The flight of Gagarin is not safe by today's standards

A series of technical problems occurred in the first flight that brought people into space and if today's safety standards were applied, it would certainly not be carried out.

Interfax news agency reported that Boris Chertok , a 99-year-old scientist who had participated in the Soviet Union's rocket-making rocket program, spoke to the board of directors of Enegia spacecraft manufacturing company. of Russia on the occasion of the world celebrating 50 years of the first astronaut's flight into space. He worked with Sergei Korolev, who designed the Oriental spacecraft to bring Gagarin to Earth orbit on April 12, 1961 .

According to Chertok, before and after Yuri Gagarin's flight, experts pointed out 11 technical issues . For example, Gagarin's body weight is 14 kg larger than the standard for protective clothing. To reduce the load of protective clothing, experts decided to cut some cables, but accidentally cut the wires to temperature and pressure sensors.

The photo shows astronaut Yuri Gagarin during a training session in April 1961. Photo: AP.

The Oriental propellant rocket is completely different from the expected orbit . The difference between the maximum and minimum distances of this orbit compared to the earth is only a few kilometers.

That means, if the engine of the landing gear is broken and Gagarin needs to land due to the friction of the air, he will hover in the air for about a month. But the amount of food on board is only enough for Gagarin to use for 10 days, Chertok said.

The first manned space flight 50 years ago was made after some animals died in the Oriental train in two test flights to orbit. That failure led to the birth of an improved version of Orient in March 1961.

' The Council of Spacecraft Design Experts and the State Committee decided that the Soviet Union could send people to spacecraft to fly into space after two successful unmanned drones. If we calculated the reliability of the spacecraft that day according to today's safety standards, we would not have brought people into space at that time , 'he said.

Gagarin landed on the ground somewhere 600 km from the expected location. Even when the landing cabin entered the atmosphere, he encountered a problem. The landing gear whirled and its outer shell caught fire, causing the internal temperature to rise rapidly and Gagarin almost fell into an unconscious state. The astronaut then had difficulty opening the vent valve on his hat and his spare umbrella opened even though he didn't open it.

Chertok admitted that Gagarin landed on parachute, not by landing compartment , had been kept secret for half a century.

' It is a national secret for many reasons. God forbids everyone to mention that secret in a press conference , 'he commented.