Memorial plaque in memory of the implementation of the flight of the stratostat with the crew
In 1934, a height record was set on the stratospheric balloon «Osoaviakhim-1» («OAH-1»). «OAH-1» managed to reach a height of 22 kilometers above sea level for the first time in the world. However, after that, an accident happened: the stratostat froze and collapsed to the ground; all crew members were killed. According to the official conclusion, the cause of the stratospheric balloon disaster was exceeding the maximum safe flight altitude for this device (about 20.5 km). Due to overheating by the solar heat of the shell, the volume of gas was discharged, which then affected the descent speed. The descent was too fast, the speed of the fall became critical, and at an altitude of about 2 km, the gondola broke away from the balloon. Additional factors that influenced the outcome of the flight were the weak attachment of the gondola, entanglement of the valve rope and difficult flight conditions. The Commission also found that the impact of the Osoaviakhim-1 gondola on the ground occurred at 16:23. All members of the crew of OAH-1 were posthumously awarded the Order of Lenin. There is the following inscription on the memorial plaque: «In this part of Filevsky Park in 1925-1942, a separate aeronautical test division was located, whose forces prepared and launched high-altitude stratostats. September 30, 1933 Stratostat (USSR 1) from Khodynka airfield with crew: G.A. Prokofiev, K.D. Godunov, E.K. Birnbaum, flight altitude record of 18800 meters. January 30, 1934 stratostat (OSOAVIAKHIM – 1) from the airfield of the division with the crew: P.F. Fedoseenko, A.B. Vasenko, I.D. Usykin. The flight record is 22,000 meters. July 26, 1935 Stratostat (USSR 1BIS) from the airfield of the division with the crew: K.I. Zille, A.B. Verigo, Yu.G. Prilutsky. The flight altitude is 16,000 meters. These flights were the first steps towards the conquest of outer space».
Address: Moscow, Bolshaya Filevskaya str., 32
