On 18 March 1965 he became the first person to walk in space, from Voskhod 2 (see voskhod). He was also one of the cosmonauts on the Apollo–Soyuz Test Project in 1975.

Leonov was commander of the cosmonaut team 1976–82 and was deputy director of the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre until his retirement in 1991.

Born in Listvyanka, Siberia, Leonov served in the Soviet Air Force in East Germany before being selected as a cosmonaut in 1959.