Vladimir Aksyonov was a USSR pilot-cosmonaut who took part in the Soyuz-22 flight as a flight engineer. The USSR had the most rigorous selection process and training for individuals entering the space industry, which made his statements particularly credible.
In his interviews with journalists, Aksyonov related two mysterious phenomena that he experienced during his astronaut career.
One of these incidents occurred aboard the Soyuz T-2 spacecraft in 1980. Aksyonov piloted a unique device, the first in the USSR to be controlled by an on-board computer. During the flight, several instruments, including the onboard computer, malfunctioned, requiring manual docking – a task never before performed by a cosmonaut.
It is crucial to note that any space emergency carries incredible risks. Specialists may panic and take wrong actions, further worsening an already precarious situation. Aksyonov claimed that during this critical moment he heard the voice of an unknown man.
Surprisingly, he received instructions about the algorithm of actions not through his ears, but directly to his brain. The information was sent directly to his mind, a phenomenon the flight engineer could not explain.
“While approaching the orbital station, the commander Yuri Malyshev, who controlled the spacecraft, could not reach the calculated trajectory for docking,” Aksyonov said later. — The ship’s energy reserves for maneuvers are limited. There was, as they say, nothing left. If another correction had failed, we would have flown past the station and returned to Earth without completing the mission.
“I could not assist in any way, as control of the ship is the exclusive prerogative of the commander. As a flight engineer, all I could do was quietly worry as I sat in the seat next to me. Suddenly, at some point, a command sounded in my head: “Take control!” When I later analyzed what happened, I still couldn’t accurately determine whether it was someone’s voice or not.
“I simply perceived someone else’s mental order, which for some reason I could not ignore. And what is completely surprising is that the commander, without any objection, handed over control of the ship to me. He then said that he had not heard any orders, but only suddenly realized that he had to behave in this way, even though this was against all instructions.
“I did not lose consciousness any further, but I seemed to be in a kind of trance and obediently followed the commands that came into my head. Only thanks to them could the docking be carried out successfully.”
Upon returning to Earth, Aksyonov shared his experiences with management and colleagues, but his incredible story was met with skepticism. People mentioned a changed perception during a critical situation as a possible explanation.
Aksyonov’s colleagues Valery Ryumin and Leonid Popov, who were with him on board, confirmed the story. They said that they had not provided the details at that time and that the connection to the control center had been lost.
Regardless, the astronaut remained puzzled by the inexplicable incident. In retirement he attended the event several times, but unfortunately he was never able to unravel the mystery of what happened in 1980.
The second incident, which Vladimir Aksyonov also cannot explain, occurred in 1992 on Earth. One day he drove to his country house in a Moskvich. The car functioned well, but as with everything at that time, there were occasional malfunctions.
When crossing the railway line the car stopped. At that moment a speeding train appeared from the bend about 50 meters away. Within a second or two the car would crash into the car. Even if the driver tried to open the door and get out of the car, he still wouldn’t have time.
But Aksenov didn’t even try. Instead, he unplugged it, put the ignition key back in, and gently pressed the starter. The engine started immediately and the car derailed when the speeding electric train was already a few meters away.
Moreover, the carriages, as it seemed to Aksenov, floated in front of him, as if in a slow motion film. Moreover, he could see the chalk-white face of the driver, who didn’t even have time to brake because the car was too close at the intersection.
No matter how many times he turned to his famous colleagues, physicists and engineers, everyone answered him that this simply could not happen.
It is believed that time always flows at the same speed, which neither nature nor man can change. However, there are many cases where it seems to stop. At least, that’s how it seems to someone in such situations.
As an example, we can cite the stories of frontline soldiers about how they survived only because they saw bullets and grenades flying towards them and managed to take cover.
At first glance, this is impossible, because the human eye is unable to perceive objects moving at such a speed. But you can’t help but believe the storytellers.
After all, there were often witnesses of a soldier suddenly diving to the bottom of a trench and the next second a bullet or shrapnel pierced the parapet exactly where his head had just been.
As for the voices in Earth’s orbit, space has also been studied extremely superficially in terms of its impact on the brain. Returning astronauts often report hearing strange music or voices.
Both phenomena that Vladimir Aksenov talked about are real and poorly studied, so today only few can explain the nature of these events.