On the eve of International Space Day, commemorating the 1961 flight of cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, on April 11 Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Roscosmos head Dmitry Bakanov. Bakanov outlined the plans of Roscosmos for expanding the Russian satellite system, important for the purposes of defense and for overall communication both throughout Russia’s vast, 11 time zones and for communications at sea. He noted that Russia now has 364 spacecraft in orbit, 97 of which had been launched the previous year, and 134 during the first quarter of this year.
Bakanov noted that the rocket and space industry employed 165,000 people across around 110 enterprises in 33 regions of the Russian Federation, including 10,000 people who work for the private companies. Roscosmos has also rolled out a consortium of 28 Roscosmos-affiliated universities. The satellite program has been key for Russia, given the attempt by SpaceX to assume hegemony in that arena with 11,000 satellites launched. It was Bakanov’s expertise in this area which was one of the reasons that Putin made him the head of Roscosmos.
Regarding Ukraine’s recent assault on Russia space launch center, he said: “We say space is above politics—yet our so-called friends did everything they could to prevent this launch. There were some serious incidents, including attacks on the space launch center that day, but nevertheless, the joint combat crews of Roscosmos and the Space Forces carried out their mission.”
He said that, during Space Week: “We held more than 1,000 events for dozens of millions of people. Those were educational, cultural, awareness, and sporting events. For example, the Znanie (Knowledge) Society held a Talking of What Matters lesson for 21 million school pupils and college students. More than 12 million Russians watched space films in cinemas. The Space Week has returned the space discourse to our society.”
He said that they were in the process of building three launch pads at the new Vostochny space cosmodrome, and that preparations were already in place for the launch of the Angara heavy-lift vehicle from Vostochny. He also noted the planned deployment of the new Soyuz-5 rocket. Roscosmos also issued application forms for those who wish to become cosmonauts online today.
President Vladimir Putin expressed his satisfaction with the work of Bakanov, the youngest director in the history of Russian space. He asked him: “How long have you been in this role?” Bakanov said: “One year and two months. “ Putin observed: “You clearly know the ropes and I think you have already found your feet in the industry.” And Bakanov replied: “What choice did I have? It is a noble mission, so thank you for the trust. I am doing everything I can to live up to it.”
