Interkosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Aleksandrov, second Bulgarian in space, dies at 74

— Aleksandr Aleksandrov, the second Bulgarian to fly into space and the first to live on a space station, has died at the age of 74.

Prime Minister Rumen Radev of Bulgaria issued a statement mourning the death of Aleksandrov on Friday (July 10).

“Major-General Aleksandrov belongs to that generation of Bulgarian officers for whom the duty to the Homeland, professional craftsmanship and the pursuit of knowledge and development were of high value. His flight into space in 1988 was not only an extraordinary achievement in his personal professional path, but also a historic moment for Bulgaria that affirmed the authority of our country among the countries with contribution to space exploration,” Radev wrote.

Selected in 1978 under the former Soviet Union’s Interkosmos program, which flew representatives from the communist states to encourage cooperation, Aleksandrov was originally chosen to backup Georgi Ivanov, the first Bulgarian to fly into space, on the 1979 Soyuz 33 mission to the Salyut 6 space station. That flight, however, failed to reach the orbiting module due to a Soyuz engine failure, resulting in a return to Earth just under a day after the launch.

After a new agreement was reached with the USSR, Aleksandrov was then assigned to the prime crew of Soyuz TM-5, a visiting mission during the Mir space station’s third long-duration expedition. Lifting off on June 7, 1988, with Russian cosmonauts Anatoly Solovyev and Viktor Savinykh, Aleksandrov logged more than a week aboard Mir, during which he helped conduct 59 scientific experiments.

Joined by his TM-5 crewmates and the station’s residents, Vladimir Titov, Musa Manarov and Valery Polyakov, Aleksandrov also shared a taste test of Bulgarian food as prepared for space.

“Cooperation will be even greater in the future,” Aleksandrov said in 2019 at a celebration marking the 40th anniversary of Ivanov becoming the first Bulgarian in space. “Unification gives strength.”

On June 17, 1988, Aleksandrov, along with Solovyev and Savinykh, bid departed Mir and landed on Earth aboard the Soyuz TM-4 spacecraft. In total, Aleksandrov logged 9 days, 20 hours and 9 minutes in space.

Aleksandrov was the 206th person to orbit Earth and 213th to enter space (including seven who flew above 50 miles [80 km] on suborbital flights), according to the Registry of Space Travelers kept by the Association of Space Explorers.

Aleksandr Panayotov Aleksandrov (not to be confused with Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Pavlovich Aleksandrov) was born on Dec. 1, 1951, in Omurtag, Bulgaria. He graduated from the George Benkovsky Air Force Academy in 1974 and earned a degree in technical sciences from the Institute of Space Research at the Academy of Sciences of the USSR in Moscow in 1983.

“As an airman and officer, he left behind an example of discipline, courage and dedication. His work is part of the glorious history of Bulgarian aviation and of the traditions of people who have devoted their lives to conquering the skies and expanding human horizons,” said the prime minister.

After returning from space, Aleksandrov became deputy director of the Institute of Space Research at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and worked as a research scientist.

For his service to his country and the USSR, Aleksandrov was named a Hero of the Soviet Union and Hero of the People’s Republic of Bulgaria in 1988 and was awarded the Order of the Star Planin in the first degree on the 15th anniversary of his mission to Mir. He was also bestowed the “Merit in Space Exploration” medal by order of the President of the Russian Federation in 2011.

A 16-foot-tall (5-meter) statue titled “Spaceman” was erected in Aleksandrov’s hometown in his honor in 2013. Created by sculptors Doko Dokov and Dimitar Koychev, Aleksandrov’s statue depicts him in his Sokol pressure suit with his arms outstretched tot he sky.

He is survived by his wife, Blagovesta Aleksandrova, and an adult son, Radostin Alexandrov.

“At this difficult moment, I express my most sincere condolences to the family and relatives of Maj. Gen. Alexander Alexandrov,” said Radev. “May his example live on to all who follow the path of knowledge, honor, and service of the Fatherland.”