Valentina Tereshkova was selected to be the pilot of the Vostok-6 because of her extensive experience as a parachutist, and was the first person to be recruited to the Soviet Space program without experience as a test pilot. Vostok-6 lifted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on June 16, 1963, a full 6 years before the first lunar landing. Tereshkova remained in space for nearly three days, orbiting the Earth 48 times, and was allowed to operate the controls manually, unlike Cosmonauts on previous flights. She reentered Earth's atmosphere on June 19, 1963 and parachuted to the ground, landing in a remote region of Kazakhstan—she had become the first woman in space and the first woman in orbit. The feat would not happen again for another 19 years, when Svetlana Savitskaya flew aboard the Soyuz-T7.

Mounted to the wall of her Vostok capsule, Tereshkova's voice-recorder faithfully recorded all of her communication with Earth, as well as her spoken thoughts. It is clear from the accompanying audio recordings that it was not an easy flight: Tereshkova suffered illness and disorientation, and consequently, refused to eat: "I feel sick. I am drinking, I cannot eat sweets... I just want bread and onions."  Also documented is the revelation that Korolev ordered her to stop her experiments and return to Earth. Despite her illness and her sudden return, Tereshkova found time to entertain her listeners: " I am Chayka [her codename, meaning Seagull]... Singing a song."

Prior to her return, Tereshkova was toasted by Communist Party Premier Khrushchev: "We are proud of you and your Lenin-inspired ideals! Glorify our people! ... To women! To your health! Complete the flight and land safely!"