On 30 June 1971, the Soyuz 11 spacecraft executed a textbook landing in the fields of Kazakhstan. Rescue teams rushed to open the hatch, expecting to greet three heroes. Instead, they found commander Georgi Dobrovolsky, flight engineer Vladislav Volkov, and research engineer Viktor Patsayev lifeless in their seats, with dark-blue patches on their faces and blood trails from their noses and ears. The cosmonauts had died approximately 30 minutes earlier, more than 100 miles above Earth, victims of a sudden depressurization of their spacecraft.
Mission to Salyut 1
Soyuz 11 was the only crewed mission to dock with the world's first space station, Salyut 1, launching on 6 June 1971. The crew spent 24 days in space, at that time the longest anyone had remained beyond Earth's atmosphere. In a cruel twist, they were the reserve crew, called up just four days before launch after a medical X-ray suggested original flight engineer Valery Kubasov might have tuberculosis. It later transpired Kubasov did not have TB.
Cause of Death
NASA confirmed that shortly before re-entry, tragedy struck when explosive bolts separated the Soyuz into its three components. The shock jarred open a pressure equalization valve that normally opened only once the spacecraft was descending on its parachute, well inside the atmosphere. In this case, the valve opened to the vacuum of space, and the capsule's air escaped in less than one minute. The cosmonauts tried to respond by manually closing the valve, a process that took several minutes, but they rapidly lost consciousness as pressure dropped and died within two minutes. Not wearing pressure suits, they had no hope of surviving.
Perfect Landing
Remarkably, the spacecraft's automated flight computer remained intact, allowing the vessel to execute a near-perfect re-entry and landing. Its parachutes deployed successfully, and it touched down without fault. The full horror only became apparent when the hatch was opened. Rescue doctors found Dobrovolsky still warm and performed CPR for almost an hour in a frantic bid to resuscitate him.
Final Communications
Soviet Air Force representative Nikolai Kamanin spoke with the crew at 12:16 am, signing off by wishing them well. Space historian Peter Smolders later claimed Dobrovolsky made one final transmission confirming he was beginning the descent procedure. Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Yeliseyev, who had been communicating from the Yevpatoria control centre, documented that Volkov had light-heartedly asked flight controllers to 'prepare cognac'—a customary welcome-home present—before signing off with 'see you tomorrow.' Those on Earth were not aware of the horror until they opened the hatch.
