Béla Magyari facts for kids
Béla Magyari (born August 8, 1949 – died April 23, 2018) was a brave colonel in the Hungarian Air Force. He was a pilot who trained to become an astronaut. He was also the backup for the first Hungarian person in space!
Quick facts for kids
Béla Magyari
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| Born | August 8, 1949 Kiskunfélegyháza, Hungary
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| Died | April 23, 2018 |
| Nationality | Hungarian |
| Occupation | Pilot |
| Space career | |
| Interkosmos Cosmonaut | |
| Rank | Brigadier General, Hungarian Air Force |
Contents
Early Life and Becoming a Pilot
Béla Magyari loved flying from a young age. He started flying gliders when he was just 15 years old! This was at a flying club in his hometown, Kiskunfélegyháza.
In 1966, he went to the Kilián György Aviation Technical College. There, he began to fly planes with engines. He continued his studies at an aviation officer college in the Soviet Union. In 1972, he finished his studies with excellent grades.
After college, Béla became a lieutenant in the Hungarian Air Force. He was a pilot in a fighter squadron. He flew MiG-21 planes, which are very fast jets! He became a top-class fighter pilot by 1980. He was allowed to fly supersonic planes until 1987.
Training for Space: The Interkosmos Program
The Interkosmos program was a special project. It allowed people from different countries to train and go to space with the Soviet Union. In 1977, Hungary started looking for pilots to become astronauts.
Béla Magyari was one of four pilots chosen for special tests. After these tests, only two pilots remained: Béla and Bertalan Farkas. They both went to the Gagarin Space Training Centre. This is where astronauts learn everything they need to know about space travel. They trained with their Soviet teammates from 1978 to 1980.
Béla Magyari trained with a Soviet commander named Vladimir Dzhanyibekov. Both Hungarian pilots did very well in their training. In the end, the Hungarian government chose Bertalan Farkas to fly into space. He flew on the Soyuz 36 spacecraft. Béla Magyari was his backup. This meant he was ready to go if anything happened to Bertalan.
After the space mission, Béla was promoted to major. He also received a special award for his hard work.
Life After Space Training
Béla Magyari continued his education. In 1981, he studied engineering at the Budapest University of Technology. Later, he earned a doctorate degree. His research was about how materials behave in space.
In the early 1990s, he worked for the government. He helped manage the departure of Soviet forces from Hungary. This included checking the airfields they left behind. In 1995, he became a colonel.
He also served in other important roles. In 1998, he worked in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He helped survey military bases there. He retired from the military in 2001.
After retiring, Béla Magyari became the president of the Hungarian Astronautical Society. He also worked for the Hungarian Space Research Office. He passed away in 2018. His ashes were scattered from a plane over the airport where he first learned to fly.
Awards and Honors
- Order of the Flag of the Hungarian People's Republic with laurel wreath (1980)
- Astronaut of the Hungarian People's Republic (1980)
- MHSZ Gold Medal for Outstanding Work (1981)
- Honorary citizen of Kiskunfélegyháza
In Memory of Béla Magyari
Many things have been done to remember Béla Magyari:
- A film called "The trained astronaut: Béla Magyari" was made in 1979.
- Memorial plaques have been placed in different locations.
- A special exhibition was held at the Kiskun Museum in 2019.
- A MiG-21 training aircraft was named after him in 2021.
