April 12 – World Aviation and Cosmonautics Day

On April 12, 1961, the world's first spacecraft, the Vostok satellite, with a person on board, was launched into earth orbit. The launch of the world's first manned spacecraft was led by Sergei Korolev, Anatoly Kirillov, and Leonid Voskresensky.

The pilot-cosmonaut of the ship was a citizen of the Soviet Union, communist, pilot, senior lieutenant Yuri Alekseevich Gagarin. The launch of the multi-stage space rocket took place from the Soviet Baikonur cosmodrome at 9:07 am Moscow time, and after gaining speed and separating from the last stage of the launch vehicle, the ship began a free flight in orbit around the Earth.

After flying around the globe, 108 minutes from the moment of launch, the braking propulsion system was turned on and the satellite spacecraft began to descend from orbit for landing. At 10:55 a.m. Moscow time, the cosmonaut landed in a given area on arable land near the bank of the Volga near the village of Smelovka, Ternovsky district, Saratov region.

The initiative to establish Cosmonautics Day in the Soviet Union was taken by Yuri Gagarin's backup during the first human space flight - pilot cosmonaut German Titov. He also proposed, on behalf of the USSR government, to appeal to the UN with the idea of organizing World Cosmonautics Day.

In November 1968, at the 61st General Conference of the International Aeronautical Federation, it was decided to celebrate April 12 as World Aviation and Space Day. The celebration of this day was confirmed by the decision of the Council of the International Aeronautical Federation, adopted on April 30, 1969, on the proposal of the USSR Aviation Sports Federation.

In the years since Yuri Gagarin's first flight, about 500 people from more than 40 countries have been in space.

Space exploration continues today.

In the photo, a group of installers of the SMIS complex "Angara" led by the head of special works of JSC "IC GOChS "BASIS" I.Yu. Ermatov.
The SMIS project of the Angara complex was developed by ZAO IC GOChS BASIS under the leadership of D.A. Artamonov.