BEREGOVOI OUT OF AIRCRAFT AND ALONG CARPET; BEREGOVOI REPORTING AND EMBRACING SOVIET LEADERS; BEREGOVOI AND ESCORT DRIVING THROUGH CITY; BEREGOVOI RECEIVING AWARDS (NATURAL SOUND).




Initials JSU/EURO-TELE EX TSS/MR/OS



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Background: SOVIET COSMONAUT GEORGY BEREGOVOI ARRIVED IN MOSCOW TODAY (FRIDAY) TO A RED-CARPET WELCOME AND WAS IMMEDIATELY MADE AN AIR FORCE MAJOR-GENERAL AND AWARDED THE ORDER OF LENIN.

BEAMING KREMLIN LEADERS WERE AT THE V.I.P. VNUKOVO AIRPORT TO CONGRATULATE THE 47-YEAR-OLD FORMER TEST PILOT WHEN HE FLEW IN FROM THE CENTRAL ASIAN COSMODROME TO ATTEND A KREMLIN RALLY DEDICATED TO HIS FOUR-DAY FLIGHT AROUND THE EARTH IN SOYUZ-3 WHICH ENDED ONLY TWO DAYS AGO.

SOVIET PARTY CHIEF LEONID BREZHNEV ANNOUNCED THE AWARDS AT THE HOUR-LONG RALLY, ATTENDED BY SONE 5,000 PEOPLE, IN THE KREMLIN'S MODERN PALACE OF CONGRESSES.

THE FORMER COLONEL WHO THUS BECAME THE SOVIET UNION'S HIGHEST RANKING COSMONAUT, WAS ALSO GIVEN A SECOND "HERO OF THE SOVIET UNION" GOLD STAR. HE WON THE FIRST FOR SECOND WORLD WAR FLYING EXPLOITS.

AT THE AIRPORT CEREMONY THE TALL, DARK-HAIRED SPACEMAN STEPPED ALONG FROM THE JET AIRLINER AND WALKED ACROSS A 100-YARD (90 METRE) STRETCH OF RED CARPET TO REPORT TO MR. BREZHNEV, PREMIER ALEXI KOSYGIN AND PRESIDENT NIKOLAI PODGORNY ON THE SUCCESS OF HIS FLIGHT.

THE MASS AIRPORT WELCOME FOR THE COSMONAUT WAS THE FIRST IN MOSCOW SINCE MARCH 1965 WHEN COLONELS ALEXEI LEONOV AND PAVEL BELYAYEV RETURNED FROM A MISSION DURING WHICH LEONOV BECAME THE FIRST MAN TO WALK IN SPACE.

THE OFFICIAL NEWS AGENCY TSS ANNOUNCED TODAY THAT THE SOVIET UNION HAD LAUNCHED THEIR THIRD UNMANNED COSMOS SATELLITE IN TWO DAYS BUT SAID IT HAD IMMEDIATELY COMPLETED ITS PROGRAMME OF RESEARCH.