45 years ago, October 14, 1976, a pilot ship “Soyuz-23” started from the Baikonur cosmodrome. His crew consisted of two people – commander Vyacheslav Zudov and the flight engineer Valery Christmas. The flight program provided for the work on board the Salute-5 orbital station, however, due to the failure of the “needle” system, the ship docking with the station in automatic mode was not possible.
The execution of manual mooring was possible from 1200 meters by signal lights, but the ship was at a distance of more than two kilometers. It was necessary to produce a landing in a short time – two days of flight passed, and the regeneration cartridges of the life support system of the spacecraft had a three-day resource. Landing spent on the backup option at night on the third day.
On October 16, 1976, the ship made a landing with a flight from an estimated point by 121 kilometer. The descent apparatus was in the water of Lake Tengiz in Kazakhstan. Vyacheslav Zudov and Valery Christmas, waiting for the rescuers, changed from the spacers in the wetsuit inside the descent apparatus.
Although the excitement of the lake was small, about 2-3 points, the crew was in a truly critical situation: there was a depressurization of the descent apparatus, and the ice water began to flow inside the ship. It threatened not only fast flooding, but also a short circuit of electricians on board. The revealed spare parachute of the descent apparatus increased the ship’s roll and began to pull it to the bottom. The output hatch was in the water, and the evacuation through it was impossible.
When trying to open hatch, astronauts would face an irresistible obstacle – a powerful flow of icy water, which would swell inside the ship. The supply of intake air, the resources of the oxygen regeneration system were on the outcome, and after a couple of hours the crew appeared the first signs of oxygen starvation and choking.
The divers descended to the space ship was convinced that the evacuation of cosmonauts was impossible at the prevailing conditions. Then it was decided to tow the flooded descent apparatus. From the helicopter to it was extended and fastened. The helicopter rose into the air and slowly moved forward, with difficulty pulling down the descent apparatus from the water. The crew was saved.
Dramatic events on October 16, 1976 demanded authentic courage, self-control and professionalism not only from the crew of the spacecraft, but also from rescuers who were forced to quickly make enough risky decisions that life saved astronauts. Since then, maritime training for astronauts has become a mandatory discipline.