1971 in the Soviet Union

The following lists events that happened during 1971 in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

Incumbents

General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union: Leonid Brezhnev{{cite book | author = Chubarov, Alexander | year = 2003 | title = Russia's Bitter Path to Modernity: A History of the Soviet and post-Soviet Eras | publisher = Continuum International Publishing Group | isbn = 978-0826413505 | ref = CITEREFChubarov2003 | url = https://archive.org/details/russiasbitterpat0000chub | page=60}}
Premier of the Soviet Union: Nikolai Bulganin
Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR: Mikhail Yasnov

January 1 — Veronika Mavrikievna and Avdotya Nikitichna, a comic variety duet of actors, appear in the telecast 'Terem-Teremok'.[https://archive.today/20120721153009/http://www.1tv.ru/owa/win/ort5_shed.shed?p_shed_title_id=98617&p_date=27.12.2005&Inzone=0 «Звёзды эфира». Вероника Маврикиевна и Авдотья Никитична]

April 19 — The Soviet Union launches Salyut 1."Soviet Sends Another Space Vehicle Into Orbit", The New York Times, April 19, 1971, p4

February 8 — Dmitry Nelyubin, track cyclist (d. 2005)
February 27 — Zaal Udumashvili, Georgian politician
April 3 — Anastasia Zavorotnyuk, Russian actress and television presenter (d. 2024)
April 21 — Valentin Morkov, Russian professional football coach and a former player
July 22 — Mikheil Kavelashvili, 6th President of Georgia
August 5 — Valdis Dombrovskis, 20th Prime Minister of Latvia
September 1 — Gennady Bachinsky, Russian TV and radio host (d. 2008)
December 15 — Vasily Aleksanyan, Russian lawyer and a former Executive Vice President of Yukos oil company (d. 2011)
December 25 — Vladislav Galkin, Russian actor (d. 2010)

January 10 — Nadezhda Peshkova, artist (b. 1901)
January 31 — Viktor Zhirmunsky, literary historian and linguist (b. 1891)
April 2 — Vladimir Krinsky, artist and architect (b. 1890)
April 12 — Igor Tamm, physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1895)
April 29 — Nikolai Barabashov, Ukrainian astronomer (b. 1894)
June 18 — Vladimir Biryukov, lexicographer (b. 1888)
June 29 — Crew of Soyuz 11
Georgy Dobrovolsky (b. 1928)
Viktor Patsayev (b. 1933)
Vladislav Volkov (b. 1935)
July 22 — Roman Mashkov, military intelligence officer (b. 1922){{ruheroes|id=10300}}
September 11 — Nikita Khrushchev, 3rd Leader of the Soviet Union (b. 1894)
September 18 — Aleksandr Prokofiev, poet (b. 1900)
September 28 — Vasily Butusov, footballer (b. 1892)
October 17 — Sergey Kavtaradze, politician and diplomat (b. 1885)
October 20 — Nikolai Basistiy, Soviet Navy officer (b. 1898)
November 1 — Mikhail Romm, film director, screenwriter and pedagogue (b. 1901)
November 15 — Rudolf Abel, intelligence officer (b. 1903)
November 29 — Ivan Samylovsly, diplomat, politician and journalist (b. 1905)
December 5 — Andrey Andreyev, former Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union (b. 1895)
December 8 — Ernst Krenkel, Arctic explorer and radio operator (b. 1903)
December 18 — Aleksandr Tvardovsky, poet and writer (b. 1910)