As part of the festive events, the Russian House also hosted the premiere of a documentary film dedicated to Yuri Gagarin, "Embracing the World"
SOFIA, October 3rd. /Correspondent of TASS Igor Lenkin/. The first Bulgarian cosmonaut Georgy Ivanov became the main character of the festive events held at the Russian House in Sofia. According to a TASS correspondent, the Russian Cultural and Information Center celebrated the 45th anniversary of the Hero of the Soviet Union's flight into outer space and the anniversary of the launch of the first artificial earth satellite, which took place on October 4, 1957.
"Your flight with Nikolai Rukavishnikov took place in very difficult, extreme conditions, but thanks to the courage, high professionalism and well-coordinated work of the Soviet-Bulgarian crew, the Soyuz-33 spacecraft returned safely to Earth. Your heroism, dedication and deep dedication to the exploration of outer space is a role model for the younger generation of researchers of the Universe and inspires future discoverers to new achievements," Russian Ambassador to Bulgaria Eleonora Mitrofanova noted in her congratulation.
"Just as cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin is an example for Russia, so you are an example for all Bulgarian citizens," Vadim Dolgikh, military attache of the Russian Embassy, stressed in his address.
Russian cosmonaut pilots Pyotr Dubrov, Viktor Savinykh, Valery Korzun, Sergey Zaletin and Oleg Artemyev sent video greetings to Georgy Ivanov.
Every step has been calculated
"The 45th anniversary of the flight is a very long period, but while we are alive, we will celebrate this day, all the more pleasant it is to be in the Russian Cultural Center, where I have many friends, for us it is our second home in Bulgaria. Together with friends, today we celebrate the 67th anniversary of the launch of the first artificial satellite of the Earth and the 45th anniversary of my flight. Our flight with Rukavishnikov was generally normal. When a person is prepared, knows what can happen and what needs to be done in each specific situation, he does not feel fear, he performs the task. Each of my actions with Nikolai was worked out on simulators. We were prepared for the tests, we knew what to do," Georgy Ivanov shared his memories of the flight in a conversation with a TASS correspondent.
"I wish the current generation of cosmonauts good health, good training and the performance of the same flights performed by Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub, who set a record for the longest stay on the ISS, having spent more than 370 days on the space station," Ivanov said.
In April 1979, Bulgarian and Soviet cosmonauts Georgy Ivanov and Nikolai Rukavishnikov flew on the Soyuz-33 spacecraft. During the flight, which lasted from April 10 to 12, there was a malfunction in the main engine, the crew had to make the return trip in an abnormal mode, descending along a ballistic trajectory with almost tenfold overloads. The soft landing was an incredible success for the astronauts and their second birthday.
As part of the festive events, the premiere of a documentary film dedicated to Yuri Gagarin, "Embracing the World", took place at the Russian House.
