The Nedelin Catastrophe


On October 24, 1960, the so-called "Nedelin catastrophe" took place in the Soviet space center Baikonur!

It is the deadliest missile accident in history. At least 129 people (according to other sources significantly more) die.

The accident happened during a test of the "R-16" missile, the Soviet Union's first truly intercontinental ballistic missile...:

The tests are being carried out under enormous time pressure, as the state and party leadership has ordered that the new "R-16" be reported as ready for use by the anniversary of the October Revolution (November 7th according to the new calendar) and that the rocket be handed over exactly on the anniversary for propaganda reasons start!

The main person responsible, USSR Marshal of Artillery Mitrofan Nedelin...



...is responsible for the fact that numerous safety regulations are ignored or circumvented on his direct orders.

The launch preparations are initially canceled on October 23 due to problems with the electronics, but must be resumed on Nedelin's orders.

The launch is scheduled for October 24 at 7:30 p.m. Presumably to allay and put pressure on his subordinates' legitimate safety concerns about a fuel leak, Nedelin demonstratively placed himself on a chair eight meters from the rocket at around 6:40 p.m. on October 24.

Here the rocket just before the explosion; Nedelin was probably sitting next to the truck on the left...:



This forced other military personnel and technicians (corpse obedience!) to leave the safe bunker and stand next to it.

A catastrophe occurs during the launch attempt, because the extremely aggressive nitric acid contained in the tanks explodes and the rocket's tanks are torn to shreds...





Marshal Nedelin later found only the remains of his order "Hero of the Soviet Union" and parts of his uniform.

Among the fatalities are, in addition to Nedelin, well-known scientists, Deputy Chairman of the USSR State Committee on Defense Engineering Lev Archipowitsch Grishin...



... and Deputy Commander of the launch site Akelsandr Nossow..:



The deaths of so many specialists further delay the missile program.

At the site of the catastrophe, a memorial commemorates the dead....: