I was just rereading this thread, and there's something that I either didn't know yet when I wrote the post above, or neglected to include for some reason:

Before launch, Komarov demanded that his remains be displayed in an open casket at the state funeral he knew he would soon receive, so that the bureaucrats in Moscow--whom he knew would all be required by Party protocol to attend--could not avoid bearing witness to what they had done to him. Somewhat astonishingly, the people responsible for his funeral did as he asked.

I've seen footage of the funeral in a documentary about the Soviet space program, and it would've been jake if the filmmakers had included a warning before they showed it... but they did not. Given the circumstances of the crash, you wouldn't think there would have been anything recognizable left of him, but you would be wrong. I would advise you not to go find that footage.

Helluva statement for the man to make, though. When Komarov objected to the mission timetable at the meeting where it was announced, one of those same Party flunkies called him a coward. I bet I know which one of them left the room first at the funeral.

--G.
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Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
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