The first multi-engine aircraft. Aircraft "Russian Knight"

The latest best military aircraft of the Air Force of Russia and the world photos, pictures, videos about the value of a fighter aircraft as a combat weapon capable of ensuring "air supremacy" was recognized by the military circles of all states by the spring of 1916. This required the creation of a combat special aircraft, surpassing all others in speed, maneuverability, altitude and the use of offensive small arms. In November 1915, Nieuport II Webe biplanes arrived at the front. This is the first aircraft built in France, which was intended for air combat.

The most modern domestic military aircraft in Russia and the world owe their appearance to the popularization and development of aviation in Russia, which was facilitated by the flights of Russian pilots M. Efimov, N. Popov, G. Alekhnovich, A. Shiukov, B. Rossiysky, S. Utochkin. The first domestic machines of designers J. Gakkel, I. Sikorsky, D. Grigorovich, V. Slesarev, I. Steglau began to appear. In 1913, the heavy aircraft "Russian Knight" made its first flight. But one cannot fail to recall the first aircraft creator in the world - Captain 1st Rank Alexander Fedorovich Mozhaisky.

Soviet military aircraft of the USSR of the Great Patriotic War sought to hit the enemy troops, his communications and other objects in the rear with air strikes, which led to the creation of bomber aircraft capable of carrying a large bomb load over considerable distances. The variety of combat missions for bombarding enemy forces in the tactical and operational depth of the fronts led to the understanding of the fact that their performance should be commensurate with the tactical and technical capabilities specific aircraft. Therefore, the design teams had to resolve the issue of specialization of bomber aircraft, which led to the emergence of several classes of these machines.

Types and classification, the latest models of military aircraft in Russia and the world. It was obvious that it would take time to create a specialized fighter aircraft, so the first step in this direction was an attempt to arm already existing aircraft small offensive weapons. Mobile machine-gun mounts, which began to equip the aircraft, required excessive efforts from the pilots, since the control of the machine in a maneuverable battle and the simultaneous firing of an unstable weapon reduced the effectiveness of fire. The use of a two-seat aircraft as a fighter, where one of the crew members played the role of a gunner, also created certain problems, because an increase in the weight and drag of the machine led to a decrease in its flight qualities.

What are the planes. In our years, aviation has made a big qualitative leap, expressed in a significant increase in flight speed. This was facilitated by progress in the field of aerodynamics, the creation of new more powerful engines, structural materials, and electronic equipment. computerization of calculation methods, etc. Supersonic speeds have become the main modes of fighter flight. However, the race for speed also had its negative sides - the takeoff and landing characteristics and the maneuverability of aircraft deteriorated sharply. During these years, the level of aircraft construction reached such a level that it was possible to start creating aircraft with a variable sweep wing.

Combat aircraft of Russia for further growth of flight speeds jet fighters exceeding the speed of sound, it was necessary to increase their power-to-weight ratio, increase the specific characteristics of the turbojet engine, and also improve the aerodynamic shape of the aircraft. For this purpose, engines with an axial compressor were developed, which had smaller frontal dimensions, higher efficiency and better weight characteristics. For a significant increase in thrust, and hence the flight speed, afterburners were introduced into the engine design. The improvement of the aerodynamic forms of aircraft consisted in the use of wings and empennage with large sweep angles (in the transition to thin delta wings), as well as supersonic air intakes.

The work is devoted to the history of experimental work carried out in our country in the field of aircraft construction in the period before the start of the Great Patriotic War. Many of these studies were of a priority nature and influenced the development of world aviation.

Aircraft of the early 1910s were inferior to airships in many respects. The flight range of the best airships of that time was more than 700 km, the payload was 7 tons, the time spent in the air without landing was measured in tens of hours. Thus, in terms of range, the airship outnumbered the aircraft by about twice, and in terms of the weight of the load being lifted, by 20 times. In addition, the airship was considered a safer aircraft, since engine failure did not lead to a fall, unlike such a case with an airplane.

An increase in the carrying capacity of the aircraft would allow it to compete with the airship in solving such military tasks as strategic reconnaissance and bombardment of enemy rear lines, and would stimulate the start of commercial air transportation. The carrying capacity could only be increased if the take-off weight and power were increased. power plant, and since aircraft engines then developed no more than 100 hp. s., then on heavy aircraft several motors had to be installed. A multi-engine aircraft capable of continuing flight when one of the engines stopped was very attractive from a safety point of view.

So, already in the early years of aviation, there were incentives to create large multi-engine aircraft. At the same time, serious doubts were expressed about the success of such an apparatus. It was argued, in particular, that an increase in size would lead to such a weighting of the structure that the aircraft would lose its ability to take off, while it was assumed that with an increase in size by n times, the weight of the structure would increase by n 3 times. Some also believed that an aircraft with multiple engines on the wing would be even more dangerous than a single-engine one, since in the event of asymmetric thrust, if one of the engines failed, it would lose balance and fall.

For these reasons, the first twin-engine aircraft differed little in shape and size from single-engine aircraft and were designed in such a way that, with one engine inoperative, the thrust vector remained in the plane of symmetry of the machine.

The first aircraft with two engines was built in Russia in the 1880s by A.F. Mozhaisky. He installed steam engines in the fuselage, one of them drove the nose propeller, the other, using a belt drive, rotated two propellers located in cutouts in the wing. Due to the insufficient power of the power plant, the plane could not fly.

Russian engineer Boris Lutskoy, who worked in Germany, in March 1910 created an aircraft with two internal combustion engines with a capacity of 55 hp each. With. It was made in the Daimler workshop in Stuttgart. It was a monoplane with a forward elevator and tail behind the wing. The frame of the aircraft consisted of steel pipes. Just like in Mozhaisky, the motors were in the fuselage, one rotated the nose screw, the other through the transmission set in motion two propellers at the leading edge of the wing. In terms of size and weight, it was the largest aircraft of its time: the wingspan was 21 m, takeoff weight equaled 1700 kg, it was designed for five people. Lutsky's airplane took off, but an accident occurred during the flight: one of the side propellers broke, the plane tilted and fell from a height of 30 m.

In England, experiments were also conducted with twin-engine aircraft. In September 1911, the Short company launched its Triple Twin. It was a modification of the Farman biplane with a pusher propeller. In front of the nacelle, a second engine was installed with a chain drive on two propellers in front of the wings. Soon the company produced two more twin-engine machines, which differed in the layout of the power plant: the Tandem Twin (1911) had one pulling screw, on the Triple Tractor (1912) the front engine rotated the nose screw, and the rear engine rotated two screws at the leading edge of the wing. These planes could fly, but the results were disappointing: in terms of carrying capacity, they not only did not exceed single-engine machines, but were even inferior to them. The main reason is the large weight of the power plant, the power of which was chosen from the condition of the possibility of flight in case of failure of one of the engines. In addition, due to losses in the transmission from the motor to the propellers, thrust was reduced. Another difficulty that the creators of the first twin-engine aircraft faced was the danger of overheating the rear engine if it was located in close proximity to the front one, as on the Triple Tractor.

A new stage in the development of multi-engine vehicles was the creation, under the guidance of a young aircraft designer Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky, of the Grand (Russian Knight) aircraft. He had four engines on the wing and several times big sizes and weight than other aircraft of that time. Given the doubts about the ability of such large aircraft stay in the air and statements about the danger of propellers being located outside the plane of symmetry of the aircraft, it becomes clear that Sikorsky took a big technical risk.

Sikorsky wanted to make the aircraft multi-engine primarily for safety. “A motor breakdown happens very rarely,” he wrote, “but a stop from a minor trouble can always happen ... I once had to break my airplane and barely escape a serious danger; during one of the flights, the engine immediately stopped, and I had to go down to a small courtyard surrounded by a stone fence and buildings. The reason for stopping the engine, as it turned out later, was that a mosquito got into the tube supplying gasoline. This tube ends in the motor with a very thin hole, in which the mosquito got stuck, thus stopping the access of gasoline to the engine.

... It is necessary to make a large airplane, put on it not one, but several engines, and, moreover, ensure that it is possible to fly freely if one or even two engines deteriorate. At the same time, the motors must be positioned in such a way that they can be freely approached, inspected, even make minor repairs. And besides all this, it means that there must also be a driver on the airplane who would do all this work, check the running engines, in case of need he could even make minor repairs if one of the engines stops, and the airplane would fly at that time on other engines, since it cannot be that some kind of misfortune happened in all the engines at once.

So, we see that in order to fly reliably, without being afraid to find yourself in the trees or in the water due to some empty engine malfunction, you need to make an airplane with several engines, and besides that, you need to have a driver on it. And so that he could properly look after his motor, it is not bad that he had an assistant and that, apart from working with motors, they had no other business in the air. It is clear that a pilot is also needed, who will control the rudders of the airship. But this is not enough. The airship must also have a navigator. Why is this extra person, if from an airplane it is so good to check your path on the map and it is so easy to recognize the area? It would seem that a pilot can sometimes look down, compare with a map, and thus direct his flight where he should. But this is all really easy only in good weather. IN bad weather due to rain and fog, it is often not possible to see the ground at all. In this case, it can be difficult for one pilot to cope with the case. It is at such a time that a navigator is needed. He does not need to think about how to control the rudders, he does not need to think about engines, and he can calmly calculate in which direction to fly, where and how much the wind can blow the apparatus, etc. The navigator tells the pilot which direction to fly.

From all that has been said, it is clear that for reliable long-distance air travel, it is necessary to use airplanes with several engines and it is necessary that several people be on the apparatus, each of whom must perform his specific task. But that is not all. We know that a large ship moves calmly on the sea and can easily withstand waves that can be dangerous for a small boat. The same should have been in the air. A large, heavy airship with powerful engines should move more steadily in the air and should endure bad weather more easily than a small light airplane.

In 1912, however, comparatively few people thought so. Most of the people who worked in aeronautics at that time believed that a huge airplane would not be able to rise from the ground, that it would be terribly difficult to control it, and finally, they pointed out that if one of the engines stopped, the airplane would tip over.

This distrust of large airplanes was partly due to the fact that machines of this kind, built up to that time abroad, turned out to be useless and could not fly at all. I held a different opinion and believed that it was possible to create a large airship and that it would fly better and more reliably than small vehicles. A happy coincidence made it possible to build an airship. The fact is that at that time, at the head of the Russian-Baltic Carriage Works, which built small airplanes of my system, was a man of outstanding intelligence and determination - Mikhail Vladimirovich Shidlovsky. As a former naval officer who committed circumnavigation, he clearly understood how to achieve reliable navigation in the ocean of air. When in the summer of 1912 I introduced him to the calculations and drawings of a large four-engine airplane with a closed spacious cabin, M.V. Shidlovsky wished that the construction of such an airship would immediately begin at the Russian-Baltic Plant.

The production of the first multi-engine aircraft began in the fall of 1912, after the end of the competition for military airplanes. During the design, the experience of creating a single-engine biplane S-6B, which was distinguished by a large wingspan and good payload, was used. Water-cooled motors "Argus" with a capacity of 100 hp. With. the designer installed on the lower wing, with direct drive to the pulling screws. To compensate for the turning moment in the event of an engine shutdown, the rear part of the fuselage was made unusually long and two vertical rudders were installed, and their surfaces were profiled so that when the engines on one wing were turned off, due to the blowing from the propellers of the running engines, they create a lateral force that restores the direction of flight. The multi-rack biplane box had an upper wing span of 27.2 m and a lower one of 20 m. Ailerons were installed on the upper wing. Wing parts were made of wood, linen lining. Fuselage - with wooden spars and plywood sheathing and frames, rectangular section, tapering as it approaches the tail and reinforced with internal and external braces. For ease of manufacture and assembly, it is divided along the length into two parts, joined with four steel brackets.

In front of the aircraft was a closed cabin 5.75 m long and 1.85 m high with large windows, reminiscent of a tram car. It consisted of a pilot's compartment and a furnished passenger cabin with electric lighting. The pilots' workplaces were equipped with two steering columns and a large set of instruments for that time - a compass, engine tachometers, speed and altitude meters, slip, roll and pitch indicators. Behind the passenger cabin was a closed crew compartment with a folding couch, washbasin, toilet and storage for spare parts and tools. An open balcony was installed in front of the cabin. Given the large weight of the aircraft - over four tons - the chassis was made very durable, with four skids and eight wheels from the Nieuport-4 aircraft, which were built at RBVZ by order of the military department. After the first tests, Sikorsky replaced the single wheels with double ones, connected in pairs and covered with leather: this reduced the load on the ground and made it easier to take off. The installation of motors on the wing, a spacious multi-seat closed cockpit, the ability to fly according to instruments - all this was new in aircraft construction.

The first, not entirely accurate information about the aircraft was leaked to the press in early 1913, when it was still under construction. In the February issue of the magazine "Aero and Automobile Life" it was reported: "This device will differ in dimensions unusual to date ... Its bearing surface will be equal to 130 m 2, span 25 m, length 20 m. The device will be equipped with 4 Argus motors of 100 HP (hp - D.S.) every. Passengers that the airplane will lift up to 10 will be placed in a special cabin with a ledge for installing a machine gun and windows for throwing bombs ... Pilots can change, and the device stays in the air for 10-12 hours without descent.

I.I. Sikorsky near his plane.

The plane was ready by March 1913. It was called "Grand", but soon on the wave of patriotism associated with the celebration of the 300th anniversary of the Romanov dynasty, he was given Russian name"Big Russian-Baltic" or simply "Big". For the first tests - runs around the airfield and short flights - they decided to limit themselves to installing two engines, one on each wing.

March 3 "Grand" was brought to the Commandant airfield. Sikorsky himself decided to test the giant machine. First, he worked out taxiing: he turned on the right, then the left engine and watched whether the plane obeyed the rudders. On March 15, during the next run, the designer slightly took the helm and the car was in the air for a few seconds. This means that even with two engines, the Grand is able to get off the ground! The next day, two more flights took place. But soon the tests had to be stopped: the spring thaw made the airfield unusable.

In April, the "Grand" was transported to the military Corps airfield and converted into a four-engine. The second pair of Argus were placed in tandem with the first, with pusher propellers. This shows that the designer was still afraid at that time to spread the engines along the span, fearing the occurrence of a large asymmetric thrust. However, even the first flights showed the unfoundedness of these fears: the effectiveness of the rudders was quite high, when any of the engines stopped, the aircraft kept its course normally and could even perform turns in the direction of two working engines.

When the airfield dried up, the tests continued. On May 6, Sikorsky completed a circle over the airfield at low altitude, and on May 10, the first off-aerodrome flight of the Grand took place. The constructor writes:

“There was no doubt that the ship would fly well. The only worry was the thought of how to land. I had to look through the windows of the cabin, and most importantly, a large car weighing about 250 pounds (4100 kg. - D.S.), i.e. five times heavier than the large vehicles of that time, should have responded differently to the actions of the rudders. In the air, all this should not have caused anything bad, but when landing on the ground, complete precision of movements was necessary. It was already nine o'clock in the evening when this huge airplane for that time was prepared for flight. The engines were started and ran at low speed. Huge crowds of people gathered along the embankment separating the Corps airfield from the surrounding fields, impatiently awaiting the flight of the airship. With the help of a special lever, all four motors were given full speed at once. The heavy apparatus moved from its place and rolled across the field, leaving deep tracks with its wheels and gradually picking up speed.

Designer at the helm of an airship.

It was strange and unusual to sit at the wheel of a receding airplane and not feel the jet strong wind in face. This made the speed seem less. But it was clearly felt how the shocks under the wheels were decreasing, the apparatus obeyed the rudders better and more distinctly and already responded to the movement with wings (ailerons. - D.S.). This means that the wings already bear almost the entire weight of the apparatus. Indeed, after a few seconds the tremors stopped, and the earth began to go down under the apparatus. Behind the windows in a comfortable, spacious cabin, one could not feel the speed of movement, but from the figure of a mechanic standing on the front balcony, one could judge that the apparatus was moving in the air at high speed. It could be seen how the mechanic had to hold on tightly to the railing of the balcony and stand, leaning forward. The device went in the air very steadily, gradually taking the height. The difference in control between the large and small apparatus was felt immediately. The big airplane obeyed the rudders just as well as the small one, but all its movements were slower and, as it were, more confident. It was felt that a gust of wind, which can easily throw a small apparatus to the side or down, cannot rock this machine of 250 pounds in weight.

All attention during this first flight was occupied by the controls, and only when the airplane, having described a circle in the air, flew over the place of departure, surrounded by a dark, surging sea of ​​spectators, was it possible to look out the side window at the ground for a short time. The other two participants in the flight were in a better position. They could freely walk around the cabin of the flying ship and look out the window.

Having flown over the place of departure, the airship traveled another three versts, turned back and began to descend in order to land on the ground. Still remaining at a certain height in the air, I several times made the movements that I have to do during landing with the elevator. Thus, we managed to study a little how quickly the device responds to the actions of the rudders. However, it was already necessary to land on the ground, since there was already less than a verst left to the end of the field, where the hangars stood and there was a crowd of people.

With a strong movement of the lever, all the motors were immediately brought to a small speed. Made at the same time by the movement of the elevator, the apparatus was tilted forward. The earth began to approach rapidly. When there were 3–5 fathoms left (1 fathom 2.134 m. - D.S.) height, I had to start gradually pulling the elevator lever towards me. Continuing to fly forward at great speed, the apparatus at the same time changed its inclination, its front part rose, the approach to the ground slowed down, and in the end the apparatus leveled off and flew horizontally above the ground itself. Pressing the button located on the steering wheel turned off the ignition in all engines. The motors immediately stopped working, only the propellers were still spinning from acceleration. After a few seconds, shocks were felt under the wheels, and the airplane, having rolled a little along the ground, stopped.

From that day on, a series of triumphant demonstrations of the four-engine air giant began, which brought world fame not only to its creator, but to the entire Russian aircraft industry. Messages about the sensational aircraft appeared on the pages of both the Russian press and foreign aviation magazines.

One of the most impressive was the flight over the capital Russian Empire. Its description can be found on the pages of the St. Petersburg magazine "Technique of Aeronautics":

“On May 27, aviator I. Sikorsky made the second long flight on his new large Grande apparatus. He got up at 6 o'clock. in the morning from the Corps airfield with a strong and gusty wind and undertook a number of experiments to test the device. Despite the dirt after the rains and the considerable weight of the apparatus (up to 250 pounds), the ascent was very successful. There were four mechanics in the cabins of the Bolshoy, next to Sikorsky, also in the pilot's seat, aviator Yankovsky. Sikorsky, having risen over 300 meters, stopped one of the four motors and it turned out that when two motors were running on one side and one on the other side of the apparatus, the latter was running perfectly.

Further, Sikorsky made sharp turns, during the flight the passengers moved from the front balcony of the airplane to the rear cabins, etc. All the experiments were successful: you can walk freely around the cabin, the passengers are placed in the best conditions for making observations (since they do not have to follow the device, in the front of the device there is a special balcony for observations); the apparatus showed great power and stability. Sikorsky, describing a large circle, appeared above Novodevichy Convent Petersburg and began to describe circles over the city; despite the early hour, large crowds of spectators watched the flight. After a half-hour flight, I. Sikorsky, having made a very beautiful turn, safely descended at the Corps airfield. The flight, which was observed by military pilots, turned out to be very successful.

The successes of the Bolshoi were watched not only by pilots, but also by high-ranking military men - the creation of a fleet of multi-engine aircraft could significantly increase the country's combat power. There was even an idea to install a 37 mm gun on the plane to fight airships. At the end of May, a message appeared in the press about plans to acquire the Grand by the military department.

Interest increased even more after June 22, 1912. On this day, the Russian military airship Lebed flew over the Corps airfield. Sikorsky flew out to meet him, quickly caught up with the aeronautical apparatus and performed several maneuvers, demonstrating the superiority of his machine in the air. On board the aircraft was the head of the aviation of the Baltic Fleet B.P. Dudorov, and from the ground the Naval Minister Vice Admiral I.K. Grigorovich. Soon Sikorsky received an offer from the fleet to buy his multi-engine machine, which by that time bore the sonorous name "Russian Knight".

On July 16, the All-Russian Aeroclub organized a gala dinner in honor of the innovative designer. A well-known supporter of aviation, one of the founders of the Russian air force, General A.V. Kaulbars called the appearance of the Sikorsky aircraft "a coup in military affairs." On the balcony of the "Russian Knight" they tested the installation of a machine-gun pivot turret, and a glass window was mounted in the floor for observation and aiming during bombing.

Meanwhile, Igor Sikorsky continued to improve his offspring. “These days, other rear propellers have been installed at I. Sikorsky’s “Russian Knight” apparatus. The “Russian Knight” flies almost daily, after each flight I. Sikorsky makes certain changes to his apparatus. Yesterday, the speed of the Russian Knight was tested, it covered 94 km per hour (there were 5 people on the device), ”the Russian Invalid newspaper reported on June 25, 1913.

In July, after a series of tests, including an in-flight stop of two engines on one wing, the designer decided to install all four engines in a row. The total thrust of the propellers has increased, the cooling of the motors has improved. At the same time, Sikorsky added two additional rudders to the tail. For landing in the dark, a searchlight was installed on the balcony.

Sometimes the aircraft was used for aerodynamic research in a "flying laboratory" mounted on a balcony.

The modification of the aircraft allowed Igor Ivanovich on July 19 to set a world record for the duration of a flight with a load. "Russian Knight" with seven passengers on board was in the air for 1 hour and 4 minutes.

At the end of July, a traditional review of the troops of the guards and the St. Petersburg military district was held in Krasnoye Selo. Aviation also participated in it - aircraft and pilots of the First Aviation Company. Knowing that Nicholas II was to arrive in Krasnoye Selo on July 25, the management of the Russian-Baltic Carriage Works obtained permission to demonstrate the Russian Knight there. Starting from the Corps airfield, the multi-engine vehicle landed in Krasnoye Selo 20 minutes later.

The king arrived at the plane at 4 pm. He climbed the stairs aboard the air giant, examined it in detail, and talked with Sikorsky. Since that time, a silver plate appeared in the salon of the Russian Knight with the inscription “This cabin was made happy with His appearance by the Sovereign Admiral of the future Great Russian Air Fleet. Imperial Majesty Sovereign Emperor".

Soon, Igor Ivanovich was given a royal gift - a golden cigarette case with a diamond image of the state emblem.

Tests of the "Russian Knight" convincingly demonstrated its safety in comparison with single-engine aircraft. On June 12, during takeoff at a height of 15 meters, a broken steel wing brace hit the propeller and split it. Fragments of the propeller in several places tore the skin of the upper wing. But the plane landed safely and two days later was ready to take off again. In another flight, the extreme engine suddenly broke down and one of its attachment points to the wing came off. The mechanic climbed onto the fender, got to the stopped engine and fixed it with the help of belts. Navigational aids were also useful. When returning from the review in Krasnoye Selo to the Corps Airfield, the drizzling rain so pelted the cockpit windows that nothing could be seen through them. But the pilots, guided by the instruments, flew safely to their destination.

"Russian Knight" died not in the air, but on the ground. On September 11, during a competition of military airplanes held at the Corps airfield, a motor fell off the Meller-II biplane of the Dux plant, which landed exactly on the wing of the Vityaz. The pilot of the aircraft that lost its engine managed to land safely. The culprit of the unusual case was a detached oil pump - it hit the propeller, it broke, the engine, which lost its load, began to sharply increase speed and fell off the cradle.

By the time of this incident, the Russian Knight had flown more than 11 hours. Sikorsky decided not to restore the aircraft, since the four-engine Ilya Muromets was already under construction by order of the Maritime Department. It featured a taller and stronger fuselage, increased wingspan, the forward fuselage was glazed and formed a closed cockpit, as on all future heavy aircraft. Thanks to improved aerodynamics, the carrying capacity, speed and flight altitude have increased. In 1914, serial production of the Ilya Muromets began; during the war years, these aircraft were successfully used as bombers and long-range reconnaissance aircraft.

The appearance at the front of an aircraft unique in its characteristics stimulated the creation of multi-engine machines abroad. At the beginning of 1915, Siemens designer V. Forsman, who studied at the Riga Polytechnic Institute and was well acquainted with Russian aviation, tried to repeat Sikorsky's success by building a Forsman-R aircraft similar to Ilya Muromets. But the car was unsuccessful and after several flights crashed. Released in 1915 in a small series, the three-engine German bomber Steffen R.1 with engines in the fuselage proved unsuitable for work at the front due to frequent breakdowns in the transmission from the power plant to the propellers. Combat-ready multi-engine aircraft appeared in the West only in 1916.

In my opinion, the construction and successful testing of the Russian Knight and the serial production of the Ilya Muromets that followed it are the largest contribution of our country to the development of world aviation, the opening of a new direction in aircraft construction. The creation of the "Russian Knight" cost 63 thousand rubles (an ordinary single-engine aircraft then cost 7-8 thousand). But "the game was worth the candle." If before the dreams of a giant and comfortable "airship" seemed to be the lot of science fiction writers, now the possibility of building such machines has been tested, their safety and prospects have been proven. The lift theory was still in its infancy, but the talented Russian aircraft designer intuitively correctly chose a scheme with a large aspect ratio wing and engines distributed over the span; the first allowed to increase the carrying capacity, the second - to compensate for the aerodynamic load on the wing by the weight of the motors.

The most spectacular performances during the aircraft flight demonstration program at the LIMA-2017 aerospace and naval show were performed on Su aircraft. Crews from Kubinka near Moscow on Su-30SM fighters showed high skill in maneuvering as part of the group. . The pilots of the Russian Knights group, Colonel Andrey Alekseev and Lieutenant Colonel Oleg Erofeev, told the website of the Zvezda TV channel about their impressions of the new aircraft.

- Comrade Colonel, please tell us what are your impressions of the flights of your Malaysian colleagues on the Su-30MKM?

- Who helped the Malaysian pilots in mastering the Su-30 and taught them how to perform such complex maneuvers? Did the pilots of the Russian Air Force aerobatics teams participate in this process?

– Were there any contacts between Russian and Malaysian pilots during the LIMA-2017 show?

- I had the opportunity to talk with Lieutenant Colonel Edros Jborg - he flies the Su-30MKM over Langkawi. He said he had about 2,500 flying hours, including 1,400 on the MiG-29 and 500 on the Su-30MKM. Do your pilots have more or less flying time than his?

- Please compare the Su-27 aircraft, on which the Russian Knights performed at LIMA-2013, and the Su-30MKM, on which you fly in a real cabin, in terms of aerobatic and other qualities.

- Is it difficult to switch from Su-27 to Su-30, what difficulties do pilots face in the process of retraining to a new type?

- The Irkut Corporation offers the combat trainer Yak-130 in conjunction with the Su-30SM as an aircraft for the initial training of pilots of super-maneuverable fighters. Did the pilots of the "Russian Knights" use the Yak-130 in the process of retraining for a new type of fighter?

- Are there any special maneuvers that you would note as characteristic only of the "Russian Knights"? What elements that the pilots of your air group perform in the air are you especially proud of?

- Could you name the flight parameters that the pilots of your group achieve during the demonstration performance at the LIMA-2017 salon?

– Could you, please, specify the amount of overload experienced by pilots during demonstration flights at air shows?

- What is similar to the Su-27 and Su-30SM? When performing a flight in a formation of simple figures in the speed range indicated by you, does the piloting technique of these aircraft differ?

– You are probably interested in the aerobatics teams of other countries that perform on aircraft that are produced by the aviation industry of their own countries. What is the difference between the "Russian Knights" and the existing aerobatics teams of the USA, Great Britain, France, Italy and other Western countries?

- As a viewer, it seemed to me that the Korean group on T-50 aircraft, which also performs at LIMA-2017, uses increased intervals between aircraft compared to the Russian Knights when performing group maneuvers.

- What do aerobatic team pilots do to keep themselves in shape?

One hundred years ago, on May 13, 1913, a significant event took place in the history of aviation, which made our country proud: world's first four-engine aircraft"Grand Baltic", later renamed the "Russian Knight". Its creator was a 24-year-old native of Kyiv, head of the aviation department of the Russian-Baltic Carriage Works (in St. Petersburg) Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky (1889-1972).

Igor Sikorsky was born into a family of doctors: a well-known psychiatrist (one of the founders of child psychology, the founder of the world's first Institute of Child Psychology, Kiev) Professor Ivan Alekseevich Sikorsky and a therapist (she, however, did not work in her specialty) Maria Stefanovna Sikorskaya (nee Temryuk-Cherkasova). Igor's mother was keenly interested in the biography and work of Leonardo da Vinci, and perhaps this circumstance determined the boy's early interest in models of aircraft.

After studying for three years at the St. Petersburg Naval School, in 1907 Sikorsky entered the Kiev Polytechnic Institute, which, however, he did not graduate - the young man considered that practical work in the workshop and laboratory was more useful than studying higher mathematics and other abstract sciences (although, we note, Sikorsky completed his first academic year well). Now, on the territory of the Kyiv Polytechnic University, a monument has been erected to its outstanding student; and nearby stands a monument to another great man, who also studied at this university, but did not finish it, - Sergei Pavlovich Korolev.

On a trip to Europe, Sikorsky learned about the successful experiments of the Wright brothers, and met with European aviation enthusiasts. Back in 1908-1911, he became interested in helicopters, one of which was presented at a two-day aeronautical exhibition in Kyiv. However, the level of technology achieved at that time did not allow building really flyable rotorcraft, and the young engineer, literate enough to realize the impossibility of overcoming the problems that confronted him, switched to aircraft design. The first to fly was the S-2 of 1910, followed by the S-6, S-10 and S-11, which took first place in Russian military airplane competitions. Sikorsky, by the way, flew himself, having learned to be a pilot. Moreover, he always sought to be the first to fly around his vehicles.

Only a few decades later (in 1939), having become famous across the ocean as the creator of magnificent flying boats (his "clipper" S-42 was the first to start performing regular flights across the Atlantic), Sikorsky returned to his youthful dream - to helicopters. With his Vought-Sikorsky VS-300, he set the classic scheme of a single-rotor helicopter with a tail (tail) propeller, according to which 90% of helicopters were made. And today, all over the world, the name of Sikorsky is associated with combat and civilian helicopters of the Sikorsky brand.

But the first major success of Igor Sikorsky was, of course, the Russian Knight, and then the Ilya Muromets, created on its basis, recognized as one of the best heavy bombers of the First World War. This aircraft was especially outstanding for the initial period of the war - after all, at the time of its beginning, only Italy, in addition to Russia, had such airplanes, and Gianni Caproni's clumsy whatnots could not be compared with Russian handsome giants. By the way, in 1915 Sikorsky designed the world's first escort fighter for his "Murom" - S-16.

But many were skeptical about the idea of ​​building a heavy multi-engine airplane - the ability to control it was called into question. Sikorsky had to defend his bold views. “The future belongs to large and heavy aircraft,” he argued. The confidence of the Russian designer was given by the calculations he repeatedly performed. He managed to convince the director of Russo-Balt Shidlovsky of the feasibility of his project.

The giant biplane was almost completely ready at the beginning of 1913. In terms of size and weight, this aircraft (“Grand” it was dubbed by the factory workers) was twice as large as anything that had been created in aviation before it. Length - 20 m, span of the upper wing - 27 m, wing area - 120 sq. m (according to other sources - 125), the mass of the empty apparatus exceeded 4 tons.

"Grand" was the first aircraft in the world with a large closed, glazed cabin (length 5.75 m, height 1.85 m) for a crew of two and passengers. Even the amenities were provided in the cabin: a washbasin and a toilet! The visibility from the cockpit was excellent. And in front of her, at the very nose of the airplane, they arranged a small open balcony, on which passengers could go out right in flight - breathe fresh air and admire the flying terrain!

It was decided to install four Argus engines with a power of 100 hp each on the plane. on each side of the fuselage in tandem two - driven by pulling and pushing propellers. In March, they mounted two motors (front) out of four; the plane, personally controlled by Sikorsky, performed jogging and flying up. At the end of April, the first flight took place - the car obeyed perfectly, but it clearly lacked the power of the power plant.

At the beginning of May, the rear engines were finally installed. There is evidence that even then the "Grand" flew over St. Petersburg on four engines, but officially such a flight took place on May 13 - on that day at the airfield, the military department received several "Neuports" manufactured by the Russian-Baltic plant under license. Many high ranks arrived and they were shown the domestic giant. The plane took off with four passengers on board, gained a height of 100 m, reached a speed of almost 100 km / h, made several confident turns.

In June, the Grand was modernized. The tandem layout of the motors reduced the turning moment in the event of a failure of one of the engines, but worsened the flight characteristics of the machine, since the rear pusher propeller was in the air flow from the front propeller, and this reduced the efficiency. The designer made a revolutionary decision: to place all four motors in a row on the lower wing. The first flight in this configuration took place on June 23 and showed an improvement in takeoff performance, an increase in speed and rate of climb. So, the concept proposed by Sikorsky turned out to be absolutely correct!

The glory of Sikorsky rolled across Russia. In Europe, they were surprised and did not believe at first. The tsar also inspected the airship, presenting the designer with a gold watch as a farewell gift. There is an assumption that it was that meeting of Nicholas II and Igor Sikorsky that later played an important role in the fate of Ilya Muromets - when incompetent military figures tried to "hack" this beautiful aircraft, the autocrat made a decision in his favor.

On August 2, 1913, Sikorsky, on an apparatus that had by that time received the name "Russian Knight", set a world flight duration record, having 8 people on board - 1 hour 54 minutes. For the creation of his car, the designer received a large cash prize from the State Duma - 75 thousand rubles.

But on September 11, an unpleasant embarrassment occurred: an engine fell off a flying airplane and fell right on the Vityaz, which was standing, badly damaging it. The plane, which completed 53 flights with a total duration of 11 hours, was not restored. The main thing was done: the Vityaz brilliantly proved the correctness of the concept of a multi-engine aircraft, and at that moment its successor, the legendary Ilya Muromets, was already under construction, made according to the same scheme.

The priority of Sikorsky and our country in the creation of heavy airships is undeniable. The aforementioned Caproni built his three-engine Sa-30 (with two pulling and one pushing propeller - a very complex and cumbersome scheme that turned out to be unpromising) only at the end of 1913, and the real success came to the Italian only at the beginning of 1914.

Sikorsky rejected the revolution (obviously, he adopted right-wing political views from his father), by that time he had already managed to earn a very decent fortune. In February 1918, Sikorsky went through Arkhangelsk first to London and then to Paris. However, in France, the first aviation power of that time, no one needed the services of the person who created one of the best "bomber carriers" of the First World War. Therefore, in 1919, Sikorsky left to seek happiness further - to America.

In the United States, the affairs of the Russian designer at first also did not turn out well. At first, Sikorsky moonlighted as a teacher of mathematics. It wasn't until May 3, 1923 that he founded the Sikorsky Aero Engineering Corporation. Interestingly, the company was originally located on Long Island, on the territory of a poultry farm owned by another Russian immigrant. The US Army attracted the company to develop a promising bomber, but the project was closed. During that difficult time, Sikorsky was greatly helped by the composer Sergei Rachmaninov, who took the position of vice president of the company and allocated $ 5,000 (solid money at that time!). “Unwinding”, Sikorsky returned the money borrowed to the famous musician with interest.

Over time, Sikorsky moved to Stratford, Connecticut, and this small town became the capital of helicopter manufacturing in the United States.

In 1979, a feature film about A. N. Tupolev, “The Poem of Wings,” was shot in the USSR. The film is based on a real event - the meeting of Tupolev and Sikorsky (his role was played by Yuri Yakovlev) at the Paris Air Show. After all, they were friends in their youth, but fate parted them "on different sides" ...

Sikorsky enjoyed well-deserved fame: the holder of honorary doctoral degrees, the holder of several orders and medals, and the winner of awards in the field of technology and aviation. Igor Ivanovich was buried at the cemetery in Stratford. A street in Kyiv and a square in St. Petersburg, the Aerospace Lyceum of the National Aviation University of Ukraine and one of the Tu-160 long-range missile carriers of the Russian Air Force are named after this outstanding person. In 2009, the National Bank of Ukraine issued a nickel silver commemorative medal with a face value of 2 hryvnias (from the Outstanding Personalities of Ukraine series).

Igor Sikorsky had a chance to start his career at a difficult, critical time. He made his life choice in favor of emigration, and it just so happened that the designer brought the greatest benefit not to his fatherland, but to his main opponent. It is hardly possible to blame Sikorsky himself for this - I think it was his personal tragedy. What is important is that he, like other talented people who left the country after the revolution, grew worthy heirs in their homeland. Soviet Union, and in its composition - Ukraine, became one of the world's leading aviation powers in the world, and the glory of "Vityaz" and "Muromets" was continued by the ANT-20 "Maxim Gorky", An-22 "Antey", An-124 "Ruslan", An-225 "Mriya".

Russia approached World War I with the largest air fleet. But big things start small. And today we want to talk about the very first Russian aircraft.

Aircraft Mozhaisky

The monoplane of Rear Admiral Alexander Mozhaisky became the first aircraft built in Russia and one of the first in the world. The construction of the aircraft began with a theory and ended with the construction of a working model, after which the project was approved by the War Department. Steam engines designed by Mozhaisky were ordered from the English firm Arbecker-Hamkens, which led to the disclosure of the secret - the drawings were published in the journal Engineering in May 1881. It is known that the airplane had propellers, a fabric-covered fuselage, a wing covered with balloon silk, a stabilizer, elevators, a keel and landing gear. The weight of the aircraft was 820 kilograms.
The tests of the aircraft took place on July 20, 1882 and were unsuccessful. The airplane was dispersed on inclined rails, after which it rose into the air, flew several meters, fell on its side and fell, breaking its wing.
After the accident, the military lost interest in development. Mozhaisky tried to modify the airplane, ordered more powerful engines. However, in 1890 the designer died. The military ordered the plane to be removed from the field, and its further fate is unknown. Steam engines were stored for some time at the Baltic Shipyard, where they burned down in a fire.

Aircraft Kudashev

The first Russian aircraft to be successfully tested was a biplane designed by design engineer Prince Alexander Kudashev. He built the first gasoline-powered aircraft in 1910. On tests, the airplane flew 70 meters and landed safely.
The mass of the aircraft was 420 kilograms. The wingspan covered with rubberized fabric is 9 meters. The Anzani engine installed on the aircraft had a power of 25.7 kW. On this plane, Kudashev managed to fly only 4 times. During the next landing, the airplane crashed into a fence and broke.
After Kudashev designed three more modifications of the aircraft, each time lightening the design and increasing the power of the engine.
"Kudashev-4" was demonstrated at the first Russian International Aeronautical Exhibition in St. Petersburg, where it received a silver medal from the Imperial Russian Technical Society. The aircraft could reach speeds of 80 km / h and had a 50 hp engine. The fate of the airplane was sad - it was smashed at aviators' competitions.

"Russia-A"

The biplane "Russia-A" was released in 1910 by the "First All-Russian Association of Aeronautics".
It was built on the basis of Farman's airplane design. At the III International Automobile Exhibition in St. Petersburg, he received a silver medal of the Military Ministry and was bought by the All-Russian Imperial Aero Club for 9 thousand rubles. A curious detail: up to this point, he had not even risen into the air.
From the French aircraft "Russia-A" was distinguished by a high-quality finish. Wings and plumage were covered with double-sided, the Gnome engine had 50 hp. and accelerated the plane to 70 km / h.
Flight tests were carried out on August 15, 1910 at the Gatchina airfield. And the plane flew over two kilometers. A total of 5 copies of "Russia" were built.

"Russian Knight"

Biplane "Russian Knight" became the world's first four-engine aircraft designed for strategic reconnaissance. The history of heavy aviation began with him.
The designer of the Vityaz was Igor Sikorsky.
The aircraft was built at the Russian-Baltic Carriage Works in 1913. The first model was called "Grand" and had two motors. Later, Sikorsky placed four 100 hp motors on the wings. every. In front of the cockpit was a platform with a machine gun and a searchlight. The aircraft could lift 3 crew members and 4 passengers into the air.
On August 2, 1913, the Vityaz set a world flight duration record - 1 hour 54 minutes.
"Vityaz" crashed at the competition of military aircraft. The engine fell out of the flying Meller II and damaged the plane of the biplane. They did not restore it. On the basis of the Vityaz, Sikorsky designed a new aircraft, the Ilya Muromets, which became the national pride of Russia.

"Sikorsky S-16"

The aircraft was developed in 1914 by order of the Military Department and was a biplane with an 80 hp Ron engine, which accelerated the C-16 to 135 km / h.
The operation revealed the positive qualities of the aircraft, mass production was started. At first, the S-16 served to train pilots for the Ilya Muromets, in World War I it was equipped with a Vickers machine gun with a Lavrov synchronizer and used for reconnaissance and escorting bombers.
First air battle C-16 took place on April 20, 1916. On that day, ensign Yuri Gilsher shot down an Austrian aircraft from a machine gun.
C-16 quickly fell into disrepair. If at the beginning of 1917 there were 115 aircraft in the Airship Squadron, then by the autumn there were 6 of them. The remaining aircraft fell to the Germans, who handed them over to Hetman Skoropadsky, and then went to the Red Army, but some of the pilots flew to the Whites. One C-16 was included in the aviation school in Sevastopol.