Greorgy Grechho
© Sergey Mamontov / SputnikPilot-cosmonaut Georgy Grechko
A retired cosmonaut and twice Hero of the Soviet Union, Georgy Grechko, who made three journeys into space - one of which was a record - died in Moscow at the age of 85, his daughter confirmed to reporters.

The cosmonaut died on Saturday morning "because of age and a vast number of chronic illnesses," his daughter Olga told TASS.

Grechko's wife Lyudmila was at his side when he passed away.

On Friday, he was hospitalized with suspected microinfarct, TASS reports, citing sources.


Georgy Grechko made three space flights aboard the Soyuz 17, Soyuz 26, and Soyuz T-14 spacecraft in 1975, 1978, and 1985 respectively. He also has a spacewalk among his achievements.

Soviet cosmonauts
© Alexander Mokletsov / SputnikSoyuz-17 crew Alexei Gubarev (crew commander), left and Flight Engineer Georgiy Grechko in the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center.
Grechko's second space flight lasted more than three months from December 10, 1977 to March 16, 1978, settingwhat was then a record for the longest time in space. He spent more than 134 days away from Earth during his career.

In the 1960s, he trained for a flight to the Moon along with other Soviet cosmonauts, but the mission was suspended following America's successful landing.


Born in 1931 in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg), he received multiple national and international honors and awards, including the title Hero of the Soviet Union - the country's highest distinction at that time.

Grechko advocated international cooperation in space, including a mission to Mars. "There won't be Russian, European, American and Chinese spacecraft flying separately to Mars; this will be an international project," - he told RT back in 2014, when NASA halted cooperation with Russia.