Designation give to combined TKS+OPS Almaz station.

Associated Launch Vehicle: Proton 8K82K.

• Almaz OPS.  Article Number: 11F71. Manufacturer's Designation: OPS. Code Name: Mech. Part of: OPS + TKS. Class: Manned. Type: Space Station. Destination: Space Station Orbit. Nation: Russia. Agency: MOM. Manufacturer: Chelomei.

  Vladimir Chelomei's Almaz OPS was the only manned military space station ever actually flown. The stations were equipped with an unprecedented array of sensors for 'man-in-the-loop' observation and targeting of mobile ground targets. One was equipped with a space-to-space gun. In the end the station officially proved that manned systems were not a cost-effective method for space reconnaissance and targeting. But the Almaz station provided the basis for the Russian Salyut, Mir, and the International Space Station space station modules.

  The initial Almaz program planned in 1965 consisted of two phases. In the first phase, 20 metric ton Almaz APOS space stations, complete with crew and re-entry capsule, would be put in orbit by a single launch of a Proton rocket. In 1966 this plan was revised. The first phase would now consist of single-docking port Almaz OPS stations, visited by crews launched separately aboard 6.5 metric ton Soyuz transport vehicles. In this phase the value of manned space reconnaissance and targeting would be evaluated.

  Almaz flights were delayed in 1970 when resources were diverted in a crash program to modify Almaz into the civilian Salyut space station in order to upstage the American Skylab. Almaz first phase flights finally took place in 1973-1977. Four Soyuz crews successfully visited two Almaz stations.

  On December 10, 1963, US Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara announced the beginning of studies for a Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) - a military space station. Within the Soviet Union, Vladimir Nikolayevich Chelomei's OKB-52 had been authorized in a 1 January 1965 decree to build a similar design - the Almaz APOS. The APOS - Autonomous Piloted Orbital Station - was equipped with a VA re-entry capsule. No dockings would be required in this phase.

  On 30 June 1966 Ministry of General Machine Building (MOM) Decree 145ss 'On approval of the 7K-TK as transport for the Almaz station' was issued. It was decided that the Soyuz-R space station would be canceled, as would the Almaz APOS. In their place the Almaz OPS, a version of the APOS without the VA reentry capsule and with a docking port, would be developed. Almaz was assigned the 11F71 index number previously allocated to the Soyuz-R station, and Kozlov was ordered to hand over to Chelomei all of the work completed in relation to the station. Kozlov's Soyuz 7K-TK ferry was to continue in development to transport crew to the Almaz OPS.

  G A Yefremov escorted the Soyuz-R material from Kozlov's Samara plant to Chelomei's TsKBM organization. The documents showed what a complex development was required to achieve the military's requirements. In Samara, work continued with release of the technical documentation of the 7K-TK. However due to delays in the Almaz all work on further development of the 7K-TK was suspended on 28 December 1966. These schedule changes were embodied in Military-Industrial Commission (VPK) Decree 104 'On changes in the timeline for the Almaz program and suspension of the 7K-TK'. The revised Almaz Phase A now consisted of launch of three OPS stations without VA re-entry capsules. Three two-month expeditions would be launched to each station aboard 7K-TK transports. Each station of the initial series was to have a life of three to four months.

  Two decrees during the course of 1967 reinforced these decisions and set an aggressive schedule of initial flight tests of Almaz-A/Soyuz 7K-TK in 1968 and entry of the system into service in 1969. (these were Ministry of General Machine Building (MOM) Decree 'On approval of work on Almaz' was issued on 9 February 1967 and Central Committee of the Communist Party and Council of Soviet Ministers Decree 'On full approval of the Almaz and 7K-TK programs' on 1 June 1967).

  On 21 June 1967 the Military-Industrial Commission (VPK) Decree 'On approval of the Almaz draft project' was issued, followed by Central Committee of the Communist Party and Council of Soviet Ministers Decree 'On schedule of work on the Almaz space station' on 14 August. The revised program seemed on track for an early test flight. Almaz program development was overseen by the State Committee for Flight Technology, P Dementiev, Chairman.

  Chelomei's revised Almaz draft project was presented to the Fourth Trials Directorate at Baikonur Cosmodrome in January 1968. First launch did not now seem possible until 1969. Chelomei continued to have difficulty maintaining top-level support for Almaz as the project met delay after delay. While Khrushchev was in power, Chelomei was ascendant - Sergei Nikitovich, the Secretary General's son, worked at his firm. But Chelomei was not seen as an experienced politician and had belittled Council of Ministers Deputy Chairman Dmitri Ustinov. When Brezhnev took power, Ustinov became the Communist Party Central Committee Secretary for Defense. Chelomei's influence waned.

  The official schedule for Almaz was held until 1969, when it became apparent that delays in subsystems deliveries would rule out any first flight until 1970. The mock-up of Almaz had been completed at Reutov in 1968 while production of station hulls was proceeding at Fili Factory 22. For Chelomei's ex-Myasishchev engineers, designing and building the structure of the station was trivial. However Almaz had a number of ambitious military and guidance systems that were desperately behind schedule. There was the large Agat camera, which was capable of infrared detection, could be controlled by the cosmonauts. Using 'space binoculars' to determine if a target was clear and of interest, the entire array of sensors could be directed toward the target. Parts of the earth covered by cloud were examined using side-looking radar. All of this required high-precision guidance and orientation of the station. The station had to be pointed precisely for the target run while the panels remained oriented to the sun.

  Chelomei developed the necessary complex guidance system within his own collective. His design bureau worked with VNIIEM on an electromechanical system of orientation using spherical gimbals and flywheels with great kinetic momentum ('gyrodynes'). These electrically-powered gyrodynes could point the station with great precision without the expenditure of propellant.

  Chelomei was also developing the Argon digital computer at the All-Union Institute of Digital Electronic Computer Technology (VNITsEVT). This computer was not in fact launched until 15 years later, for use aboard Mir! All of the technology for the Almaz station was similarly taking much longer than Chelomei expected. Therefore in the course of 1969 station spaceframes were being completed, but systems assembly had not even begun.

  Other threats to the project's survival emerged. On 10 June 1969 President Nixon announced cancellation of the USAF MOL military space station program. The original impetus for development of Almaz was eliminated at a stroke. On 3 July 1969 the second Soviet N1 lunar launch vehicle blew up on the pad. 17 days later, Neil Armstrong stepped onto the moon, winning for the Americans the moon race. With the collapse of the work on the N1, the whole reason for Mishin's design bureau's existence simply vanished in the air. A new high-priority project was needed.

  Korolev had begun development of a Multi-Module Space Base (MKBS) before 1966. However MKBS was to be launched by the N1; as long as this was not available, there would be no MKBS. Almaz on the other hand did not require a new launch vehicle, although the UR-500 was in a period of intense 'baby sickness'. So while TsKBEM was in a period of analysis and instability, Reutov and Fili were building space station for the Ministry of Defense.

  On one of these August 1969 days, three TsKBM engineers came to the office of Mishin's deputy, Chertok, with a plan to take an Almaz spaceframe, install Soyuz systems, add a new docking tunnel with a hatch to reach the interior, and presto - a space station was finished. Tentative discussions with potential allies within Chelomei's design bureau found support there as well. The DOS 'long-duration orbiting station' was the result of this 'conspiracy'.

  At the end of 1969 Chelomei's Khrunichev factory had built 8 Almaz test stand and two flight articles. A Special Contingent within Chelomei's design bureau was formed at the end of 1968 to conduct crew tests on the ground of the stations in phase one and to make flights to Almaz in the second phase. Three-man crews had already been formed. They would conduct real-time tests on the ground during the flight and advise the flight crew of any problems.

  The DOS 'conspiracy' came out in the open on 6 December 1969 at a key meeting of Chief Designers. Afanasyev started with the demand that an Almaz flight take place within less than two years, before the end of the Eighth Five Year Plan. He asked Eydis (Chelomei's representative) to install an Igla passive docking system to permit docking with the station of the existing Soyuz 7K-OK as opposed to the planned 7K-S. If Chelomei's bureau could not meet this requirement, then the 'conspirator's' DOS project could be authorized in its place.

  An extensive discussion of the future course of the Soviet manned space program followed. Eydis pleaded that the Almaz program not be infringed upon. If an early station was desired, completion of an Almaz could be started on 1 January. The station would not have any military systems or ECS ready, but could be modified for docking with a 7K-OK. He noted that work on Almaz had been underway since 1965, all based on the requirements of the Ministry of Defense. TsUKOS and the General Staff wanted to conduct research in reconnaissance systems - infrared, wide-spectrum, high resolution, and television transmission. Their objectives went far beyond launch of a simple space station.

  Throughout these discussions Afanasyev did not praise or criticize any of the speakers. Obviously he had to formally discuss the matter with Ustinov before any decision could be made. The decisive meeting came on 26 December 1969. Ustinov called the DOS 'conspirators' to Kuibyshev Street. Mishin was sent away to Kslovodsk and Chelomei and Glushko were not invited. No one wanted to listen to any more of Glushko's diatribes about Kuznetsov's engines.

  Ustinov supported presentation of the DOS concept to the Central Committee. Chelomei categorically opposed DOS and was trying to kill it through military channels. But the allure of an '18 month' station - one which would not only beat the American Skylab, but be in space in time for the 24th Party Congress - seemed too alluring. Mishin also rejected DOS, but deputies at both design bureaus supported the concept and were eager to proceed.

  DOS was therefore created only when the moon project failed. Chelomei was forced to work on DOS, and it severely impacted Almaz schedules. The Salyut name was later applied to both the DOS and Almaz stations, creating the impression in the outside world that they were built by one designer. This deception was a constant weight on the heart of the designers and workers who had to accept the compromise.

  The official ministry decrees starting the DOS and reorganizing the Almaz projects were issued in February 1970. The cooperative DOS crash program was to build a civilian space station to beat Skylab into orbit. The civilian station (later named Salyut) would use the Almaz spaceframe fitted out with Soyuz functional equipment. Mishin's OIS military station was canceled and Chelomei's Almaz would continue, but as second priority to the civilian station. The Soyuz 7K-S station ferry, the 7K-ST, would be revised to be a more conservative modification of the Soyuz 7K-OK. The OIS cosmonaut group was to be incorporated into the Almaz group.

  The relevant Ministry of General Machine Building (MOM) Decree 105-41 'On creation of the DOS using Almaz as a basis' was issued on 9 February, followed by Decree 57ss 'On creation of the DOS using Almaz as a basis' on 16 February. The first station was to be completed within a year. On 15 February Ustinov had conferred with the Cabinet. They agreed that work would continue on both the lunar expedition and DOS. A formal declaration from Mishin and Chelomei to work together was required.

  On 5 May 1970 Smirnov and Afanasyev settled the future course of manned spaceflight at a DOS project review. Almaz and DOS would continue in the short term, but MKBS would follow in earth orbit. Mishin's attempt to replace Almaz with his DOS-A design was defeated.

  In parallel with DOS work Khrunichev started static, vibration, and thermal tests of the Almaz. In the second half of 1971 the first phase station design was changed from three crew to two crew. This was due to a reduction in crew size of the Soyuz 7K-T ferry crew seize after the death of the Soyuz 11 crew.

  Design work began on the TKS had actually begun in 1969. To assure reliability all systems were qualification tested on dynamic, static, heat, and flammability test stands. These included complete ECS, docking, rendezvous, and electrical analogue system tests. At Zagorsk test stands were built for the payloads, engine tests, and vacuum trials. At Chkalovsk ECS and thermo-regulation system trial were conducted. Full scale stand was built for testing of the docking system as well as a full scale VA.

  The Almaz DU engine unit was based on Polyot technology by Section 08-08, headed by Sergei Vladimirovich Yefimov. Development was very difficult, and when the time came for the first launch the State Commission wouldn't clear the spacecraft for launch because the engine system had not completed its test series at Zagorsk. Only when Chelomei threatened to take the matter to the Politburo was permission granted. The reliability of the system was ultimately proven on Almaz 305, which completed 760,000 engine firings.

  The DU was controlled by 30 pressure data sensors and 60 temperature sensors. Dozens of radio commands were required to monitor, close, and open various elements of the system for each firing. Prior to flight the system was subjected to static, vibration, thermal vacuum, cold-soak, and flammability tests. Vibrations tests were conducted of the whole system fueled. These took many months.

  In assembly at the factory one tube was incorrectly assembled. Afanasyev and Chelomei went to the factory, and instructed that ten duplicate articles be tested in vibration and fire. These conclusively showed the incorrectly assembled element would not affect the system function. These tests included the first test of the DU in a vacuum chamber, where corrosion problems were studied in detail. Reliability, reliability was the constant refrain. Once it appeared that there was fire aboard the station; but it turned out only to be a sensor failure.

  Collaboration of the two chief designers did lead to some agreements, although these were contrary to government decrees. Chelomei was anxious to develop Almaz while Mishin wished to move on with the N1 booster to MKBS and the moon. On 3 February 1972 Mishin and Chelomei sent a joint letter to Afanasyev. They proposed that Almaz would take over the DOS role as a civilian station after the four DOS-1's had been launched. Faced for once with a show of unanimity, Afanasyev rejected the plan. He replied that under no circumstances was Almaz to be used for scientific research. On the other hand, DOS would require substantial rework to be capable of military research. Therefore, the designers were to keep to original plan.

Meanwhile progress toward completion of the first flight Almaz was accelerating. Initial equipment to be qualified were the STR Thermoregulation System and SNIP Pressurization Control System. These had to be tied into the ECS and installed in phase 1 article 4, s/n 64688, as well as the 'docked' 7K-T mock-up. For these trials two cosmonaut crews rotated shifts over a 90 day stand test. This was completed on 21 April 1972.

By June 15, 1972 the first Almaz was reaching a high level of completion and firm flight schedules could be finally be established. These were contained in Ministry of General Machine Building (MOM) Decree 'On schedule of work for the Almaz and TKS programs'. On 29 July a Proton rocket failed to place the second DOS station into orbit. Brezhnev then personally selected Almaz for the next space station launch. There was just enough time to beat the scheduled to beat the American Skylab station, scheduled for launch in April 1973. OPS-1 / Salyut 2 was delivered to Baikonur in January 1973. The first ten day flight trials of the first OPS were planned for March 1973.

Equipment delays continued to plague the project. Chelomei wrote a letter to S A Smirnov on 28 September 1972 noting systems that still needed to be delivered:

• Agat-1 + Film Camera from 16 SPKM - due 29 September 1972
• Star tracker AI-3P and Sextant P-IP by TsKB Geofizika due 15 October 1972
• Slide projector 118K by TsKB Geofizika due 15 October 1972
• VIPS-R, due 15 October 1972

Chelomei wrote to the Central Committee on 16 October 1972 and listed equipment still undelivered:

• From the Electronics Ministry: 11M02 Chemical data distributor, BKIR, BKIR-T power distribution units. 11V030 special logic unit and 11V0929
• From Ministry of Radio Industry: 11R91 Kashtan time synchronizer, 11M66 Argon digital computer
• From Arsenal KB: 11V027 RI-P sextant and 11V028 AI-3R star tracker

On 21 November 1972 Chelomei was notified that launch would be delayed due to aircraft trials of a revised backup parachute system for the Soyuz 7K-T ferry. It was commonly believed that Mishin was intentionally delaying these tests to make Chelomei miss his schedule. The Soyuz 7K-T 11615A-8 differed in detailed equipment from the Soyuz 7K-T 11615 model used to dock with the civilian DOS stations. This included control panels for operation of Almaz electrical systems by remote control from aboard the Soyuz.

Almaz 0101-1 was delivered to Baikonur on 15 December 1972. The flight trials State Commission was established by the decree 888-303 of 27 December 1972 and was headed by Deputy Commander of the RVSN rocket forces, Col-Gen M A Grigoriev. Trials of the OPS were conducted at Chelomei's Area 92-2 (laboratory bunker area), with electrical and integration tests at Area 92-1 (Proton MIK), prior to joining the station to the rocket. The station was also moved to Mishin's MIK KO and MIK at Area 2B and 2 for fitting of the Igla rendezvous equipment, vacuum trials and fit checks with the Soyuz 7K-T. Full-up system tests of Almaz began in January 1973. Fueling of the station were done back at Chelomei's Area 91 at the 91-2 and ZNS 11G141 propellant facilities.

Preparation of Almaz for flight met fully all military requirements for radio maskirovka deception operations. The ground-based analogue OPS , 11F71-100, was readied for use by a parallel crew to mime the flight activities of Salyut 2.

Chelomei was so enraged with Mishin's delays in qualifying the Soyuz and its marginal technical characteristics that he sent a letter to the Soviet leadership on 28 February 1973. In this he complained:

• Soyuz 7K-T could not be used with Almaz because Mishin did not act according to the requirements of the decree
• The 7K-T did not have the propulsive capability for multiple docking attempts with Almaz
• The 7K-T did not have the docking equipment and necessary backups systems to guarantee crew safety in all flight modes
• The 7K-T electrical system did not have the capability to provide full function unless recharged by the OPS for 2 to 3 days after docking.

Therefore he recommended that Almaz should be unmanned (!) for Phase I flights until the TKS was available.

Chelomei's recommendations was not taken up, but it appeared that Mishin did respond to pressure on the re-qualification of the Soyuz parachute system. Almaz was ready for launch on 1 March 1973 but planned launches on 5 , 15, and 25 March were scrubbed due to Mishin's Soyuz not being ready.

Almaz 0101-1 finally entered orbit under the cover name Salyut 2 on 3 April 1973. The first 12 days of operation were normal. Two orbital corrections were made, and the Agat camera and ASA-34 topographical/star camera were operated successfully. But before a crew could be launched the station was lost. At 12:30 Moscow time on 14 April the station moved out of tracking range. When it returned at 03:16 telemetry showed the station had de-pressurized. On 16 April at 09:12 radio communications with the station ceased.

At first the station loss was attributed to a short in electrical equipment started a fire in pressure vessel, leading to rupture of hull and de-pressurization. This would be consistent with the fire in Salyut 1. But study of telemetry later showed that the cause was a hole in the nitrogen tank of the engine unit pressurization system. This prevented operation of the low thrust stabilization engines and elevated temperatures in the bay, causing loss of proper radio telemetry, de-pressurization, and then loss of main engines. It was theorized that debris from an explosion of the third stage of the Proton booster may have penetrated the nitrogen tank. Officially it was reported that control was lost on April 25, 1973, and the OPS ceased operations on 29 April.

The same day that communications were lost with Salyut-2 the American Skylab station was rolled out to the pad. It was launched a month later and the Soviet Union lost the chance to conduct the first fully successful space station mission. Salyut 2 decayed from orbit and re-entered on 28 May 1973 in the Pacific Ocean 3000 km east of New Guinea..

Had the station continued in operation, it would have been manned by two crews: Artyukhin and Popovich aboard Soyuz 12 (back-ups Volynov, Zholobov), followed by Demin and Sarafanov (backups Rozhdestvensky and Zudov) aboard Soyuz 13.

Following three successful Skylab missions came the shocking news that Mishin had been authorized to build a new-design fifth DOS station using Almaz facilities. Chelomei wrote a bitter letter to Afanasyev on 28 December 1973. He noted that the K-00534 TTT requirements for Almaz of the Ministry of Defense envisioned a two phase program. Instead his Khrunichev ZIKh factory was hijacked for DOS production. Now it had been further assigned to build DOS-5 for Mishin. Therefore, he concluded that the first phase of Almaz could not be completed. He asked Afanasyev how to resolve this situation.

The second Almaz was launched as Salyut 3 on 25 June 1974. Following the successful Soyuz 14 and unsuccessful Soyuz 15 missions, on 23 September 1974 the station ejected a KSI film return capsule, which was recovered damaged but with the film intact. On 25 January 1975 Salyut 3 fired its maneuvering engines for the last time and braked itself from orbit over the Pacific Ocean.

The station had a planned life of eight months and had the special objective of locating and transmitting to the ground the coordinates of mobile objects at sea and in the air. For this purpose 14 type of photo cameras, and various optical sensors (pointing scope, panoramic viewer, periscope) were carried as well as infrared sensors. Semi-active radar (SAR) was not flown but was planned in the future. Salyut 3 was equipped with the Agat-1 camera, which had a 6.375 m focal length using 3 m folding optics, an OD-4 Vzor pointing scope, POU panoramic camera, as well as topographic and star cameras. In addition its Volga infrared apparatus had a 100 m resolution. The Vzor OD-4 could sight an object at sea, then train all of the sensors on that object. Skylab was visually hunted by the station using the Sokol instrument, demonstrating use of the sensor array in space-to-space warfare and reconnaissance.

Of the 17 orbits per day the station would fly, seven did not pass over the USSR and were useless for communication. To fill the gap two tracking ships were used for Salyut 3. The vessel Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin was stationed off Sable Island in the Atlantic, at 51 deg N, which provided 5 to 6 orbit per day coverage. The ship Cosmonaut Vladimir Komarov was stationed off Cuba, at 21 deg N, and provided coverage on 2 orbits. The result was communications opportunities on every orbit.

On 4 July 1974 Soyuz 14 docked with the Salyut 3 space station after 15 revolutions of the earth and began the first military space station mission. The planned experimental program included manned military reconnaissance of the earth's surface, assessing the fundamental value of such observations, and some supplemental medico-biological research. All objectives were successfully completed and the spacecraft was recovered on July 19, 1974 at 12:21 GMT, landing within 2 km of the aim point 140 km SE Dzhezkazgan. After the crew's return research continued in the development of the on-board systems and the principles of remote control of such a station.

In August 1974 Soyuz 15 was to conduct the second phase of manned operations aboard Salyut 3, but the Igla rendezvous system failed and no docking was made. As Chelomei had complained, Soyuz had no reserves or backup systems for repeated manual docking attempts and had to be recovered after a two-day flight. The state commission found that the Igla docking system of the Soyuz needed serious modification. This could not be completed before Salyut 3 decayed. Therefore the planned Soyuz 16 spacecraft became excess to the program (it was later flown as Soyuz 20 to a civilian Salyut station, even though over its two year rated storage life).

The Salyut 3 KSI film capsule was ejected on 23 September 1974 but suffered damage to the landing sequencer from the hot plasma sheath generated during re-entry. Therefore the heat shield did not separate, nor did the main parachute open. The capsule was deformed by the hard landing but all the film was recoverable.

On 24 January 1975 trials of a special system aboard Salyut-3 were carried out with positive results at ranges from 3000 m to 500 m. These were undoubtedly the reported tests of the on-board 23 mm Nudelman aircraft cannon (other sources say it was a Nudelman NR-30 30 mm gun). Cosmonauts have confirmed that a target satellite was destroyed in the test.

The next day the station was commanded to retrofire to a destructive re-entry over the Pacific Ocean. Although only one of three planned crews managed to board the station, that crew did complete the first completely successful Soviet space station flight.

The second successful Almaz phase 1 flight, Salyut 5, was launched on 22 June 1976. It had taken only 60 days and 1450 man-hours to prepare Almaz 0101-2 for flight, using the services of 368 officers and 337 non-commissioned officers. The station operated for 409 days, during which the crews of Soyuz 22 and 24 visited the station. The tracking ships Academician Sergei Korolev and Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin were stationed in the Atlantic and Caribbean to provide communications when out of tracking range of the USSR.

Soyuz 23 was to have docked but its long-distance rendezvous system failed. Soyuz 25 was planned, but the mission would have been incomplete due to low orientation fuel on Salyut 5, so it was canceled. The film capsule was recovered 22 February 1977 (and sold at Sotheby's, New York, on December 11, 1993!). The station was deorbited on 8 August 1977.

Soyuz 21 with Volynov and Zholobov aboard hard-docked with the station on 6 July 1976 after failure of the Igla system at the last stage of rendezvous. Towards end of the two month mission an early return to earth was requested due to the poor condition of flight engineer Zholobov (who was suffering from space sickness and psychological problems). The crew landed in very bad physical and mental condition 200 km SW of Kokchetav on August 25, 1976 at 18:33 GMT. It was determined that they had become emotional, not followed their physical training, and developed an unreasonable desire to return to earth. The possibility also existed that there were toxic gases in the station.

The hard-luck flights continued with Soyuz 23 on 14 October 1976. The ferry spacecraft, with Rozhdestvensky and Zudov aboard, suffered a docking system failure. Sensors indicated an incorrect lateral velocity, causing unnecessary firing of the thrusters during rendezvous. The automatic system was turned off, but no fuel remained for a manual docking by the crew of . The capsule landed in Lake Tengiz in -20 deg C conditions in a snowstorm. The wet parachute filled and dragged the capsule below the surface, cooling the capsule. Heating systems had to be turned in the capsule to conserve battery power. Amphibious vehicles attempted to recover the spacecraft but could not reach it. Finally swimmers managed to attach a cable to a helicopter. The capsule was dragged for kilometers across the icy sea. Only in the morning was the crew able to emerge from the capsule. The recovery crews were surprised they were still alive.

Soyuz 24 brought repair equipment and equipment for a change of cabin atmosphere. This special apparatus was designed to allow the entire station to be vented through the EVA airlock. Because of this the planned EVA was canceled. However analysis after arrival showed no toxins in the air. The crew changed the cabin air anyway, then returned to earth. The mission, although a short 18 days, was characterized as busy and successful mission, accomplishing nearly as much as the earlier Soyuz 21's 50 day mission. The Soyuz was recovered February 25, 1977 9:38 GMT 37 km NE Arkalyk. The KSI film return capsule followed them a day later and was recovered successfully. It was sold at Sotheby's in 1993 and was donated to the US National Air and Space Museum.

As on Salyut 3, during the flight of Salyut 5 a 'parallel crew' was aboard a duplicate station on the ground. They conducted the same operations in support of over 300 astrophysical, geophysical, technological, and medical/biological experiments. Astrophysics studies included an infrared telescope-spectrometer in the 2-15 micrometer range which also obtained solar spectra. Earth resources studies were conducted as well as Kristal, Potok, Diffuziya, Sfera, and Reatsiya technology experiments. Presumably Salyut 5 was equipped with a SAR side-looking radar for reconnaissance of land and sea targets even through cloud cover.

A third crew was to be launched to the station aboard Soyuz 25 but the flight was canceled. It seemed that propellant reserves aboard the station had dipped too low to support another mission; in the opinion of Glushko (Mishin's successor). He therefore refused to ready another Soyuz for the mission. The spacecraft allocated for Soyuz-25 flew as Soyuz 30 to a civilian Salyut station.

This marked the end of Almaz Phase 1 and a state commission reviewed the results. The P-100 antenna demonstrated radio communications and photo television transmission of information to within 4 deg of the horizon (7 deg specification) at ranges of up to 1500 km . Photographic resolution was 15 to 20 lines/mm. The Pechora-1 television imagery transmission system worked well. All communications demonstrated, including: relay of data via Molniya-1 satellite when the station was out of sight of the USSR; automated processing of telemetry; and clear television downlink to the TsUP ground control center and Ostankino tracking center. Stage 1 trials were therefore declared to be successfully completed and decrees 46-13 of 19 January 1976 and 534-165 of 27 July 1996 allowed long-term use of station to proceed. Articles 104 and 105 released for use as production Almaz-2 stations.

However the overall results of the Salyut 3 and 5 flights were said to have demonstrated to the Soviet military that manned reconnaissance was not worth the expense. There was minimal time to operate the equipment after the crew took the necessary time for maintenance of station housekeeping and environmental control systems. The experiments themselves showed good results and especially the value

Crew Size: 2. Orbital Storage: 410 days. Typical orbit: 215 km x 244 km at 52 degrees inclination. Length: 14.55 m (47.73 ft). Maximum Diameter: 4.15 m (13.61 ft). Span: 17.00 m (55.00 ft). Habitable Volume: 100.00 m3. Mass: 17,800 kg (39,200 lb). Payload: 5,000 kg (11,000 lb). RCS Coarse No x Thrust: 14 x 98 N. RCS Fine No x Thrust: 8 x 10 N. RCS Coarse Backup No x Thrust: 4 x 98 N. RCS Fine Backup No x Thrust: 4 x 10 N. Main Engine: RD-0225. Main Engine Thrust: 7.840 kN (1,763 lbf). Main Engine Propellants: N2O4/UDMH. Main Engine Propellants: 1,800 kg (3,900 lb). Main Engine Isp: 291 sec. Spacecraft delta v: 300 m/s (980 ft/sec). Electrical System: Solar cells 52 sq m. Electric System: 3.12 average kW. Associated Launch Vehicle: Proton 8K82K.

• TKS.  Other Designations: Transportniy Korabl Snabzheniya. Article Number: 11F72. Manufacturer's Designation: TKS. Part of: OPS + TKS. Class: Manned. Type: Spacecraft. Destination: Space Station Orbit. Nation: Russia. Agency: MOM. Manufacturer: Chelomei.

  Vladimir Chelomei's TKS manned ferry vehicle was designed to provide a reusable resupply and crew return spacecraft much more capable and flexible than either the Soyuz or Apollo designs. Although the TKS completed its development program as part of the military Almaz space station program it was never used for manned spaceflight. However the TKS resupply vehicle provided the basis for the successful FGB space station modules used with the Salyut, Mir, and International Space Station.

  The initial Almaz program planned in 1965 consisted of two phases. In the second phase sustained operations would be conducted with Almaz dual-docking port stations serviced by TKS manned resupply vehicles. After many delays, second phase flights of Almaz-2 stations and the TKS were to be flown in 1981-1982. Unmanned flight tests of the TKS, its VA re-entry capsule, and construction of dual-port Almaz stations were completed, but Phase 2 was cancelled in 1979. The three TKS already built were instead flown unmanned to civilian Salyut space stations in 1981-1985.

  On 1 January 1965 a decree of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and Council of Soviet Ministers was issued: 'On work on space stations at OKB-52'. This defined Almaz as an OOS - Manned Orbital Station - in specific reply to the USAF Manned Orbiting Laboratory program. The draft project for the phase 2 RKK-B station, with three crew, was to be completed by 21 June 1967. The Almaz RKK-B / OPS+TKS was designed for a minimum one year active life. Crews would be rotated by the TKS ferry spacecraft to the OPS. Both the OPS and TKS would be equipped with VA re-entry capsules. The TKS ferry came in at 17.5 metric tons and 45 cubic meters. The OPS and TKS were each equipped with a VA re-entry capsule, with a mass of 4.2 metric tons each. The complete complex provided a grand total of 89.4 cubic meters of habitable volume for six crew. The TKS had enough guidance, consumables, and electricity to dock dozens of times with the station. It could also maneuver independently. The VA capsules were designed for ten reuses.

  Three to four dockings of the TKS would rotate crews and bring fresh supplies to the station. Phase B was to last 5 to 6 years. Following many revisions to the Almaz phase one program, Chelomei was finally able to obtain a formal go-ahead for development of the TKS ferry. This was contained in a 16 June 1970 Decree 437-160 'On creation of the TKS and termination of the 7K-TK'. It was finally agreed that for Almaz phase 2 the Soyuz 7K-TK would be replaced by Chelomei's own TKS transport-supply spacecraft. This would consist of the 11F74 VA landing capsule (designed for the original one-launch Almaz station design), together with a new 11F77 functional-cargo block (FGB). The TKS would transport three crew and sufficient supplies for 90 days operation of the Almaz. TKS design was to be completed in fourth quarter 1972.

  Design work began on the TKS had actually begun in 1969. To assure reliability all systems were qualification tested on dynamic, static, heat, and flammability test stands. These included complete ECS, docking, rendezvous, and electrical analogue system tests. At Zagorsk test stands were built for the payloads, engine tests, and vacuum trials. At Chkalovsk ECS and thermo-regulation system trial were conducted. Full scale stand was built for testing of the docking system as well as a full scale VA.

  At this time development of Almaz Phase 2 seemed uncertain. The official plan was that Almaz would be succeeded by Mishin's enormous MKBS space base. However TKS was preserved as the ferry for MKBS. This was reiterated by Afanasyev in a reply to a joint letter from Chief Designers Mishin and Chelomei of 3 February 1972.

  Chelomei was so enraged with Mishin's delays in qualifying the Soyuz for phase 1 Almaz and its marginal technical characteristics that he sent a letter to the Soviet leadership on 28 February 1973. In this he complained that the 7K-T did not have the propulsive capability for multiple docking attempts with Almaz; did not have the docking equipment and necessary backups systems to guarantee crew safety in all flight modes; did not have the capability to provide full function unless recharged by the OPS for 2 to 3 days after docking. Therefore he recommended that Almaz should be unmanned (!) for Phase I flights until the TKS was available. Chelomei's recommendation was not taken up.

  Following three successful Skylab missions came the shocking news that Mishin had been authorized to build a new-design fifth DOS station using Almaz facilities. Chelomei wrote a bitter letter to Afanasyev on 28 December 1973. He noted that the K-00534 TTT requirements for Almaz of the Ministry of Defense envisioned a two phase program. Instead his Khrunichev ZIKh factory was hijacked for DOS production. Now it had been further assigned to build DOS-5 for Mishin. He asked Afanasyev how to resolve this situation.

  It was clear that the phased development plan for Almaz was wrecked. Therefore a decision had to be made as to how to develop the VA re-entry capsule for Almaz-2 and TKS. V A Ozertskovskiy, head of section test, defined the generic parameters for VA development. Flight trials would be necessary to develop the SAS abort system to pull the VA away from the Proton rocket in case of an emergency situation. Therefore it was suggested that one Proton launch would handle two VA's in the 82LB72 configuration. This plan was approved in 1974. Two VA's were enclosed in a cylindrical housing called the LVI. The external geometry of the 82LB2 was exactly the same as the TKS' FGB+VA. Originally two launches of two pairs of capsules were planned: VA#030 (technology article) with analogue #009 in 1975, to be followed by VA 009A with SAS and 009 analogue inside the shroud in 1976.

  Fifty articles of the VA were built for development, including articles for development test stands, hatch tests, static test, and drop test, static and dynamic test, medical article #004, and those for development of the ADU rocket unit of the SAS abort system. From 1974-1977 five launches were undertaken from area 51 at Baikonur of the SAS system (three using VA #005, two using VA #007). These were attached to a complete mock-up of the FGB including the hatch tunnel and connector umbilical. When the 'Abort' command was sent, the 86 metric ton thrust motor of the ADU pulled the VA capsule away from the pad. 10 seconds from the abort command the ADU/TUD/NO separated and the landing systems went into operation. The braking parachute deployed for seven seconds, followed by the main chute with 1770 square meters of area. The capsule made a soft landing 2 km away. All five tests went well.

  Phase 1 Almaz flight were finally underway as Salyut 3 and 5. Meanwhile Phase 2 of the Almaz project continued, with the Central Committee of the Communist Party and Council of Soviet Ministers Decree 476-13 'On course of work on Almaz and the TKS' being issued on 19 January 1976. Six full-up TKS flight spacecraft were originally planned, together with nine separate unpiloted launches of the VA capsule. Two unmanned TKS flights would be followed by four manned missions (later changed to five manned flights). The decree set forth the following program for completion of Almaz Phase 1 and Phase 2:

  • First quarter 1976 - Unmanned flight tests of VA capsule
  • Second quarter 1976 - Completion of draft project of OPS with two docking ports for service by rotating crews
  • End 1976 - Unmanned flight tests of TKS
  • End 1977 - End of Phase 1 with flight of OPS-3
  • End 1977 - First flight test of OPS-4 with two docking ports with return capsule on front port
  • End 1978 - Manned TKS flights
  • End 1980 - Acceptance into service of OPS/TKS/VA systems

  However soon after this decree was issued Marshal Grechko suffered a heart attack. With this Chelomei lost his most active patron and was unable to withstand the slow strangulation of his projects by Ustinov and Glushko.

  VA capsules would be tested two at a time in the special 82LB72 Proton booster configuration. The original two-launch program had been expanded to five launches of two capsules in the LVI housing. The last two launches in 1978 were to be manned.

  The VA capsule had a hypersonic lift to drag ratio of 0.25, allowing it to generate lift during re-entry. This allowed the BSU-V manned capsule guidance system to maneuver the spacecraft to its landing point using the optimum path for minimal heating and G-forces. The reusable heat shield material developed for the VA was far superior to that used on the Soyuz capsule and was used as well on Chelomei's K-1 and LKS manned spacecraft designs. The SAS system abort system for the VA separated the capsule with 15 G's of acceleration from the booster in case of a malfunction and soft landed the capsule 1.0-1.5 km from the launch pad. In the lab the 92-2 LVI mock-up was used to test automatic systems, conduct trials tests, use of the TDU engine at the centre of mass, hermetic sealing of the LVI section, and separation of the DU.

  10 December 1976 the first Proton 82LB72 VA test vehicle was placed on the pad. The VA capsules included the Probki radioactive sensor system within the Kaktus gamma ray altimeter, which set off the DU braking unit for a soft landing of the capsule. In place of space suits telemetry equipment was installed.

  Launch of mission LVI-1 came at 04:00 on 15 December. Both capsules were recovered at 44 deg N, 73 deg E, on December 15, 1976 3:00 GMT. The flights were officially given the designations Cosmos 881 (VA 009A) and Cosmos 882 (VA 009).

  While the tests of the VA was behind schedule, the first complete TKS was delivered to Baikonur at the beginning of 1977 and launched on 17 July 1977 as Cosmos 929. The TKS maneuvered extensively, making orbital altitude changes equivalent to a total of nearly 300 m/s of delta V. The VA capsule (serial number given as 009) returned to earth August 16, 1977. The FGB of the TKS remained in controlled flight until it was deorbited on February 2, 1978 after 201 days aloft.

  The next LVI-2 VA test came a month later, on 2 August. However the booster failed at 49 seconds after launch. The SAS launch escape system pulled the top capsule (009P) away from the exploding Proton rocket and it was successfully recovered. The lower capsule was lost with the booster.

  Given the circumstances the plans to crew the upper VA in the next test was abandoned. LVI-3 (VA's 102P and 102L / Cosmos 997 and Cosmos 998) was launched unmanned four months behind the original schedule on 30 March 1978. Both capsules were recovered after one orbit.

  On 15 August 1978 a VA integrity test was conducted at the large vacuum chamber at Monino with cosmonaut Sergei Vladimirovich Chelomei (son of the chief designer) suited in the capsule. At the beginning of the test a valve opened in his helmet. His suit protracted him from a deep vacuum as designed by pumping oxygen at a high rate to match the loss through the helmet. Although the chamber was repressurised barely in time, Chelomei survived the incident.

  On 20 April 1979 LVI-4 VA (VA s/n 103 and s/n 008) was awaiting launch. The booster ignited, but then shut down on the pad. This triggered the launch escape system, which pulled the top capsule away from the booster. The parachute system failed and the capsule crashed to the ground. The lower capsule remained in the rocket.

  The launch vehicle was undamaged, and just a month later, with a switch of payload, LVI-4 was orbited as Cosmos 1100 and 1101 on 23 May 1979. The pair launched were the 102P/102L twins from LVI-3. One capsule failed when the automatic system suffered an electrical distribution failure and it did not land correctly, spending two orbits in space, while the other landed as planned after one orbit. The launch again successfully demonstrated the reusability of the VA capsule.

  Meanwhile changes were underway with the phase 2 Almaz. Weight growth meant that the planned launch with a VA attached to the second port was not within Proton capability. So the plan was revised for the station to be equipped with one hatch capable of docking with Soyuz, the other with TKS. At the beginning of 1978 project funding was cut back and the first launch delayed. Nevertheless in December 1978 TsKBM four cosmonaut engineers were selected and began training for missions to Almaz OPS-4.

  The final revised flight plan for Almaz OPS-4 was as follows:

  • December 1980: Launch of Almaz-2 OPS-4
  • January 1981: TKS-1: Planned first manned flight of the TKS. Crew Berezovoi, Glazkov, Makrushin. Would have docked with the Almaz OPS-4 military space station, three month duration.
  • April 1981: TKS-2: Second manned TKS flight to OPS-4, four month duration. Crew Kozelsky, Artyukhin, Romanov.
  • August 1981: TKS-3: Third TKS flight to OPS-4 military space station, crew Sarafanov, Preobrazhensky, Yuyukov.
  • April 1982: Soyuz Almaz 4: Soyuz flight to dock with the Almaz OPS 4 space station, crew Malyshev, Laveykin.

  This was the last iteration of the full-time manned Almaz program. At the end of 1978 it was decided to consolidate the Almaz and DOS projects into a single Mir space station. The existing Almaz-2 spaceframes would be converted into man-tended automatic radar reconnaissance satellites. An official resolution in February 1979 cancelled Almaz and incorporated some of the planned military experiments into the Mir project. Mir's docking ports were to be reinforced to accommodate 20 metric ton space station modules based on the TKS in place of the lighter modules planned by Glushko.

  Meanwhile it was still planned that two of the TKS would be flown manned to Salyut stations. In September/October 1979 three crews were formed for flights TKS-2 and TKS-3:

  • TKS-2: Glazkov/Makrush/Stepanov
  • TKS-3: Sarafanov/Romanov/Perub
  • Backups: Artyubhkin/Yuyukov/Berzervoi

  On 20-28 November 1979 GKNII conduced state ground trials test of TKS using two crews. Many problems were uncovered requiring rework.

  On April 25, 1981 TKS-1 was launched unmanned as Cosmos 1267. The VA capsule was recovered on 24 May 1981. The FGB docked with Salyut 6 on June 19 at 10:52 AM MT after 57 days of autonomous flight. It remained attached to Salyut 6 until they were both deorbited and destroyed on Salyut July 29, 1982.

  Despite the success of Cosmos 1267, Ustinov was not finished with Chelomei. He cancelled the entire remaining Almaz program. A decree of 19 December 1981 halted further work on manned flights of the TKS and reoriented the flights as tests of modules for the Mir station. The TKS training group was dissolved.

  On 2 March 1983 TKS-2 was launched unmanned as Cosmos 1443. Aboard were 2700 kg of payload and 4000 kg of propellant. This time the VA remained attached and the TKS docked with just two days after launch. TKS-2 separated from Salyut 7 on 14 August. The VA re-entry capsule separated and the space station deorbited itself on September 19, 1983. The VA capsule continued in space for four more days, demonstrating autonomous flight, before successfully re-entering on 23 August 1983. It landed 100 km south-east of Arkalsk and returned 350 kg of material from the station.

  But manned 'flights' of TKS were not completely dead. In 1982 a cosmonaut training group was formed again to fly the TKS and also to operate the military experiments aboard TKS-3 after it had docked with Salyut 7. These crews were:

  • First Crew: Vasyutin, Savinykh, Volkov
  • Second Crew: Aleksandrov, Saley, Viktorenko
  • Backups: Solovyov, Serebrov, Mosklaneko.

  Salyut 7 problems resulted in a complete breakdown of the TKS-3 plans. The first crew was bumped and instead a repair crew of Dzhanibekov and Savinykh was launched aboard Soyuz T-13 on 6 June 1985. The first 'TKS' crew was only completed with the launch to Salyut of Soyuz T-14 with Grechko, Vasyutin, and Volkov aboard on 17 September 1985. Grechko returned with Dzhanibekov aboard Soyuz T-13 on 26 September, clearing the aft port of Salyut for the TKS.

  TKS-3 was launched unmanned as Cosmos 1686 on 27 September 1985. All VA landing systems, the ECS, seats, and manned controls had been removed and replaced with high-resolution photo apparatus and optical sensor experiments (infrared telescope and Ozon spectrometer) of the Ministry of Defense. The TKS successfully docked with Salyut 7 and remained with it for the rest of its life. For almost two months the crew of Vasyutin, Savinykh, and Volkov conducted military experiments. However Vasyutin became sick and the crew returned prematurely on 21 November 1985, leaving the station unmanned. Salyut 7 was moved to a higher orbit to await the second 'TKS' crew, but then control of the station was lost. There were plans to return it aboard Buran for inspection, but first flight of the spaceplane was delayed. Salyut 7 and Cosmos 1686 burned up in the atmosphere together in a fiery show over Argentina on February 7, 1991.

  This was the last flight of the TKS in its original configuration with the VA re-entry capsule. Surplus FGB TKS modules were used in the Polyus star wars battle station, and as a tug to deliver the Kvant module to the Mir station. Derivatives of the TKS were used as the Priroda, Kvant-2, Kristall and Spektr modules of Mir, as well as the ISS Zarya first module of the International Space Station. They continue to be proposed as commercial or Russian add-on modules to the ISS.

  Crew Size: 3. Design Life: 7 days. Orbital Storage: 200 days. Typical orbit: 223 km x 266 km at 52 degrees inclination. Length: 17.51 m (57.44 ft). Maximum Diameter: 4.15 m (13.61 ft). Span: 17.00 m (55.00 ft). Habitable Volume: 45.00 m3. Mass: 17,510 kg (38,600 lb). Payload: 12,600 kg (27,700 lb). Main Engine Thrust: 7.840 kN (1,763 lbf). Main Engine Propellants: N2O4/UDMH. Main Engine Propellants: 3,822 kg (8,426 lb). Main Engine Isp: 291 sec. Spacecraft delta v: 700 m/s (2,290 ft/sec). Electrical System: Solar panels 17 m span 40 sq m. Electric System: 2.40 average kW. Associated Launch Vehicle: Proton 8K82K.

• Voevodin, Sergey A, VSA072 - Space Apparatus, "Sergey A. Voevodin's Reports", . Accessed at: http://home.attbi.com/~rusaerog/spacecraft.html.