup pilot instead. That's Yura, and he'll die instead of me. We've got to take care of him."
Komarov wept and insisted he be buried in an open casket in the probable event of his death, reports the Daily Star.
The Fatal Descent
On 23 April, Komarov set off on his final journey. Throughout a 24-hour period, he orbited the Earth 16 times, though a malfunction with a solar panel stopped him from fulfilling the mission. Despite surviving the most dangerous phase of atmospheric re-entry, he was instructed to return to Earth. Nevertheless, a parachute failure caused his capsule to plummet towards the ground, triggering an explosion that claimed his life.
The official transcript of Komarov's final moments, preserved in the Russian State Archive, shows that amongst his last statements to colleagues was: "I feel excellent, everything's in order." Shortly afterwards, he reportedly said: "Thank you for transmitting all of that. [Separation] occurred.", according to NPR. However, as his ill-fated spacecraft hurtled towards Earth, his closing words were intercepted by US listening stations in Turkey.
A Chilling Transmission
A chilling transmission captures him addressing Alexei Kosygin, a senior Soviet Union official. He is believed to have said: "This devil ship! Nothing I lay my hands on works properly."
The day after his death, a statement from his fellow cosmonauts appeared in Pravda: "For the forerunners it is always more difficult. They tread the unknown paths and these paths are not straight, they have sharp turns, surprises and dangers. But anyone who takes the pathway into orbit never wants to leave it."
"And no matter what difficulties or obstacles there are, they are never strong enough to deflect such a man from his chosen path. While his heart beats in his chest, a cosmonaut will always continue to challenge the universe. Vladimir Komarov was one of the first on this treacherous path."
Legacy of the First Space Fatality
Komarov was reduced to a melted, shapeless mass with his body burnt beyond recognition. Disturbingly, his final wishes were honoured and he was displayed at his funeral in an open casket. His colleague Pavel Popovich spoke fondly of Komarov: "He was respected for his humility and experience. He was already an engineer when he joined us, but he never looked down on the others. He was warm-hearted, purposeful and industrious. Volodya's (what his peers referred to him as) prestige was so high that people came to him to discuss all questions: personal as well as questions of our work."
Soviet test pilot Komarov is today remembered as the first known human to perish in space on 24 April 1967. The asteroid 1836 Komarov, unearthed in 1971, was dedicated in his memory, as was a crater on the Moon.
