Oldřich Pelčák (2 November 1943 – 7 October 2023) was a Czech

cosmonaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a List of human spaceflight programs, human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spa ...

and engineer. He graduated from

Gagarin Air Force Academy Gagarin Air Force Academy () is a Russian military aviation academy located in Monino, Moscow Oblast. The academy prepares high-ranking military personnel for the Russian Aerospace Forces. Among the academy alumni are around 700 Heroes of th ...

. In 1976, Pelčák was selected as backup for fellow Czech

Vladimír Remek Vladimír Remek (born 26 September 1948) is a Czech politician and diplomat, as well as a former cosmonaut and military pilot. He flew aboard Soyuz 28 from 2 to 10 March 1978, becoming the first and only Czechoslovak in space. As the first c ...

for the

Soyuz 28 Soyuz 28 (, ''Union 28'') was a March 1978 Soviet crewed mission to the orbiting Salyut 6 space station. It was the fourth mission to the station, the third successful docking, and the second visit to the resident crew launched in Soyuz 26. Co ...

mission. Remek was the first man in space who was neither American nor

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. Pelčák, who did not fly in space, died on 7 October 2023, at the age of 79.

References

External links

Čtvrtstoletí po letu Vladimír Remka (Czech Radio)
1943 births 2023 deaths People from Zlín Czechoslovak cosmonauts Czechoslovak Air Force officers Czech cosmonauts and astronauts {{CzechRepublic-bio-stub