Bertalan Farkas
Bertalan Farkas is a Hungarian military pilot, Intercosmos research cosmonaut, and the first Hungarian citizen to fly in space. His Soyuz 36 mission made Hungary one of the Soviet bloc nations represented aboard Salyut 6.
- Born
- August 2, 1949
- Died
- N/A
- Birthplace
- Gyulahaza, Szabolcs-Szatmar-Bereg County,Hungary
Flights
1
Spacewalks
N/A
EVA time
N/A
In space
7 days, 20 hours, 45 minutes
Bio
Farkas entered military aviation after school and trained in Hungary and the Soviet Union. Before his spaceflight he served as a Hungarian Air Force fighter pilot, flying aircraft such as the MiG-21, and later reached brigadier general rank.
Selected through Intercosmos in 1978, he launched with Valery Kubasov on Soyuz 36 in May 1980. The crew docked with Salyut 6, exchanged spacecraft with the resident crew, and returned to Earth aboard Soyuz 35.
During the mission, Farkas helped conduct Hungarian scientific experiments, including the Pille radiation-dosimetry work. After flight he remained a public figure in Hungarian aviation, diplomacy, and space history.