VOSTOK 5 & 6 PIN

1980s commemorative Soviet metal pin of Vostok 5 and 6 (Восток-5, Восток-6). It was a joint mission of the Soviet space program. 

After his successful selection as a cosmonaut, Valery Bykovsky was launched into orbit aboard the Vostok 5 mission, which lasted from 14-19 June 1963. The spacecraft entered a lower-than-expected orbit. And while the craft was in good technical shape, it become apparent a few days into the mission that it was losing altitude faster than expected. To prevent an uncontrolled re-entry, Soviet officials decided to curtail the flight and bring Bykovsky back to Earth. Although it has long since been surpassed in duration by missions carrying more than one crew member, it remains the longest flight by a single person by orbiting Earth 81 times.

Bykovsky was also the chief of cosmonaut training for the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project.

Cosmonaunt for Vostok 6
Valentina Tereshkova (The first woman in space)

Valentina Tereshkova was selected in May 1963 to fly Vostok 6, a joint mission with Vostok 5. Tereshkova was selected not just because of her physical and academic qualifications but also because she had the right background that the Soviets wanted to present to the world. She grew up working on a farm, currently worked in a textile factory, and was single with a good work ethic.

After the mission, Tereshkova never flew again — to space or otherwise — because of her importance to the state, especially after Gagarin was killed in a training accident in 1969. She traveled the world in carefully scheduled tours, with the Soviets displaying their "ordinary" hero to the world. She is now the last person alive to have flown in a Vostok.

Images

• Stamp of Valery Bykovsky and Valentina Tereshkova in 1963 (picture 4)
• Valery Bykovsky (picture 5-7)
• Valentina Tereshkova (picture 8-10)
• Valery Bykovsky with Valentina Tereshkova and Yuri Gagarin (picture 11)

VINTAGE CONDITION
excellent