Dobrovolskii, Georgii Timofeevich

Born June 1, 1928, in Odessa; died June 30, 1971. Pilot and cosmonaut of the USSR; lieutenant colonel; Hero of the Soviet Union (June 30, 1971, posthumously). Member of the CPSU from 1954.

After graduating from the Odessa Special Air Force School in 1946 and from the Chuguev Military Aviation School for Pilots in 1950, Dobrovol’skii served as a fighter pilot. While continuing to serve as a pilot he graduated from the Lu. A. Gagarin Red Banner Air Force Academy in 1961 and became a cosmonaut in 1963. Dobrovol’skii was commander of the spacecraft Soiuz 11, which, with V. N. Volkov and V. I. Patsaev among the crew, was put into orbit around the earth on June 6, 1971. On June 7, 1971, Soiuz 11 docked with the scientific station Saliut, which had been put into orbit around the earth on Apr. 19, 1971. The joint flight of the space complex—the orbital station Saliut and the spacecraft Soiuz 11—lasted about 23 days. After completing the flight program, Dobrovol’skii and the other crew members of the spacecraft Soiuz 11 perished while returning to earth on June 30, 1971. Dobrovol’skii was awarded the Order of Lenin and various medals. He is buried in Moscow on Red Square near the Kremlin Wall.