Vakhtang Dmitrievich Vachnadze

He was born on June 20, 1929, at Bobruisk, Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic.
Graduated from Moscow Aviation Institute, mechanical engineer (1953). Candidate of Science, Engineering (1991).
1953-1964 - foreman, assistant shop manager and head of engineering office, deputy shop manager, deputy head of production, shop manager of Plant 88.
1964-1966 - deputy chief engineer - head of production of Plant 88 (Kaliningrad, Moscow region).
1966-1974 - first deputy director of the plant - chief engineer of Eperimental Machine-building Plant (ZEM) (Kaliningrad, Moscow region).
1974-1977 - head of the 3rd General Directorate, member of the collegium of the Ministry of General Machine-buildig of the USSR (Moscow).
1977-1991 - general director of NPO Energia (Kaliningrad, Moscow region).
1991-1992 - general director of Commercial and Technical Center of cosmonautics at Prime Design Bureau of NPO Energia (Kaliningrad, Moscow region).
Since 1992 - scientific consultant of S.P. Korolev RSC Energia (Korolev, Moscow region).
He was directly involved in setting up production, developing manufacturing processes for our country's first long-range ballistic missiles and launch vehicles, our country's first unmanned spacecraft and satellites, space systems under programs of manned spacecraft Vostok, Voskhod, Soyuz, lunar programs L1 and N1-L3, programs of orbital stations Salyut, Mir, space upper stages Block D and DM, cargo spacecraft Progress. He was in charge of work on the development of reusable space system Energia-Buran. He organized serial production of consumer goods at ZEM.
Winner of the Lenin Prize (1960) and State Prize of the USSR (1989). He was awarded the orders of Badge of Honor (1956), of Red Banner of Labor (1957), of Lenin (1965), and medals. Honorary citizen of the town of Korolev (2003).