Vladimir Vladimirovich Vasyutin (Russian: Влaдимиp Bлaдимиpoвич Васютин; 8 March 1952 19 July 2002) was a

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

cosmonaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...

. He was selected as a cosmonaut on 1 December 1978 (TsPK-6). He retired on 25 February 1986. Vasyutin was assigned to the

TKS The TK (TK-3) and TKS were Polish tankettes developed during the 1930s and used in the Second World War. Design and development The TK (also known as the TK-3) tankette was a Polish design produced from 1931 based on the chassis of the British C ...

program for a new generation of manned military spacecraft that would be docked to the existing

Salyut The ''Salyut'' programme (russian: Салют, , meaning "salute" or "fireworks") was the first space station programme, undertaken by the Soviet Union. It involved a series of four crewed scientific research space stations and two crewed ...

space stations. He flew as the Commander on

Soyuz T-14 Soyuz T-14 (russian: Союз Т-14, ''Union T-14'') was the ninth expedition to Salyut 7. The mission relieved Soyuz T-13, whose crew had performed unprecedented repairs aboard the previously-dead station. Crew Backup crew Mission parame ...

to the

Salyut 7 Salyut 7 (russian: Салют-7; en, Salute 7) (a.k.a. DOS-6, short for Durable Orbital Station) was a space station in low Earth orbit from April 1982 to February 1991. It was first crewed in May 1982 with two crew via Soyuz T-5, and last ...

space station, for part of the long-duration mission

Salyut 7 EO-4 The ''Salyut'' programme (russian: Салют, , meaning "salute" or "fireworks") was the first space station programme, undertaken by the Soviet Union. It involved a series of four crewed scientific research space stations and two crewed ...

. He spent 64 days 21 hours 52 minutes in space. The TKS module was already docked to the Salyut and Vasyutin was due to lead an extended program of military space experiments. However Vasyutin fell ill soon after arriving at the station and was unable to perform his duties. Although he was originally scheduled to have a six-month stay aboard Salyut 7, his illness which he concealed from doctors before the launch, forced the crew to make an emergency return to Earth after only two months. His illness is said to have been caused by a

prostate The prostate is both an accessory gland of the male reproductive system and a muscle-driven mechanical switch between urination and ejaculation. It is found only in some mammals. It differs between species anatomically, chemically, and phys ...

infection, which had manifested itself as inflammation and a fever. He graduated from Higher Air Force School and from Test Pilot School, both in Kharkov. He was a Lieutenant General in the Soviet Air Forces, and took cosmonaut basic training in August 1976. He retired for medical reasons. He later became Deputy Faculty Chief, VVA -

Gagarin Air Force Academy Gagarin Air Force Academy () is a Russian military aviation academy located in Monino, Moscow Oblast. The academy prepares high-ranking military personnel for the Russian Air Force. Among the academy alumni are around 700 Heroes of the Soviet ...

, Monino. He was married and had two children. He died of cancer.

Awards and honors

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union (russian: Герой Советского Союза, translit=Geroy Sovietskogo Soyuza) was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for ...

; *

Pilot-Cosmonaut of the USSR The honorary title Pilot-Cosmonaut of the USSR (russian: Летчик-космонавт СССР) was a state award of the Soviet Union presented to all cosmonauts who flew for the Soviet Space Agency. Usually accompanying the distinction ...

; * Order of Honour (Russian Federation); *

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration ...

; * Medal "For Strengthening Military Cooperation" (USSR); * Medal "For Strengthening Military Cooperation" (Russian Federation Defence Ministry); * Medal "Brotherhood in Arms" (Polish People's Republic).

References

1952 births 2002 deaths Heroes of the Soviet Union Russian Air Force generals Soviet cosmonauts Soviet lieutenant generals Recipients of the Order of Honour (Russia) Recipients of the Order of Lenin Military personnel from Kharkiv Russian lieutenant generals Salyut program cosmonauts {{hero-USSR-stub