Russians Deny Cosmonaut Coverup

Investigators insisted Monday that the former Soviet government did not cover up the truth about the death of one of the Soviet Union's greatest heroes: Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space.

Last Friday marked the 30th anniversary of the day Gagarin crashed his fighter jet, nearly seven years after he became the first person to orbit the Earth. A four-member government investigation commission told a news conference that the truth wasn't covered up, just elusive.

"There was nothing to hide," said Ivan Rubtsov, former head of the air force's flight safety department.

Gagarin became one of the Soviet Union's greatest idols as well as a poster boy for the communist state's proclaimed superiority over the West. His sudden death caused deep national grief, and the anniversary continues to be remembered each year.

Soon after the tragedy, rumors began to circulate: Some whispered the KGB was responsible, while others suggested Gagarin had been flying drunk. Soviet-era secrecy only fueled the rumor mill.

"Just because there isn't a lot of information doesn't mean you should start fantasizing," said Alexander Shcherbakov, a celebrated test pilot who served on the commission.

Investigators spent months trying to collect evidence that would shed light on the cause of the crash, but they turned up little.

What they do know is that Gagarin and flight instructor Vladimir Seryogin took off on March 27, 1968, for a training flight in a 12-year-old MiG-15 fighter jet. They completed their tests and were heading back to the air base when the plane went into a spin at low altitude. The crew failed to pull out of it before the aircraft crashed to the ground.

The commission could not reach a conclusion about the cause of the accident, but it did exclude a number of possibilities, the members said. Those include engine failure, explosion, and that Gagarin and Seryogin were inebriated.

They concluded it was most likely that Gagarin made a sharp turn to avoid a collision with a weather balloon, following the discovery of balloon fragments in the area.

Other theories the members considered less likely were that Gagarin had swerved to avoid another aircraft or that his jet ran into the turbulent wake of a passing plane.

Stepan Mikoyan, a former air force general, said he and other commission members believe the time has come to deflate the rumors by making public the 29 volumes of material collected by investigators.

"That was our manner then, to keep things secret," Mikoyan said, noting that much of the material is still considered a national security secret. "As far as I'm concerned, (the files) should be opened. But that's not our decision."

By Maura Reynolds
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