alternatehistory.com
Soviets in space (22)
May 1979
Paris, France
When President Giscard D'Estaing met Leonid Brezhnev in Moscow last month, the Soviet Leader offered France the opportunity to fly a cosmonaut on board a joint Soviet-French space flight, along the same lines as the agreement to fly non-Soviet cosmonauts from member countries of the Intercosmos program. The offer was accepted, and France will began a spationaut selection process in September 1979, with the goal of slecting two finalists to be named in June 1980 and start training at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in September 1980.
The French astronaut will fly to the 40 tons OPSEK – Mir, the mysterious Soviet space station probably made of two Salyuts docked face-to-face. But in 1979, out of the blue come two spacecrafts as big as Salyut, and all of sudden MIR-OPSEK doubled in size and weight, to 80 tons. These ships are probably related to the mysterious Cosmos 929 of 1977. Such vehicle was rumoured to the Soviet answer to Helios, but little is known about it and his hasn't flown since 1977. Cosmos 929 seemed to rival Big Gemini in a “space truck” role.
The selection of French astronaut inevitably begs an intriguing question: how about ESA astronauts ?
This is an old issue that reach back as far as June 1972. That was the moment when after the shuttle cancellation NASA scrapped the so-called sortie lab and offered Europe nothing but the Agena space tug. The harsh reality is that the tug, being piloted from the ground, doesn't need an astronaut corps. Still ESA space tug (major) accomplishments – such as the Skylab desorbit mission - could be a bargain chip for ESA astronauts to fly to space station Liberty. France decision to go it alone may change things. It was De Gaulle that had France cooperating with the Soviets back in 1966 over spaceflight.
In fact selection of an European astronaut corps have started in 1977 but progress have been slow. Meanwhile on September 14, 1976 when the Soviets announced their Intercosmos program. This pushed the U.S Government, and NASA to start a similar program. Invitations were issued to the “Agena tug club” that includes Canada, Japan and Europe. More countries may follow. They were formally invited to space station Liberty and requested to start astronaut selection processes. On the European side Germany dragged, and still drags, its feet because in 1972 it has been excluded from space station module development when NASA picked up large Skylab-size modules instead of the narrower Big Gemini cargo section. Hopefully the French involment in Intercosmos should help cancelling Germany last doubts...
Moscow, the same day
Chertok and Glushko were now fighting teeth and nails for their respective spacecrafts to fly the prestigious Intercomos missions carrying foreign cosmonauts like Vladimir Remek, the first non-US, non-USSR astronaut. Gluhko insisted that his TKS should dock with OPSEK – Mir, while Chertok said that the TKS could for the MKBS; OPSEK-Mir didn't needed all the heavy logistics and their space trucks. As usual Glushko went to see Ustinov, and the latter decided that a handful of TKS would be flown to OPSEK-Mir, but no more than one per year until 1982. Most of the traffic would be handled by Chertok's Soyuz. Intercosmos astronauts could fly on the TKS only after it was thoroughly tested in orbit, probably after 1980.
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(for the record, VGE - Giscard - is still alive, aged 90 and counting. Still bitter about his 1981 defeat against Mitterrand, and still with a deep hatred of Chirac, who planted a knife between his shoulders when he secretely pushed right-wing voters to vote for Mitterrand rather than Giscard. President Giscard had humiliated Prime Minister Chirac back in 1975, and the two man hate each others. As former President they both seat at the Conseil Constitutionnel, where they humiliate each others to the day)
As we say in French "il a toujours son balai dans le cul" (Giscard is still a psychorigid idiot - he has a broom deeply stuck into his arse)
In 1981 when he was defeated by Mitterrand (with Chirac help !) Giscard was so incensed and angered that while on TV, live, he simply got up, said a single word "Au revoir" "Goodbye"and left an empty chair with the Marseillaise playing.
This is the French equivalent of Nixon getting into the helicopter and out of the White House that day of 1974.
http://www.ina.fr/video/I08358793
Paris, France
When President Giscard D'Estaing met Leonid Brezhnev in Moscow last month, the Soviet Leader offered France the opportunity to fly a cosmonaut on board a joint Soviet-French space flight, along the same lines as the agreement to fly non-Soviet cosmonauts from member countries of the Intercosmos program. The offer was accepted, and France will began a spationaut selection process in September 1979, with the goal of slecting two finalists to be named in June 1980 and start training at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in September 1980.
The French astronaut will fly to the 40 tons OPSEK – Mir, the mysterious Soviet space station probably made of two Salyuts docked face-to-face. But in 1979, out of the blue come two spacecrafts as big as Salyut, and all of sudden MIR-OPSEK doubled in size and weight, to 80 tons. These ships are probably related to the mysterious Cosmos 929 of 1977. Such vehicle was rumoured to the Soviet answer to Helios, but little is known about it and his hasn't flown since 1977. Cosmos 929 seemed to rival Big Gemini in a “space truck” role.
The selection of French astronaut inevitably begs an intriguing question: how about ESA astronauts ?
This is an old issue that reach back as far as June 1972. That was the moment when after the shuttle cancellation NASA scrapped the so-called sortie lab and offered Europe nothing but the Agena space tug. The harsh reality is that the tug, being piloted from the ground, doesn't need an astronaut corps. Still ESA space tug (major) accomplishments – such as the Skylab desorbit mission - could be a bargain chip for ESA astronauts to fly to space station Liberty. France decision to go it alone may change things. It was De Gaulle that had France cooperating with the Soviets back in 1966 over spaceflight.
In fact selection of an European astronaut corps have started in 1977 but progress have been slow. Meanwhile on September 14, 1976 when the Soviets announced their Intercosmos program. This pushed the U.S Government, and NASA to start a similar program. Invitations were issued to the “Agena tug club” that includes Canada, Japan and Europe. More countries may follow. They were formally invited to space station Liberty and requested to start astronaut selection processes. On the European side Germany dragged, and still drags, its feet because in 1972 it has been excluded from space station module development when NASA picked up large Skylab-size modules instead of the narrower Big Gemini cargo section. Hopefully the French involment in Intercosmos should help cancelling Germany last doubts...
Moscow, the same day
Chertok and Glushko were now fighting teeth and nails for their respective spacecrafts to fly the prestigious Intercomos missions carrying foreign cosmonauts like Vladimir Remek, the first non-US, non-USSR astronaut. Gluhko insisted that his TKS should dock with OPSEK – Mir, while Chertok said that the TKS could for the MKBS; OPSEK-Mir didn't needed all the heavy logistics and their space trucks. As usual Glushko went to see Ustinov, and the latter decided that a handful of TKS would be flown to OPSEK-Mir, but no more than one per year until 1982. Most of the traffic would be handled by Chertok's Soyuz. Intercosmos astronauts could fly on the TKS only after it was thoroughly tested in orbit, probably after 1980.
--------------------
(for the record, VGE - Giscard - is still alive, aged 90 and counting. Still bitter about his 1981 defeat against Mitterrand, and still with a deep hatred of Chirac, who planted a knife between his shoulders when he secretely pushed right-wing voters to vote for Mitterrand rather than Giscard. President Giscard had humiliated Prime Minister Chirac back in 1975, and the two man hate each others. As former President they both seat at the Conseil Constitutionnel, where they humiliate each others to the day)
As we say in French "il a toujours son balai dans le cul" (Giscard is still a psychorigid idiot - he has a broom deeply stuck into his arse)
In 1981 when he was defeated by Mitterrand (with Chirac help !) Giscard was so incensed and angered that while on TV, live, he simply got up, said a single word "Au revoir" "Goodbye"and left an empty chair with the Marseillaise playing.
This is the French equivalent of Nixon getting into the helicopter and out of the White House that day of 1974.
http://www.ina.fr/video/I08358793
- Archibald
- Word Count: 750