1951–2018
Leonid Kadeniuk
First astronaut of independent Ukraine
He was picked from 9,000 candidates to fly the Soviet Buran, but he reached space on an American shuttle. In 1997 this test pilot from Chernivtsi Oblast became the first astronaut of independent Ukraine.
Key accomplishments
- Test cosmonaut in the Soviet Buran reusable spacecraft program; flew more than 50 types and variants of aircraft
- First astronaut of independent Ukraine: flight on the Space Shuttle Columbia (mission STS-87), 19 November - 5 December 1997
- A joint Ukrainian-American biological experiment with three plant species in weightlessness
- Major general (1998); Hero of Ukraine (1999)
- Member of the Verkhovna Rada, 4th convocation (2002–2006); Candidate of Technical Sciences (2006)
How did a village boy from Chernivtsi Oblast end up on the Shuttle?
Leonid Kadeniuk was born in 1951 in the village of Klishkivtsi in Chernivtsi Oblast, into a family of teachers. He was ten when news of Yuri Gagarin’s flight went around the world, and from then on he dreamed of space. In 1971 he graduated from the Chernihiv military flight school and spent several years teaching cadets to fly.
One in 9,000
Kadeniuk was later picked from 9,000 candidates to train for the Soviet reusable spacecraft Buran. He became a test pilot and a test cosmonaut, tested the Su-27, MiG-29 and MiG-31 fighters, and flew more than 50 types of aircraft in all.
In 1995 he joined the astronaut group of the National Space Agency of Ukraine. From 19 November to 5 December 1997 he flew on the US Space Shuttle Columbia with an international crew. On board he ran a joint Ukrainian-American experiment with three plant species: scientists wanted to know how weightlessness affects photosynthesis, fertilization and the growth of the embryo.
After the flight
Kadeniuk became a major general, an adviser to the President on aviation and space, and in 2002–2006 a member of parliament. In 1999 he was made a Hero of Ukraine. He died suddenly on 31 January 2018 in Kyiv, during a morning run. The same year, Chernivtsi airport was named after him.
Why it matters today
Kadeniuk’s flight showed that independent Ukraine could be an equal partner in space research. And for many people he became proof that a childhood dream of space can come true.
