The first space station assembled and operated by the Soviet Union was Salyut 1.
Salyut 1 launched on 19 April 1971 and became the first space station in orbit. It was a civilian designation for a modified version of the Soviet military orbital-station program. The station had living quarters, scientific equipment and a docking system for crewed spacecraft.
The first crew to reach Salyut 1 arrived aboard Soyuz 10, but docking problems prevented them from entering the station. The Soyuz 11 crew—Georgy Dobrovolsky, Vladislav Volkov and Viktor Patsayev—later entered and spent 23 days aboard, setting a space-endurance record at the time.
The Soyuz 11 crew died during the return journey when a cabin pressure-equalization valve opened prematurely. After the accident, Soviet spacecraft crews began wearing pressure suits during launch and landing. Salyut 1 was deliberately deorbited on 11 October 1971.