Soviet military commander (1902-1960) who served as Chief Marshal of the Artillery in the Soviet Armed Forces. He was killed in an explosion at Baikonur Cosmodrome during the eponymous Nedelin catastrophe, when a prototype of the Soviet ICBM R-16 exploded while being prepared for a test. Untranslated DS in Cyrillic, one page both sides, 8 x 12, August 31, 1942. Official document signed at the conclusion in blue pencil by Nedelin. In fine condition, with wear to the top edge. Nedelin inadvertently played a key role in ushering in the Space Age by concluding that rockets were the ideal means to deliver a nuclear warhead to the United States instead of bombers, and ordered Sergei Korolev to develop the massive R-7 ICBM capable of carrying a large warhead to the United States. This rocket and its derivatives, while never an effective ICBM, was powerful enough to launch Sputnik.
