Sergey Ilyushin
Encyclopedia
Sergey Vladimirovich Ilyushin was a Soviet aircraft designer who founded the Ilyushin
aircraft design bureau.
Russian Empire
as the youngest of 11 children in a peasant family, the largely self-taught Ilyushin left home at an early age. He worked as a factory laborer, ditch-digger at construction sites, and cleaner of gutters at a dye plant in Petrograd. In 1910, he learned that jobs were available at Kolomyazhsky Racetrack as a groundskeeper. The racetrack was also the site of the first All-Russia Festival of Ballooning in autumn of 1910, and Ilyushin assisted in unpacking crates and setting up equipment. He was also able to meet many of Russia's pioneer aviators, and the even awoke his interest in aviation.
However, in 1911 he returned to his native village to work as a carter of a dairy plant. The following year, he worked as a construction worker for the Amur Railway
, and in 1913 he was in Tallinn
as a worker in a shipyard. With the outbreak of World War I
, Ilyushin was conscripted into the Imperial Russian Army
, serving with the infantry
, and later (as he was literate) as a clerk in the military administration of Vologda
. When a request came for seven volunteers to serve in the fledgling Aviation Section, he was quick to volunteer. He worked at first as a mechanic and member of the ground crew. In the summer of 1917, he was qualified as a pilot. However, in March 1918, with the withdrawal of the Provisional Government
from the war, he was demobilized and sent back to his native village. He helped supervise the increasing nationalization
of factories in the area and in October 1918 joined the Bolshevik
party. With the Russian Civil War
, Ilyushin was drafted into the Red Army
in May 1919 and was an aviation technician of VVS RKKA (Red Army). That autumn, a White Movement
Avro 504
biplane made a forced landing near Petrozavodsk
. Ilyushin led a team which dismantled it, and sent it to Moscow where it was reverse-engineered into the Soviet U-1 trainer, of which 737 examples were subsequently built.
s, taking part in numerous competitions. In 1925, one of his designs was sent to a competition in Germany, where it took first prize for flight time.
After obtaining a degree in engineering from the in 1926, Ilyushin started designing aircraft at the TsAGI
, where he worked with Nikolai Nikolaevich Polikarpov
and Andrei Tupolev
. By 1931, he was Assistant Chief of the Research and Test Institute at TsAGI, and began maneuvering to form his own independent design bureau.
In 1933, Ilyushin became chief of TsKB at Moscow plant named after V.R.Menzhinski which later grew into the Ilyushin OKB
in 1935.
His Ilyushin Il-2
strike aircraft and Ilyushin Il-4
bomber were used extensively in World War II
, with many thousands of aircraft produced.
After the war, Ilyushin concentrated primarily on commercial airliners, such as the Ilyushin Il-18
and Ilyushin Il-62
, saw extensive use with Aeroflot
and numerous Soviet client states. In 1967, he was given the honorary rank of General-Colonel of Engineering/Technical Service. He also became an Academician of USSR Academy of Science in 1968. He remained the chief designer at the Ilyushin OKB until his retirement due to illness in 1970.
From 1937-1970, Ilyushin also served as a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. He died in 1977 in Moscow and was buried in the Novodevichy Cemetery
.
Ilyushin
Open Joint Stock Company «Ilyushin Aviation Complex» , operating as Ilyushin or Ilyushin Design Bureau, is a Russian design bureau and aircraft manufacturer, founded by Sergey Vladimirovich Ilyushin. Ilyushin was established under the Soviet Union. Its operations began on January 13, 1933, by...
aircraft design bureau.
Early years
Born in the village of Dilialevo, Vologda GovernorateVologda Governorate
The Vologda Governorate or Government of Vologda was a guberniya in the historical northern region of the European part of Russian Empire.In its size it was second right after the neighboring Archangelgorod Governorate...
Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
as the youngest of 11 children in a peasant family, the largely self-taught Ilyushin left home at an early age. He worked as a factory laborer, ditch-digger at construction sites, and cleaner of gutters at a dye plant in Petrograd. In 1910, he learned that jobs were available at Kolomyazhsky Racetrack as a groundskeeper. The racetrack was also the site of the first All-Russia Festival of Ballooning in autumn of 1910, and Ilyushin assisted in unpacking crates and setting up equipment. He was also able to meet many of Russia's pioneer aviators, and the even awoke his interest in aviation.
However, in 1911 he returned to his native village to work as a carter of a dairy plant. The following year, he worked as a construction worker for the Amur Railway
Amur Railway
The broad gauge Amur Railway is the last section of the Trans-Siberian Railway in Russia, built in 1906-1916. The construction of this railway favored the development of gold mining industry, logging, fishery, and fur trade in Siberia and Russian Far East. It is over 2115 km in length, stretching...
, and in 1913 he was in Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
as a worker in a shipyard. With the outbreak of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Ilyushin was conscripted into the Imperial Russian Army
Imperial Russian Army
The Imperial Russian Army was the land armed force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian army consisted of around 938,731 regular soldiers and 245,850 irregulars . Until the time of military reform of Dmitry Milyutin in...
, serving with the infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
, and later (as he was literate) as a clerk in the military administration of Vologda
Vologda
Vologda is a city and the administrative, cultural, and scientific center of Vologda Oblast, Russia, located on the Vologda River. The city is a major transport knot of the Northwest of Russia. Vologda is among the Russian cities possessing an especially valuable historical heritage...
. When a request came for seven volunteers to serve in the fledgling Aviation Section, he was quick to volunteer. He worked at first as a mechanic and member of the ground crew. In the summer of 1917, he was qualified as a pilot. However, in March 1918, with the withdrawal of the Provisional Government
Provisional government
A provisional government is an emergency or interim government set up when a political void has been created by the collapse of a very large government. The early provisional governments were created to prepare for the return of royal rule...
from the war, he was demobilized and sent back to his native village. He helped supervise the increasing nationalization
Nationalization
Nationalisation, also spelled nationalization, is the process of taking an industry or assets into government ownership by a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to private assets, but may also mean assets owned by lower levels of government, such as municipalities, being...
of factories in the area and in October 1918 joined the Bolshevik
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
party. With the Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
, Ilyushin was drafted into the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
in May 1919 and was an aviation technician of VVS RKKA (Red Army). That autumn, a White Movement
White movement
The White movement and its military arm the White Army - known as the White Guard or the Whites - was a loose confederation of Anti-Communist forces.The movement comprised one of the politico-military Russian forces who fought...
Avro 504
Avro 504
The Avro 504 was a World War I biplane aircraft made by the Avro aircraft company and under licence by others. Production during the War totalled 8,970 and continued for almost 20 years, making it the most-produced aircraft of any kind that served in World War I, in any military capacity, during...
biplane made a forced landing near Petrozavodsk
Petrozavodsk
Petrozavodsk is the capital city of the Republic of Karelia, Russia. It stretches along the western shore of the Lake Onega for some . The city is served by Petrozavodsk Airport. Municipally, it is incorporated as Petrozavodsky Urban Okrug . Population:...
. Ilyushin led a team which dismantled it, and sent it to Moscow where it was reverse-engineered into the Soviet U-1 trainer, of which 737 examples were subsequently built.
Work in aviation
In the fall of 1921 Ilyushin left military service and entered the Institute of Engineers of the Red Air Fleet (renamed the Zhukovsky Air Force Engineering Academy) in 1922. During his student years, he concentrated on the design of gliderGlider
Unpowered aircraft are a group of aerial vehicles that can fly without onboard propulsion. They can be classified as gliders, balloons and kites. In this instance, 'flight' means a trajectory that is not merely a vertical descent such as a parachute. In the case of kites, the flight is obtained by...
s, taking part in numerous competitions. In 1925, one of his designs was sent to a competition in Germany, where it took first prize for flight time.
After obtaining a degree in engineering from the in 1926, Ilyushin started designing aircraft at the TsAGI
TsAGI
TsAGI is a transliteration of the Russian abbreviation for Центра́льный аэрогидродинами́ческий институ́т or "Tsentralniy Aerogidrodinamicheskiy Institut", the Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute....
, where he worked with Nikolai Nikolaevich Polikarpov
Nikolai Nikolaevich Polikarpov
Nikolai Nikolaevich Polikarpov was a Soviet aeronautical engineer and aircraft designer, known as "King of Fighters". He designed the I-15 series of fighters, and the I-16 Ishak "Little Donkey" fighter....
and Andrei Tupolev
Andrei Tupolev
Andrei Nikolayevich Tupolev was a pioneering Soviet aircraft designer.During his career, he designed and oversaw the design of more than 100 types of aircraft, some of which set 78 world records...
. By 1931, he was Assistant Chief of the Research and Test Institute at TsAGI, and began maneuvering to form his own independent design bureau.
In 1933, Ilyushin became chief of TsKB at Moscow plant named after V.R.Menzhinski which later grew into the Ilyushin OKB
Ilyushin
Open Joint Stock Company «Ilyushin Aviation Complex» , operating as Ilyushin or Ilyushin Design Bureau, is a Russian design bureau and aircraft manufacturer, founded by Sergey Vladimirovich Ilyushin. Ilyushin was established under the Soviet Union. Its operations began on January 13, 1933, by...
in 1935.
His Ilyushin Il-2
Ilyushin Il-2
The Ilyushin Il-2 was a ground-attack aircraft in the Second World War, produced by the Soviet Union in very large numbers...
strike aircraft and Ilyushin Il-4
Ilyushin Il-4
|-See also:-Bibliography:* Gordon, Yefim and Khazanov, Dmitri. Soviet Combat Aircraft of the Second World War, Volume 2: Twin-Engined Fighters, Attack Aircraft and Bombers. Earl Shilton, UK: Midland Publishing Ltd., 2006. ISBN 1-85780-084-2...
bomber were used extensively in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, with many thousands of aircraft produced.
After the war, Ilyushin concentrated primarily on commercial airliners, such as the Ilyushin Il-18
Ilyushin Il-18
The Ilyushin Il-18 is a large turboprop airliner that became one of the best known Soviet aircraft of its era as well as one of the most popular and durable, having first flown in 1957 and still in use over 50 years later. The Il-18 was one of the world's principal airliners for several decades...
and Ilyushin Il-62
Ilyushin Il-62
The Ilyushin Il-62 is a Soviet long-range jet airliner conceived in 1960 by Ilyushin. As successor to the popular turbo-prop Il-18 and with capacity for almost 200 passengers, the Il-62 was the largest jet airliner when it first flew in 1963. It entered Aeroflot service on 15 September 1967 with...
, saw extensive use with Aeroflot
Aeroflot
OJSC AeroflotRussian Airlines , commonly known as Aeroflot , is the flag carrier and largest airline of the Russian Federation, based on passengers carried per year...
and numerous Soviet client states. In 1967, he was given the honorary rank of General-Colonel of Engineering/Technical Service. He also became an Academician of USSR Academy of Science in 1968. He remained the chief designer at the Ilyushin OKB until his retirement due to illness in 1970.
From 1937-1970, Ilyushin also served as a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. He died in 1977 in Moscow and was buried in the Novodevichy Cemetery
Novodevichy Cemetery
Novodevichy Cemetery is the most famous cemetery in Moscow, Russia. It is next to the 16th-century Novodevichy Convent, which is the city's third most popular tourist site. It should not be confused with the Novodevichy Cemetery in Saint Petersburg....
.
Awards and honors
- Hero of Socialist Labour (1941, 1957, 1974)
- Stalin Prize (1941, 1942, 1943, 1946, 1947, 1950, 1952)
- USSR State PrizeUSSR State PrizeThe USSR State Prize was the Soviet Union's state honour. It was established on September 9, 1966. After the breakup of the Soviet Union, the prize was followed up by the State Prize of the Russian Federation....
(1971) - Lenin PrizeLenin PrizeThe Lenin Prize was one of the most prestigious awards of the USSR, presented to individuals for accomplishments relating to science, literature, arts, architecture, and technology. It was created on June 23, 1925 and was awarded until 1934. During the period from 1935 to 1956, the Lenin Prize was...
(1960) - Order of LeninOrder of LeninThe Order of Lenin , named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was the highest decoration bestowed by the Soviet Union...
(1937 , 1941 , 1945 , twice in 1954 , 1964 , 1971 , 1974 ) - Order of SuvorovOrder of SuvorovThe Order of Suvorov is a Soviet award, named after Aleksandr Suvorov , that was established on July 29, 1942 by a decision of the Presidium of Supreme Soviet of the USSR. This decoration was created to award senior army personnel for exceptional leadership in combat operations...
1st and the 2nd rank (1945, 1944) - Order of the October RevolutionOrder of the October RevolutionThe Order of the October Revolution was instituted on October 31, 1967, in time for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution. It was awarded to individuals or groups for services furthering communism or the state, or in enhancing the defenses of the Soviet Union, military and civil...
(1969) - Order of the Red BannerOrder of the Red BannerThe Soviet government of Russia established the Order of the Red Banner , a military decoration, on September 16, 1918 during the Russian Civil War...
(1944, 1950) - Order of the Red Banner of LabourOrder of the Red Banner of LabourThe Order of the Red Banner of Labour was an order of the Soviet Union for accomplishments in labour and civil service. It is the labour counterpart of the military Order of the Red Banner. A few institutions and factories, being the pride of Soviet Union, also received the order.-History:The Red...
(1939) - Order of the Red StarOrder of the Red StarEstablished on 6 April 1930, the Order of the Red Star was an order of the Soviet Union, given to Red Army and Soviet Navy personnel for "exceptional service in the cause of the defense of the Soviet Union in both war and peace". It was established by Resolution of the Presidium of the CEC of the...
(1933, 1967)