Mars Rafikov

2016-09-16T16:22:42Z

Tec15: added Category:Soviet military personnel of the Soviet–Afghan War using HotCat

{{Infobox astronaut
| name = Mars Zakirovich Rafikov
| image =
| type = Cosmonaut
| nationality = [[Soviet Union|Soviet]]
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1933|9|29}}
| birth_place = [[Dzhalal-Abad]], [[Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic]]
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2000|7|23|1933|9|29}}
| death_place = [[Almaty]], [[Kazakhstan]]
| occupation = Jet fighter pilot
| rank = [[Soviet Air Force]]
| selection = [[List of astronauts by selection#1960|Air Force Group 1]]
| space_time =
| missions =
| insignia =
}}

'''Mars Zakirovich Rafikov''' ({{lang-ru|Марс Закирович Рафиков}}, 29 September 1933 – 23 July 2000) was a Soviet [[cosmonaut]] who was dismissed from the [[Soviet space program]] for disciplinary reasons.

Senior Lieutenant Rafikov, age 26, was selected as one of the [[List of astronauts by selection#1960|original 20 cosmonauts]] on March 7, 1960 along with [[Yuri Gagarin]].

On March 24, 1962, Rafikov was dismissed from the cosmonaut corps, officially for "a variety of offenses, including womanizing and 'gallivanting' in Moscow restaurants, and so forth".<ref>Asif Siddiqi, "Sputnik and the Soviet Space Challenge", 2000, p. 374</ref> Other cosmonauts (notably Gagarin) had exhibited similar behavior, but could not be officially disciplined because of their stature and international reputation. Gherman Titov later suggested, though, that the real reason for his dismissal was because he and his wife had divorced.<ref>http://www.cdi.org/russia/johnson/3264.html#4</ref>

He remained in the military, serving as a pilot in the Afghanistan war.<ref>http://www.spacefacts.de/bios/cosmonauts/english/rafikov_mars.htm</ref>

To protect the image of the space program, efforts were made to cover up the reason for Rafikov's dismissal. His image, like that of others who were dismissed, was [[Censorship of images in the Soviet Union|airbrushed out]] of cosmonaut photos. This airbrushing led to speculation about "[[lost cosmonauts]]" even though the actual reasons were often mundane.<ref>http://www.straightdope.com/columns/030117.html</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.vectorsite.net/tamrc_12.html Details of the Soviet training program and launch]
* [http://www.astronautix.com/astros/rafikov.htm Biographical details]
* [http://www.cdi.org/russia/johnson/3264.html#4 Titov recounts about disappearing cosmonauts]
* [http://www.straightdope.com/columns/030117.html Straight Dope entry about lost cosmonauts]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rafikov, Mars Zakirovich}}
[[Category:1933 births]]
[[Category:2000 deaths]]
[[Category:Soviet cosmonauts]]
[[Category:Soviet Air Force officers]]
[[Category:Soviet military personnel of the Soviet–Afghan War]]

{{Astronaut-stub}}
{{Kazakhstan-bio-stub}}
{{Kyrgyzstan-bio-stub}}
{{Russia-bio-stub}}

Vitaly Fen

2016-06-19T07:17:56Z

Tec15: added Category:Soviet people of Korean descent using HotCat

{{Use DMY dates|date=October 2013}}
'''Vitaly Vasilievich Fen''' ({{lang-ru|Виталий Васильевич Фен}}; born c. 1947) is an [[Uzbekistan]]i diplomat who was stationed in [[South Korea]] from 1995 to 2013.

==Career==
Fen began to play a role in relations between South Korea and Uzbekistan as early as 1992, soon after the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union]], when he set up the first of twelve meetings he would ultimately organise between the [[president of South Korea]] and the [[president of Uzbekistan]].<ref name="Trend20130820">{{cite news|url=http://en.trend.az/regions/casia/uzbekistan/2180952.html|title=Uzbek ambassador completes diplomatic mission in South Korea|work=[[Trend News Agency]]|date=2013-08-20|accessdate=2013-10-07}}</ref> He first came to South Korea in 1995 to take up a new position as ''[[chargé d'affaires]]'' of the Uzbekistani embassy in [[Seoul]], and was promoted to ambassador in 1999. By 2007, with the departure of [[El Salvador]]ean ambassador [[Alfredo Ungo]], Fen became the [[dean of the diplomatic corps]] in South Korea.<ref name="KoreaTimes20071118">{{cite news|url=http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/special/2009/05/176_13953.html|last=Kim|first=Se-jeong|title=Dean of Diplomat Corps Talks About His New Duty|work=[[The Korea Times]]|date=2007-11-18|accessdate=2013-10-07}}</ref> He departed from South Korea in August 2013, leaving the position of dean of the diplomatic corps to [[Harun Ismail]] of [[Brunei]].<ref name="Trend20130820"/><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2013/10/176_143862.html|last=Kim|first=Se-jeong|title=New dean of diplomatic corps promises outreach efforts|work=The Korea Times|date=2013-10-07|accessdate=2013-10-07}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Fen is of [[Korean diaspora|Korean descent]]; his grandparents were [[Koryo-saram|Korean immigrants to the Soviet Union]], and settled in [[Vladivostok]] before being [[deportation of Koreans in the Soviet Union|deported in 1937]] to the [[Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic]], where Fen himself was born in the capital [[Tashkent]]. He is married to Lyudmila, who is also of Korean descent. He began studying the [[Korean language]] in 1988, and made his first trip to South Korea in 1989 to attend the [[World Ethnic Korean Festival]].<ref name="KoreaTimes20071118"/>

==References==
{{reflist}}



{{DEFAULTSORT:Fen, Vitaly}}
[[Category:1947 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Ambassadors of Uzbekistan to South Korea]]
[[Category:People from Tashkent]]
[[Category:Koryo-saram]]
[[Category:Uzbekistani people of Korean descent]]
[[Category:Soviet people of Korean descent]]

{{Uzbekistan-bio-stub}}
{{Asia-diplomat-stub}}

Kazakhstan Encyclopedia - User contributions [en]

Mars Rafikov

Vitaly Fen