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Phạm Tuân | |
|---|---|
 Tuân in 2012 | |
| Born | (1947-02-14)February 14, 1947 (age 78) |
| Status | Retired |
| Nationality | Vietnamese |
| Awards | Hero of the Soviet Union Order of Lenin Hero of the People's Armed Forces Hero of Labor of Vietnam Order of Ho Chi Minh |
| Space career | |
| Vietnam People's Air Force /Intercosmos Research Cosmonaut | |
Previous occupation | Pilot |
| Rank | Lieutenant General, Vietnam People's Air Force |
Time in space | 7d 20h 42m |
| Selection | 1979 Interkosmos Group |
| Missions | Soyuz 37/36 |
Mission insignia |  |
| Retirement | Late 2007 |
Phạm Tuân ([faːm˧ˀ˨ʔtwɜn˨˩] born 14 February 1947) is a retiredVietnamese Air Forcefighter pilot andcosmonaut. He became the firstVietnamese cosmonaut,[1] and the first person of Asian origin to be in space when he launched aboard theSoyuz 37 mission as anInterkosmos research cosmonaut.[2][3][4] He was awarded the titleHero of the Soviet Union.
Phạm Tuân was born in 14 February 1947 inKiến Xương,Thái Bình province innorthern Vietnam.
Initially aInfantry soldier he was recruited into theVietnam People's Air Force (VPAF) in 1965 as a radar mechanic student. Tuân was then selected forpilot training as acommissioned officer, graduating at theKrasnodar Flight School in theSoviet Union as aMiG-17 pilot in 1967, then moved-up for training in theMiG-21, and becoming assigned to the VPAF 910th Air Training Regiment from 1968 to 1969 while participating in developing night-time interception techniques against U.S. air raids, and then attached with the 923rd Fighter Regiment from 1969 to 1970, finally with the 921st Fighter Regiment from 1970 to 1973.[5]
On the nights of 18–27 December 1972, duringOperation Linebacker II (also referred to as the "Christmas Bombings"), then-Major Phạm engagedUSAFStrategic Air Command (SAC)B-52 Stratofortress heavy bombers at least a dozen times. On the 27th, Phạm was able to get close to a B-52 formation at supersonic-speed in his MiG-21MF (#5121),[6] and fire a pair of missiles in the sub-4 km range, visually identifying and reporting that his missile(s) struck the B-52D, causing it to go down in flames over the border ofHòa Bình–Vĩnh Phúc province.[7] This claim, which would be the alleged ‘only’ B-52 downed inair-to-air combat during the war is unclear according to U.S. record, which claims that this B-52 was downed by asurface-to-air missile.[8][9] In a book named "Hà Nội - Điện Biên Phủ trên không" (Hanoi - theBattle of Dien Bien Phu in the air) by Nguyễn Minh Tâm, published byNhà xuất bản Quân đội Nhân dân Việt Nam (Viet Nam People's Army Publishing House), the author affirms that Phạm Tuân shot down the B-52 with twoK-13 air-to-air missiles within a range of 4 kilometers.[10]
"My plane was only about 10km away from the B-52 bombers when I had detected them. Jettisoning my external (fuel) tank, I've immediately asked for an order to attack (fromGCI). Even though I was approaching the bombers beyond thesound-barrier, I felt like time is moving very slowly. The enemy's escort group ofF-4 fighters had not detected us. Just to be certain, I continued to shorten the distance, within the 3km range and launched the missiles, and as I was escaping, I clearly saw the moments both missiles exploding against the B-52, now going down in flames... the F-4s would certainly be after me now, but I've escaped."
Tuân said that because the B-52 was equipped with a large number of infrared decoys, he had to get close to the target (within 2-3 kilometers) in order to ensure the bomber's destruction, though the minimum safe range for launching missiles is at least 8 kilometers.[13] Numerous air-to-air combat victory claims by the MiG pilots of the VPAF against U.S. combat aircraft have been counter-claimed as losses tosurface-to-air missiles oranti-aircraft artillery, as it's considered "less embarrassing" than losing to an enemy pilot.[14]
In 1973, Tuân was granted the title ofHero of the People's Armed Forces in Vietnam. In 1980, Tuân was awarded the "Vietnam Labor Hero" distinction. In 1989, Tuân was given the position of "Deputy Commander forPolitical Affairs" within theVietnam People's Air Force. He was promoted to the rank ofLieutenant General in 1999. During the year 2000, Tuan was the position of "Director of the General Department of Defense Industry". He eventually retired from government positions at the end of 2007.[15]
Tuân received numerous distinctions for his service, including theOrder of Ho Chi Minh. He also was awarded theOrder of Lenin and the rare honor of being one of the few foreigners to receive the titleHero of the Soviet Union.
Tuân reached the rank oflieutenant colonel in the VPAF before eventually training to be a research cosmonaut in the joint USSR-Vietnamese space program. Tuân was initially sent to the USSR to train as a radar engineer.[16] There was a shortage of eligible Vietnamese pilots due to most of the applicants not passing the fitness tests, so Tuân was pressured into flight training. Due to this, Tuân was one of three Vietnamese pilots and engineers to be selected by the Soviet Union.[17] On 1 April 1979, he was selected as a member of the sixth international crew for theInterkosmos program. His backup wasBùi Thanh Liêm. Tuân, along withSoviet cosmonautViktor Gorbatko, was launched fromBaikonur Cosmodrome on 23 July 1980, on board theSoyuz 37 mission to theSalyut 6space station. Tuân was informed only three days prior that he would be the main pilot of the Soyuz 37.
Before the flight a joint Bulgarian – Soviet mission had been cancelled. Tuân was worried that his voyage would share the same fate. During his flight aboard the Soyuz 37, there were technical issues regarding the Soyuz 3's engine system. Tuân was commanded to shut down all systems and inform Command of the situation. After this, Command restored the engine to normal and the mission continued.[15]
During his time in orbit, Tuân performed experiments on themelting of mineral samples inmicrogravity. He also carried out plant experiments onazolla and photographed Vietnam from orbit formapping purposes. Tuân was in space for 7 days, 20 hours, and 42 minutes, completing 142orbits, and returned to Earth on 31 July 1980.
Tuân brought several things with him on the Soyuz 37 flight. These included pictures of former PresidentHồ Chí Minh and General SecretaryLê Duẩn, as well as Hồ Chí Minh's will andVietnamese flags. He wanted to stamp all of these at the space station and bring it back to Earth.
Tuân has stated that his personal relationship with his Russian friends has continued to this day. Every year, he travels long distances to meet up with his fellow Russian cosmonauts.
Tuân is married and has two children. He is now a retired Lieutenant General, director of the General Department of Defense Industry of theMinistry of Defence, and is a non-elected member of theNational Assembly of Vietnam.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.Photograph of the MIG-21MF (#5121) fighter jet piloted by Pham Tuan, used in the shooting-down of the B-52 on the night of December 27, 1972. (Photo: Nguyen Duong).
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