A writer revealed that the idea of Soviet cosmonauts blasting off into space armed with shotguns and machetes was not, as many believed, a myth (Picture: Wikimedia Commons)

Firing a shotgun inside a thin-walled, oxygen-filled spacecraft is a catastrophically stupid thing to do.

But Russian cosmonauts carried guns regardless – and kept on doing so until 2007.

A writer revealed that the idea of Soviet cosmonauts blasting off into space armed with shotguns and machetes was not, as many believed, a myth.

Russian space travellers carried a convertible shotgun which doubled as an axe and machete as part of a standard kit.

Writer James Simpson recently confirmed that Russian space explorers were carrying weapons until very recently – until 2007, in fact.

Cosmonauts weren’t packing heat ready for a blazing duel with NASA astronauts, though.

The weapons were part of a ‘survival kit’ which was designed to help if the crew’s craft veered off course during landing or take-off.

The shotgun was there to kill bears in case the crew landed in a remote area, Simpson revealed.

It had three barrels, and the weapon also had a sharp blade which could be used as a machete in jungle areas, or as an axe to chop wood.

‘Having a gun inside a thin-walled spacecraft filled with oxygen sounds crazy but the Soviets had their reasons.


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‘Much of Russia is desolate wilderness. A single mishap during descent could strand cosmonauts in the middle of nowhere.’

Russian cosmonauts were armed with the TP-82 shotgun until 2007 – and they still carry a gunless version of the same survival kit.