Horrible dream American admirals

A group of ships of the American fleet, led by an aircraft carrier, is on combat duty in the World Ocean. Radars do not detect any threats, and American ships calm reigns. It is disrupted by the sudden visual detection of a target on the horizon - either a ship rushing at incredible speed, or an airplane literally gliding above the surface.

Before our eyes, the unidentified target grows into a huge “flying ship.” The alarm is announced on the aircraft carrier, but it is too late - the “alien” fires a missile salvo, and after a few tens of seconds, the pride of the fleet, engulfed in fires and torn to pieces, sinks to the bottom. And the last thing the dying sailors see in their lives is the shadow of an unknown and terrible enemy rapidly disappearing beyond the horizon.

Such or similar nightmares tormented American military leaders at night who had information about the secret weapon of the USSR - the Project 903 Lun ekranoplane attack vehicle.

WIG "Lun", Kaspiysk, 2010. Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org/ Fred Schaerli

The ekranoplan, more than 73 meters long and almost 20 meters high, could move at speeds of up to 500 km per hour above the surface of the water at an altitude of about 4 meters. It was armed with Mosquito anti-ship missiles, which made it possible to inflict maximum damage on enemy ships. "Lun" received the nickname "aircraft carrier killer."

The amazing combat vehicle was developed at the design bureau of Rostislav Alekseev, a Soviet designer whose developments revolutionized shipbuilding.

Chasing speed

Rostislav Alekseev was born on December 18, 1916 in the city of Novozybkov, Chernigov province, in the family of a teacher and agronomist. In 1935, Rostislav entered the Zhdanov Gorky Industrial Institute at the shipbuilding department.

Future shipbuilder student years was fond of sailing. The young man thought about how to increase the speed of movement through the water.

At the very beginning of the aviation era, pilots and designers paid attention to the so-called screen effect - a sharp increase in the lift of the wing and other aerodynamic characteristics of the aircraft when flying near a screen surface (water, ground, etc.).

Engineers were looking for ways to use this effect in practice.

Rostislav Alekseev came to the conclusion that the way to increase the speed of movement on the surface of the water lies through reducing the area of ​​​​contact of the vessel with the water environment.

The young designer started with the idea of ​​a hydrofoil. It was this kind of ship that became for Alekseev the theme of his graduation project, which he defended in 1941.

The defense, which took place in July 1941, took place behind closed doors. The theme of Alekseev’s project in the conditions of the outbreak of war was more than relevant - “High-speed hydrofoil boat.” The idea of ​​a high-speed combat boat for the needs of the USSR Navy was highly appreciated.

The young engineer was sent to the Krasnoye Sormovo plant, where in 1942 Alekseev received premises and specialists to work on creating combat boats on low-submerged hydrofoils.

Alekseev did not manage to create unique combat boats before the end of the war, but his models were considered very promising. The work of the designer and his subordinates was awarded the Stalin Prize of the second degree in 1951.

Hydrofoil "Burevestnik". Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org

"Rocket" that conquered the world

In 1951, the military developments of the young designer were converted for the needs of civilian shipbuilding. Alekseev Design Bureau begins work on a passenger hovercraft, called “Raketa”.

The first "Rocket" was presented in Moscow during the 1957 World Festival of Youth and Students. The passenger hydrofoil ship, whose speed was head and shoulders above all civilian ships that existed at that time, produced the effect of a bomb exploding in the world.

“Rockets” went far beyond the borders of the USSR. They were successfully exploited not only in the countries of the socialist camp, but also, so to speak, “in the den of the enemy.” Alekseev’s ships confidently plied the waters of Great Britain, Canada, Germany, Finland, etc.

Following the “Rocket”, other types were created civil courts hydrofoils, such as Volga, Meteor, Comet, Sputnik, Burevestnik, Voskhod.

For this work, the team led by Rostislav Alekseev was awarded the Lenin Prize in 1962.

"Caspian Monster"

But the designer did not think of resting on his laurels. Having fully realized the idea of ​​hydrofoils, Alekseev moved on to work on ekranoplanes - ships hovering above the surface of the water.

In 1962, Alekseev Design Bureau began work on the KM ekranoplan project (model ship). "KM" really had gigantic size- wingspan 37.6 m, length 92 m, maximum take-off weight 544 tons. Before the appearance of the An-225 Mriya aircraft, it was the heaviest aircraft in the world.

Western experts, having received a photograph of the experimental model, called it the “Caspian Monster” (the tests took place in the Caspian Sea).

The Caspian Monster made its first flight on October 18, 1966. It was piloted by two pilots, one of whom was Rostislav Alekseev himself. The flight was successful.

"Caspian Monster". Photo: Frame youtube.com

The KM tests continued for 15 years. The new “flying ship” had a lot of advantages, but there were also a lot of disadvantages. In fact, “KM” opened up a completely new direction on the border of aviation and navigation, in which its own laws and rules had yet to be developed.

The “landmark” position of ekranoplans affected their prospects in the most disastrous way. The Air Force believed that it was a ship, and the shipbuilders were convinced that we were talking about an airplane. Alekseev, with his unusual project, irritated officials who advocated classic shapes development of shipbuilding.

Alekseev’s projects were saved from complete closure by the chief curator of the Soviet defense industry, and later the USSR Minister of Defense, Dmitry Ustinov.

"Eaglet" and opal

In addition to bureaucratic obstacles, there were problems with ekranoplane pilots. It was extremely difficult for the pilots to get used to aerobatics passing over the very surface of the water. The peculiarities of the ekranoplan are such that it is almost impossible to “drop” it into the water in horizontal flight, even if you completely release the steering wheel. However, the professional habits of the pilots often forced them to pull the ekranoplan up, taking it “outside the screen,” which became the cause of accidents.

Each new failure hit extremely hard both on the idea of ​​the ekranoplan and on the designer Alekseev himself. In 1968, the design bureau that he created was divided into two - for hydrofoils and for ekranoplanes. Alekseev was left with only the second direction.

In the early 1970s, the Ministry of Defense gave an order to Alekseev Design Bureau to develop an amphibious ekranoplan for the Navy, which was given the code name “Eaglet”. In 1974, officials from Moscow literally forced Alekseev to take the still “raw” “Eaglet” out for sea trials even before receiving the results of a static test of the hull. The result of this was the separation of the tail section of the hull during testing. Alekseev, who traditionally controlled his brainchild on its first flight, managed to safely return the Eaglet to base. No one was hurt, but Alekseev himself was punished to the fullest - he was removed from the development of "Orlyonok", transferred to the position of head of the long-term planning department.

Ekranoplan "Eaglet". Photo: Commons.wikimedia.org

Despite this, the suspended designer continued to participate almost clandestinely in the work on the landing ekranoplan. In 1979, "Eaglet" was adopted by the USSR Navy. This landing ekranoplan could take off at wave heights of up to 2 meters and reach a speed of 400–500 km/h. Taking on board up to 200 fully armed marines or two combat vehicles (tank, armored personnel carrier, infantry fighting vehicle), the "Eaglet" could transport them over a distance of up to 1,500 km.

The designer was killed by his brainchild

In total, three combat “Eaglets” were created, and on their basis the 11th separate air group was formed directly subordinate to the General Headquarters of Naval Aviation. This series was supposed to be an installation series, and a total of 120 amphibious ekranoplanes were to enter combat service in the USSR Navy.

Despite the disgrace, Alekseev continued to work hard - tests of a passenger ekranoplan were underway, development of an attack model armed with missiles continued...

In January 1980, a passenger model of an ekranoplan was tested in Chkalovsk. His assistants cleared the ice blockage and said that the model could be released. What exactly happened at that moment is not clear. But Alekseev somehow took on part of the weight of the 800-kilogram device.

At first it seemed that this incident did not affect the health of the 63-year-old designer - Alekseev successfully completed his test day. But the next morning he began to complain of pain in his side. Doctors initially found it difficult to make a diagnosis. Two more days passed like this, after which Alekseev lost consciousness. During an emergency operation, doctors determined that the designer was injured during a testing incident - something that is usually defined by the people as “strained.” Over the past few days, peritonitis developed. Doctors had to carry out three operations and seemed to cope with the disaster. But complications began, and on February 9, 1980, Rostislav Evgenievich Alekseev passed away.

Past and future

The impact ekranoplane "Lun", the idea of ​​which belonged to Alekseev, was launched in the summer of 1986, and in 1991 it was officially put into service, becoming part of the Caspian flotilla.

“Lun” remained the only attack ekranoplane of the Navy, first of the USSR and then of Russia. After the death of Dmitry Ustinov in 1984, his successor as Minister of Defense of the USSR, Sergei Sokolov, curtailed the program for the construction of military ekranoplanes, considering this type of weapon unpromising. And when with the breakup Soviet Union Russian army was covered by a total lack of money, the revolutionary ideas of Rostislav Alekseev were completely consigned to oblivion.

In 2007, ekranoplanes were finally decommissioned from the Navy. At the same time, the most surviving copy of the landing "Orlyonok" was towed along the Volga to Moscow, where it was installed in the Navy Museum.

The debate about whether ekranoplanes have a future in the 21st century continues to this day. Behind the controversy, it quietly became clear that small-displacement combat ekranoplanes appeared in service with Iran and China. The Chinese soon intend to introduce an amphibious ekranoplan designed for 200 marines.

What does Russia need?

In Russia, work is currently underway on small-displacement passenger ekranoplanes, and ideas for creating military vehicles of this type are encountering the same resistance from officials of various ranks as during the life of Rostislav Alekseev.

This is what a strange thing happens - in our country, billions are easily allocated for the purchase of Mistral helicopter carriers from France, and our own unique developments are just as easily sent to the trash bin or buried through endless approvals.

But only by relying on our ideas and our working hands can we guarantee the independence of the country.

And Rostislav Evgenievich Alekseev understood this like no one else.

Rostislav Evgenievich Alekseev(1916 - 1980) - Soviet shipbuilder, creator of hydrofoils, ekranoplanes and ekranoplanes. Yacht designer, winner of all-Union competitions, master of sports of the USSR.

Laureate of the Lenin Prize (1962) and the Stalin Prize of the second degree (1951). Member of the CPSU(b) since 1950.

Biography

Born on December 5 (December 18), 1916 in Novozybkov (now Bryansk region), in the family of an agronomist and a teacher. In 1933, the family moved to Gorky.

In 1935 he entered the Gorky Industrial Institute named after Zhdanov (now the Nizhny Novgorod State Technical University named after R. E. Alekseev) at the shipbuilding faculty (now the Institute Transport Systems). Defended on October 1, 1941 thesis“Hydrofoil glider”; Alekseev was awarded the title of shipbuilding engineer by the state commission. After his defense, the young engineer was sent to the Krasnoye Sormovo plant, where from 1941 to 1943 he worked as a tank production control foreman.

In 1942, a decision was made to provide him with premises and people to work on creating hydrofoil combat boats. The Navy's shipbuilding department believed in Alekseev's idea, and funds were allocated to him. Alekseev’s boats did not have time to take part in hostilities, but the models he created convinced of the possibility of successful implementation of the idea.

The team begins to work on a hitherto unseen passenger hydrofoil ship (SPH), which received the symbolic name “Raketa”. In the summer of 1957, Alekseev presented the “Rocket” to the world community, bringing the ship to Moscow during the International Festival of Youth and Students. From that moment on, high-speed shipbuilding began in the world. Boats “Volga”, “Meteor”, “Kometa”, “Sputnik”, “Burevestnik”, “Voskhod” - annually new project and everyone is the best.

In 1962, the Central Design Bureau began work on creating the KM ekranoplane for the Navy, and in 1964, on the T-1 ekranoplane project for the airborne troops. The first was supposed to fly at altitudes of several meters, and the second - up to an altitude of 7500 m. On June 22, 1966, the KM ekranoplan, the largest aircraft on earth for its time, was launched.

In the early 1970s, the Central Design Bureau for the SPK was given an order to build the Orlyonok amphibious ground effect vehicle. On November 3, 1979, the world's first amphibious assault ship was accepted as a combat unit into the Navy. It received the standard number MDE-160 (small landing ekranoplan).

On January 14, 1980, while testing a model of a new passenger ekranolet (which was supposed to be completed for the Moscow Olympics-80), Alekseev was injured. This happened when the model was launched into the water. On January 17, 1980, Alekseev was hospitalized and after two operations he died on February 9, 1980. He was buried at the Bugrovsky cemetery in Nizhny Novgorod.

Family

Was married, daughter Tatyana, son Evgeniy.

Conflicts

• In the documentary film “Burnt Wings. Betray the Designer”, the idea is expressed that the talented designer had many ill-wishers, among whom was the USSR Minister of Shipbuilding Industry B.E. Butoma (according to the film, the reason for the persecution of the inventor is that Alekseev turned to Khrushchev over the head of his superiors).
• In 1976, after an accident during testing of an ekranolet, Alekseev, by order of Butoma, was removed from all positions, and only a department of 15 people was left subordinate to him.

Awards

• Stalin Prize of the second degree (1951) - for the development of hydrofoils.
• Lenin Prize (1962) - for the creation of a new vehicle.
• Honored Inventor of the RSFSR

Memory

• The name of Rostislav Evgenievich Alekseev is named after a school in the urban district of the city of Chkalovsk - MBOU Libezhevskaya Secondary School named after Rostislav Evgenievich Alekseev.
• The hydrofoil is named after him.
• In the center of the Sormovsky district of Nizhny Novgorod, the following squares are named in honor of Alekseev, at the beginning of Yubileiny Boulevard there is a monument to Alekseev, on Comintern Street there is a memorial star, and on Burevestnik Square there is a “Meteor”. School No. 183 of the Sormovsky district of Nizhny Novgorod is named after R. Alekseev.
• A street was named in the village of Kuznetsovo, Chkalovsky district, Nizhny Novgorod region, where the testing base of the Central Design Bureau for SPK was located.
• The name of Rostislav Alekseev is borne by the Central Design Bureau for Hydrofoils (TsKB for SPK) in Nizhny Novgorod.
• On February 2, 2007, by Decree of the Government of the Nizhny Novgorod Region No. 33, his name was assigned to the Nizhny Novgorod State Technical University.
• A bust of Alekseev was installed at the Nizhny Novgorod State Technical University.
• A square was opened and a monument was erected in Novozybkov.
• In 2012, the Museum of Speed ​​opened in the urban district of Chkalovsk, which tells the story of the life and work of the designer.
• The portrait of Rostislav Evgenievich Alekseev is in the Hall of Fame of the US Congress.
• Traditional sailing regatta for the R. E. Alekseev Cup in Nizhny Novgorod.
• In 2016, in honor of the 100th anniversary of R.E. Alekseev’s ekranoplan monument was erected at the Nizhny Novgorod State Technical University.

Filmography

• Documentary film “Burnt Wings. Betray the designer" (2007).
• Documentary film “The Alekseev Effect” from the Mystery series forgotten victories.
• Documentary film “Ekranoplans. On the verge of two elements" from the series "Wings of Russia".
• Documentary " Sea Dragon"from the series "Shock Force", issue 71.
• Documentary film “Rostislav Alekseev” from the series “Geniuses and Villains of the Past Era” (2002).
• Documentary film “The War That Never Happened. Floating above the waves." (2012)
• Documentary film “EXperiments with Anton Voitsekhovsky. Ekranoplans" (2012)

Notes

1. Ekranoplans. On the verge of two elements - History of development.
2. “Obsession”, Oleg Yarchevsky, essay, “Boats and Yachts”, numbers 111 and 112, 1984.
3. 1 2 “Nizhny Novgorod Sails”, Nizhny Novgorod: Quartz, 2014. p.265, total 333 p. ISBN 978-5-906698-05-6
4. Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR No. 575 of September 22, 1962
5. Burnt wings. Betray the designer.
6. Wings of Russia. Ekranoplans. On the verge of two elements.
7. The war that never happened. Floating above the waves.
8. EXperiments with Anton Voitsekhovsky. Ekranoplans

Alekseev Rostislav Evgenievich

Designer of hydrofoils and ekranoplanes
State Prize Laureate (1951)
Winner of the Lenin Prize (1962)

Rostislav Alekseev was born on December 18, 1916 in the city of Novozybkov, Chernigov province (now Bryansk region), in the family of a teacher and agronomist.

Rostislav's parents had two sons and two daughters. The Alekseev children were raised according to an unusual system. “Nowadays this technique is usually called Japanese,” said Tatyana Rostislavovna Alekseeva, the daughter of the designer. - The children were not prohibited from doing anything, no pressure was put on them. Once my father and brother Tolya “designed” a punt boat. But during the “tests” she turned over, and the boys ended up in the water. What would the average father do in such a situation? I would give the children a beating and forbid them to approach the river. And Evgeny Kuzmich took the guys to a fisherman he knew and asked him to help the guys design a “correct” boat, and at the same time teach them how to drive it. Or another example. Rostik dreamed of a horse. And when they bought him boots, he ran to the stable to exchange the shoes for a horse. But the parents figured out how to “calm down” the child. They just sent him out with the shepherds into the night several times! The boy saw enough of his favorite animals there and... burned out.”

In 1933, the Alekseev family moved to Gorky, where Rostislav began studying at the Gorky Evening Workers' Faculty, while simultaneously working as a draftsman and artist in various institutions. Everyone in the Alekseev family drew well, including Rostislav, but he most liked to draw yachts and ships. And in 1935, Alekseev entered the Gorky Industrial Institute named after Zhdanov (now Nizhny Novgorod State Technical University named after R.E. Alekseev) at the shipbuilding department (Faculty of Marine and Aviation Engineering). Having entered the institute, Alekseev managed to study at the same time at an art school. There, in Gorky, Alekseev met his future wife Marina, who was a year younger than him and studied at the chemistry department. In his fourth year, the capable student was transferred to the Leningrad Naval Academy. But Rostislav was expelled from there a year later - the future designer did not pass higher mathematics.

In fact, my father, of course, knew mathematics,” said Tatyana Rostislavovna. - The background here was different. A few years before, he found an old revolver in some attic and hid it in the stove. Then, when the elder Alekseevs and their three children moved to Moscow, their apartment on Bolshaya Pecherskaya went to other people. Imagine their shock when they found a pistol in the oven! Of course, they immediately told me where to go. And so, as punishment, my father was cut off in higher mathematics!

24-year-old Rostislav Alekseev returned to Gorky and married Marina. This happened two weeks before the war - June 6, 1941. Your own home young man there was none, and he and his wife settled with their mother-in-law, in a house on Ulyanov Street. The first two years of Rostislav and Marina's life together were overshadowed by tragic events. Two children died one after another: one in childbirth, the second from a congenital heart defect. Later, Rostislav and Marina had a son and daughter, whom they named Evgeniy and Tatyana.

On October 1, 1941, Alekseev defended his thesis “Hydrofoil glider”, and he was awarded the title of shipbuilding engineer. After his defense, the young engineer was sent to the Krasnoye Sormovo plant, where from 1941 to 1943 he worked as a tank production control foreman. His first rationalization proposals also appeared there: a special device for igniting Molotov cocktails and a jet-injection engine for high-speed torpedo boats.

In 1942, Alekseev was allocated resources to carry out work on the creation of hydrofoil combat boats. His Central Design Bureau for Hydrofoils (TsKB for SPK) began its journey from an old barn and three assistants - so in original idea Alekseev was trusted by the Navy's shipbuilding department. As a result, in the autumn of 1943, in the factory harbor, Alekseev launched the first sample of the A-4 hydrofoil vessel. But Alekseev’s boat did not have time to take part in the hostilities. However, the models he created showed that the idea can be successfully implemented.

And already in 1948, the torpedo boat “123-BIS” was tested in Sevastopol. From 1949 to 1951, Alekseev's bureau continued to work on the creation of hydrofoil torpedo boats. And in 1951, Alekseev and his assistants were awarded the State Prize for the development and creation of hydrofoils.

At a party dedicated to a high award, my father’s friends brought a cake on which “Glory to Glory!” was written in cream. and... a box,” recalled the designer’s daughter. “The most accurate measuring device is there,” his colleagues told him. We wondered for a long time what was there, and when we opened it, a cat named Atom jumped out! It was customary at the Central Design Bureau to launch a cat first on a new ship. The designers believe that the animal will always lie down in the place where there are some defects and problems.

Alekseev’s most important acquisition with bonus money was the Pobeda car, which replaced the Tatra he had assembled in the Alekseevs’ garage. And before “Tatra” there was “Volkswagen” - that’s what Rostislav Evgenievich called these cars, assembled by him from parts found in a landfill in Sormovo. Volkswagen had a corresponding nickname: “KDF” - cardboard, wood, plywood.

But it all started with a bicycle,” the designer’s daughter recalled. - During the war, there was no public transport, and my father had to somehow get from the upper part to Krasnoye Sormovo. He made himself a bicycle, but it soon exploded, scalding his face with hot water.

After this, Alekseev gave up cycling and joined a sports motorcycle club, where he was given a trophy Harley. He drove it in the first post-war years, until he assembled a Volkswagen. It so happened that it was difficult for Alekseev to find privacy in the Central Design Bureau, and the young designer made up for the time lost during the day at home. And since he didn’t have an office, he worked wherever he had to. He could work at a table in the living room or at a workbench in the hallway. He had a small machine at home on which Rostislav cut out models.

He could do almost everything with his hands! - Tatyana Alekseeva said. - Could work on a lathe, had metalworking skills. The fact is that grandfather Evgeny Kuzmich organized a workshop for children, and the boys disappeared there all day long. Dad was not even six when he made a steam locomotive and a car. And then, even before entering college, my father worked as a mechanic at a radio installation plant in Nizhny Tagil. Rostislav Evgenievich did not demand that his family create any special atmosphere for him: When he worked, we continued to live our lives. It happened that they made noise and distracted... But he didn’t get angry.

But no matter how fascinated Alekseev’s creativity was, he never stayed up past midnight. All my life I followed a strict regime: no later than 23.00 - lights out and early - at 5-5.30 - rise. He loved beautiful things and delicious food. “As a designer and artist, he had good taste,” said Tatyana Rostislavovna. - He had a keen sense of where to wear what. His favorite style was elegant and sporty.”

In 1954, the research hydro laboratory of the Krasnoye Sormovo plant became a branch of TsKB-19. The Ministry of River Fleet became interested in the work of the team led by Alekseev, and soon Alekseev was allocated funding for the construction of the first passenger hydrofoil ship “Raketa” - for 66 people. Its construction began in the summer of 1956, and in the summer of 1957 Alekseev presented the “Rocket” to the world community, spectacularly bringing the ship under its own power to Moscow during the International Festival of Youth and Students.

Since 1958, the history of a new class of ships began - “Meteors”, which were more seaworthy than the “Raketa”, which created conditions for their use on lakes and for sailing along the sea coast. The first "Meteor" - for 130 people - was launched in October 1959.

TsKB-19 also created the Volga, Comet, Sputnik, Burevestnik and Voskhod boats. All of these high-speed hydrofoils were mass-produced. Alekseev often said that the criterion of truth for an engineer is the mass production of his product. Every year a new project appeared. In 1961, ten employees led by Alekseev received the Lenin Prize for creating a new vehicle. Thus, in eight years since 1956, the Russian high-speed fleet was created.

Alekseev himself was under the patronage of Nikita Khrushchev after the government was given a ride on the Meteor. Khrushchev gave the green light to all the designer’s endeavors, and two thousand people, under the leadership of Alekseev, annually designed, built and tested 15-20 models for 15 years.

My father took great pleasure in traveling on ships. own invention, - said Tatyana Rostislavovna. “He even had a certificate as an honorary hydrofoil captain.” But due to the fact that his father sought to manage all his ships, he often had friction with his superiors. They said that Alekseev did not trust anyone. Dad explained this by saying that he could not trust anyone to control the ship until he was personally convinced that it would not throw up any unpleasant surprises. It was not arrogance that guided him, but a reluctance to put people at risk. In 1966, Rostislav Evgenievich, under a false name and with a “left” passport (and in those years even the photograph of the Chief was classified!) was sent to England to an exhibition of shipbuilding achievements. There, the designer wanted to “steer” one hovercraft, but they looked at him as a big joker. Then Alekseev asked to be allowed to put his hands on the driver’s hands. This was enough for him to understand how to control the ship.

The first ideas for using the screen effect came to Alekseev in the late 1950s. In his early projects of hydrofoils, features of ekranoplanes were already evident. The reason for Alekseev’s turn to screen flight is simple. Speed ​​is the main indicator of hydrofoil efficiency. But a powerful obstacle stood in the way of further increasing speed - cavitation of the hydrofoils. Before Alekseev, attempts to solve this problem boiled down to an increase in speed of 10-15 kilometers. This did not suit Alekseev, and he concentrated all his main forces on ekranoplanes.

In 1961, the first self-propelled manned model Alekseev SM-1 entered the ice of the Trotsa River.

In the article “Alekseev worked miracles” in 1998, it was written: “Having just become convinced of the ability of this device (SM-1) to use the screen effect and move steadily above the surface, he invites the Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers to the test base. A decision was made to finance work on ekranoplanes, and the Navy issued technical specifications for the design and construction of a “wing-propelled vehicle” KM. Chief designer convinced and the customer agreed that the new ship (as sailors called it according to long-standing tradition) would find its best use as an anti-submarine ship.”

At the beginning of 1960, this extensive experiment was launched, and in 1962, work began at the Central Design Bureau on creating the KM ekranoplane for the Navy, and in 1964, on the T-1 ekranoplane project for the airborne troops. The first was supposed to fly at altitudes of several meters, and the second - up to an altitude of 7500 meters.

Since the idea of ​​​​building ekranoplanes caused bewilderment at the top, Alekseev began to have spiteful critics. At one time, Rostislav Evgenievich persuaded several designers from Zelenodolsk to move to his Central Design Bureau. And later, their former director became the Minister of Industry and forced his former subordinates to regularly submit “information” about Alekseev to the ministry. Some of them were not shy, and wrote that Alekseev imagined himself to be a slave owner, and that he had ten apartments. As a result, in 1965, Rostislav Alekseev was removed from his post as chief designer.

My father was summoned to Moscow and bombarded with absurd accusations. “He himself didn’t understand what he was accused of,” Tatyana Rostislavovna recalled. - The next morning after returning from Moscow, he and I went to the Central Clinical Hospital. He goes into his office, and two hours later he appears from there along with some man and announces to the team: “Allow me to introduce you to the new chief designer and general director Valery Vasilievich Ikonnikov." Silent scene. It turns out that when he walked into his office in the morning, Ikonnikov was already sitting at his desk!

Alekseev was appointed chief designer of the ekranoplane department, and on June 22, 1966, the KM ekranoplane, the largest aircraft on earth for its time, was launched. When American reconnaissance satellites discovered a ship of an unknown design in the Caspian Sea, analysis of photographs showed that it, like an airplane, was moving at high speed, while its flight passed over the water itself. The Pentagon and NASA considered it a technical gamble. Few experts said that the Soviets had created a new and very effective type of weapon - ekranoplanes.

The unknown aircraft received the nickname “Caspian Monster” from the American side. After the “monster” was discovered by an American spy satellite, the American magazine Jane's Intelligence Review wrote: “... Tests of a giant ekranoplane, developing a speed of 200 knots, continue in the Caspian Sea. It is believed that this device was built at the Krasnoye Sormovo plant. It is probably 400 feet long and capable of carrying 800-900 fully armed soldiers. The wings of this experimental craft are believed to provide sufficient lift to lift the aircraft to a cruising altitude of approximately 30 feet. Apparently, the device can operate in Arctic conditions.”

This was the height of the tests, and they began several years earlier, when Alekseev decided to check how the ekranoplane stayed afloat, and let his brainchild “run” a little along the Volga before going out to sea. The test site was chosen on Velyachiy Island, which was clearly visible from the Volga slope. Special officers came up with a legend - a plane crashed and they are trying to pull it out of the water. When the tests continued, another legend came into play: they would test engines for new ships.

Then the tests moved to the Caspian Sea to the deserted island of Chechen, where the testing base was located. Admiral Gorshkov, commander of the Soviet Navy, in his book “Naval Power of the State,” published in 1976, wrote: “The creation of ships with a dynamic principle of support has already become a reality. There is no doubt that the massive appearance of such ships in fleets will increase their combat capabilities, surface forces will be able to more successfully solve combat missions and acquire completely new qualities.” The strictest conditions of secrecy prevented him from saying that the Soviet fleet already possessed such a ship at that time. The state program provided for the construction of 100 amphibious ekranoplanes.

While the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy Gorshkov and the Minister of Defense of the USSR Ustinov were alive, the designer Alekseev was unapproachable, despite any controversy that did not subside around ekranoplanes. Due to the complexity of operation, pilots and sailors did not want to have them in their arsenal. Cons added to the list of ekranoplanes emergency situations which happened from time to time. In 1975, during one of the flights, when a large commission headed by the Minister of Shipbuilding was on board the ekranoplan, the pilot made a mistake during landing. The car suddenly hit the wave. The bulkheads and hull burst. The chief designer took control and brought the ekranoplan to the base, located 40 kilometers away.

When the ekranoplan reached the shore, it turned out that it did not have enough stern and tail. The accident showed the survivability of the ship, but the organizational conclusions were harsh: Rostislav Alekseev, by order of the USSR Minister of Shipbuilding Industry Boris Butoma, who was dissatisfied with the inventor, due to the fact that Alekseev had previously turned to Khrushchev, ignoring Butoma’s opinion, was removed from the post of chief designer and head of the Central Design Bureau, demoted to the head of the department, and then to the head of the promising sector.

The 70s turned out to be especially difficult for my father, recalled Tatyana Rostislavovna. - In 1974, an accident occurred during testing in the Caspian Sea. The commission received "Eaglet". And during the transitional regime, the aft part of the ekranoplan seemed to be sucked into the water, and when the device took off, the “tail” fell off. My father immediately sat in the pilot’s seat and turned on the engines at full power, thus creating an air cushion under the wings. On this pillow he returned to base. If he hadn’t figured out the situation so quickly, the ekranoplan could have taken too much water and sank... The aviation industry said that they give a Hero for such things, but they took it out on their father to the fullest. In the summer of 1975, Alekseev was transferred to ordinary designers. Someone mentioned that it would be nice to appoint him head of the advanced design department, but the authorities waved their hands. The position was offered to Boleslav Zobnin. He did not want to cross his friend’s path, but Alekseev convinced him that it would be better for the common cause if he agreed. Unfortunately, Zobnin did not lead the department for long. In 1978 best friend Alekseeva died... Moreover, Rostislav Evgenievich was forbidden to attend the tests of his own machines! But he still secretly flew to Kaspiysk. Fortunately, his loyal pilot Alexey Mitusov, despite possible troubles, took him on board. My father was demoted and demoted... and he acted as if nothing was happening. Many were irritated by the dignity with which he carried himself. Some stopped greeting him, and yesterday’s “friends” said: “Well, now that Alekseev is no longer here, we’ll design something like this!” But time passed, and no one came up with brilliant ideas. And then the same people sang something else: “What do you want from us? Alekseev is a genius, but who are we? Mere mortals...".

During these years, the disgraced designer sought distraction in nature. Alone, I walked for a long time in the forest, picking mushrooms. Contacts with people were reduced to nothing. The worst thing for him was that his brain suddenly stopped generating new ideas, Alekseev’s daughter recalled. - Apparently, I found some kind of stupor. Then he retired to the base in Chkalovsk and began painting again. And the inspiration returned! In the last years of his life, my father was passionate about developing a second-generation ekranoplan.

But when testing a model of a new passenger ekranoplane, which was supposed to be completed for the Moscow Olympics-80, Rostislav Alekseev overstrained himself during launching. In January, he tested the latest model of an ekranoplan in Chkalovsk. His assistants cleared the ice blockage and said that the model could be released. But Alekseev did not hear, and took the full weight of the 800-kilogram apparatus.

At first, the 63-year-old designer did not feel any signs of trouble, went after the tests to the Central Design Bureau, and worked the whole day. And in the evening he complained to his family about pain in his side. Alekseev was immediately admitted to hospital No. 3 on the Verkhne-Volzhskaya embankment. Professors Kolokoltsev and Korolev were at a loss with the diagnosis.

My father spent Thursday and Friday on his feet, recalled Tatyana Rostislavovna. - And on Saturday morning I got out of bed and lost consciousness. He was scheduled for emergency surgery. It turned out that during those two days when Alekseev felt relatively well, his body developed peritonitis - inflammation of the peritoneum, life-threatening state. When the designer got on the operating table, the process was in full swing. The first intervention was followed by three more operations. As Professor Kolokoltsev later explained to me, my father, due to dysentery suffered in childhood, developed an adhesion in some part of his intestines. And this indirectly contributed to intestinal torsion. In general, my father did not worry about his health. Twice he was sent to a sanatorium. And twice he escaped from there... Rostislav Evgenievich died not from peritonitis, but from complications caused by it.

Tatyana Alekseeva said: “The very next day after the funeral, February 13, I went to Chkalovsk to pack my things in my father’s service apartment. And I found two bosses there who were snatching from each other the drawings made by their father! And on February 14, I flew to Kaspiysk and found the apartment completely destroyed. All things were piled in the middle of the room, and my father's drawings and notes were torn into small pieces. Moreover, the one who did this did not open the door with a key, but entered the apartment through the window like a thief...”

Rostislav Evgenievich Alekseev lived three design lives. In the first, he created a series of hydrofoils. In the second, he worked on hovercraft. He devoted his third life to ekranoletov. All the ideas he was working on had been in the air for a long time. He was the first to translate them into real designs.

The scope of Alekseev’s work can be judged from the following episode. In the winter of 1976-1977, a commission to audit the model inheritance worked at the Gorky branch. The commission had to consider the advisability of further storing a large number of secret models of ekranoplanes on the territory of the branch.

The branch was a metal warehouse-hangar with an area of ​​350 square meters. In it, aerodynamic and towed models of ekranoplanes of various configurations were placed on special metal racks on both sides of the aisle, three to four rows high. It was a museum of ideas in 250 models.

In addition, there was also a storage room in the administrative building of the boathouse, which housed about 30 more models. The commission did not take the trouble to take photographs and write a brief technical description models. In several stages, almost all the models, with the exception of 25, were burned on the ice of the Trotsa River. It can be estimated that over a 15-year period, on average, about 15-20 models were designed, built and tested per year, not counting self-propelled manned ones. During the same period, a powerful scientific and experimental base of the Central Design Bureau for SPK was formed; by the mid-70s, the design bureau had turned into a modern research and production enterprise with a unique experimental complex.

By 1980, the Gorky branch of the Central Design Bureau for the SEC on the Trotsa River had two tracks with powerful electric catapults, a portable catapult for water testing, wind tunnel for testing ekranoplane models, a circular hydraulic pool, a cavitation tube, several experimental installations for studying the effect of blowing, a significant fleet of powerful towing boats capable of testing models at open water with speeds up to 100-120 km/h, a stand for studying full-scale power plants, a powerful portal crane with a concrete slip with a lifting capacity of up to 50 tons, a hangar workshop, various workshops, including those for the production of towed models, an airfield with a concrete runway, And a large number of specialized laboratories. By 1980, the base was a world-class scientific complex, the best among European scientific centers.

Rostislav Alekseev did not find out what fate awaited his creation. By order of October 12, 1984, the USSR Minister of Defense ordered the adoption of ekranoplanes for service. It was planned to build two dozen Orlyonok-type vehicles and create a new landing force in the Baltic Sea. This program was supposed to be completed before the mid-90s, but this did not happen. Only four finished ekranoplanes remained in the Caspian Sea as part of the 11th separate air group.

The associates of the creator of Soviet ekranoplanes managed to develop and manufacture in 1985 the Lun combat ekranoplane, equipped with six Moskit anti-ship homing missiles. However, it never went into production, but was put into service in 2002 after a long mothballing.

American ekranoplan designer Stephen Hooker said: “They were 30 years ahead of us!”

Rostislav Alekseev was buried in Nizhny Novgorod. In 2007, a film was made about him documentary“Burnt wings. Betray the designer."

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Text prepared by Andrey Goncharov

Used materials:

Text of the article “The Star and Death of Rostislav Alekseev”, on the website www.kokina.ru
Text of the article “The Caspian monster - the great adventure of Vyacheslav Alekseev”, author V. Morozov
Text of the article “Weapons of Russia: “Eaglet” - “Caspian Monster”, author V. Fedorov
Materials from the site www.letopisi.ru
Materials from the site www.history-of-wars.ru
Materials from the site www.ankat.ucoz.ru
Wikipedia site materials

Alekseev invented and built the first ekranoplan in the world. According to his design, the KM, a huge ekranoplane weighing 540 tons, was designed. The talented designer earned himself several ill-wishers over the years of his career, including statesman B. E. Butoma, and was ultimately removed from all honorary positions.

Rostislav Evgenievich Alekseev was born on December 18, 1916, in the city of Novozybkov, Chernigov province, now Bryansk region. His mother was a teacher, and his father was an agronomist. Alekseev graduated from the Gorky Industrial Institute named after. Zhdanov, where he specialized in shipbuilding.

It is believed that Alekseev was the first to create a high-speed vessel using submerged hydrofoils. The most popular in high-speed shipbuilding were Raketa, Volga, Meteor, Comet and Burevestnik. These models had a passenger capacity of up to 150 people and a cruising speed of up to 54 knots (100 km/h).

Alekseev made a real revolution in shipbuilding, although he did not have the opportunity to act openly. He invented a version of the vessel with a screen effect, with an air cushion formed by injection

flow, i.e. with better aerodynamic properties. Thus, Rostislav Evgenievich achieved an optimal combination in which the weight of the aircraft could be greater, while less energy was required and fuel economy increased.

During his career, Alekseev, working for military purposes, created an ekranoplane with ten Dobrynin VD-7 turboprop engines, which the American intelligence service dubbed the "Caspian sea monster". Two engines are on the tail for additional thrust during flight, eight are on the wings. This ekranoplane, officially named "KM" ("Mock-up Ship"), was the largest heavy seaplane ever built. Its length was about 100 m and its weight was 540 tons. "KM" was used as a test board

form for studying the ground effect (screen effect).

The KM ekranoplan first took to the air in October 1966. The flight lasted about 50 minutes. at a height of four meters. A series of tests showed that to take off from water it is necessary to reach a speed of up to 350 km/h. In 1980, Alekseev’s “leviathan” crashed. The pilot sitting at the helm of the ekranoplan had not practiced for a long time, and because of this, during takeoff, the KM’s nose was raised too high. The ekranoplan went up almost vertically, which frightened the pilot, who abruptly reduced thrust. The “Caspian monster” fell onto the left wing and hit the water. There were no casualties, but due to the enormous weight, the attempt to retrieve the ekranoplane from the depths failed.

While the KM program was developing, Alekseev began work on a medium-sized ground effect vehicle - for

ribs of amphibious assault forces. The A-90 "Eaglet" transport and landing ground effect vehicle, weighing 140 tons and 58 m long, made its first flight in 1972. The A-90 model was equipped with two turbojet and one turboprop engines, which allowed it to reach speeds of up to 400 km/h with a flight range of up to 1,500 km.

After the crash of the KM ekranoplane, the military leadership used the incident as a pretext to fire Alekseev. Rostislav Evgenievich spent the rest of his days away from scientific work, concentrating mainly on sports projects. He died on February 9, 1980. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, details about Alekseev's work became known to the public and aroused interest from around the world. Currently, Alekseev is considered the father of the “screen effect device.”

Extraordinary people are always surrounded by myths that even officials and journalists believe. The image of Rostislav Alekseev today is accompanied by two such myths: he was allegedly born in Nizhny Novgorod and invented hydrofoils. Rostislav Evgenievich insisted all his life that he was not an inventor. Both winged ships and ekranoplanes were invented before him. But attempts to create these devices were not very successful. What was needed here was a brilliant design idea. It was Alekseev who designed and brought to life an entire flotilla of hydrofoil vessels (HFVs). As for ekranoplanes, thanks to the Nizhny Novgorod designer, Russia still maintains priority in the creation of these devices.

It all started with a black sail

Rostislav Alekseev spent most of his adult life in Nizhny. Although he was born in the Bryansk region, at a field station. It was 1916. The father of our fellow countryman, Evgeny Kuzmich, was an outstanding soil scientist. His life's work was to transform infertile soils into fertile ones. This trait - making the impossible possible - will later be inherited by the son. And further important point: soon after the birth of Rostislav, his father was repressed and sent to a Siberian camp. There, on a piece of land the size of one square meter, he continued his research. This example alone was more than enough for Rostislav Evgenievich not to give up under any circumstances. After all, designing a device is half the battle. The project had to be defended every time, to prove that it was needed...

In 1932, the father was acquitted, and the Alekseev family moved to Gorky. Here, on the Volga, Rostislav saw one of the first sailing yachts gliding across the waves - and caught fire. He built a yacht in the attic of his house, the sail of which was painted black. Alekseev called the little boat “Pirate”.

Then there were many yachts (one more perfect than the other) made by Alekseev, and he repeatedly won regattas. One day his ship capsized, and our fellow countryman suffered facial paralysis. But that didn't stop him.

The young man wanted his ships to glide through the water even faster. In 1935 he entered the shipbuilding department of the Zhdanov Industrial Institute. Now it is Nizhny Novgorod Technical University named after Alekseev.

It was during his student years that he began to seriously think about the speed of ships. It was a seemingly insoluble problem. All types of transport were then “accelerated”, and there was a barrier for ships - 40 km/h. After all, water resistance is 880 times greater than air resistance.

The principle of hydrofoils, discovered by Charles de Lambert back in the 1890s, came to mind.

It's simple: thanks to the high water resistance, the ship's wings can be made very short. And the effect will be the same as when an airplane takes off: most of the ship will rise above the water. Contact with water element will practically disappear, and the speed of the ship will increase significantly.

Attempts to build such ships in Russia and America were not successful. In the 1940s, the German engineer Schertel created a number of military hydrofoil boats. But until the end of the war, Alekseev knew nothing about this.

In 1940, our hero defended his diploma “Hydrofoil glider”. The diploma was not only approved, but also recommended to continue this work and bring it to life. Rostislav Evgenievich ends up on the Krasnoye Sormovo as a shipbuilding engineer. There he takes part in the production of... tanks, since the war began.

In 1941, Alekseev sent a report and a project for a future hydrofoil boat to the People's Commissariat of the Navy. The engineer replied:

“The scheme you propose... is unacceptable, since the chosen design is fundamentally no different from those already previously tested and doomed to failure.”

But since 1943, the plant management met the engineer halfway. He is given a place in an old booth at the end of the factory backwater. Soon a drawing board, a workbench and two chairs appear in the booth. All this was dubbed a hydro laboratory. Thus began the era of high-speed shipbuilding.

An official was included in the list of awardees

The first experimental hydrofoil boats were created by Alekseev in last years war, and they showed brilliant results. Orders were received from the military - and the design of winged boats for the Navy began. In 1951, the laboratory staff received a state prize, and then... resistance began. Alekseev saw in the list of awardees the name of an official who had nothing to do with the creation of the SEC, and crossed it out. In response, ministries and organizations began to give negative opinions about the SEC. We needed a ship that would leave no doubt. Thus, in 1956, the Raketa was born - the first civilian hydrofoil motor ship. To bring this project to life, an extended meeting of the party committee was held.

The “rocket,” designed for 64 passengers, reached a speed of 60 km/h.

For comparison: an ordinary ship reached from Gorky to Kazan in 30 hours, and the Raketa covered this distance in 8 hours. Alekseev himself brought this ship to Moscow for the 6th Youth Festival (1957). The arrival in the capital of a snow-white winged aircraft, whose shape amazed the wildest imagination, created a sensation. Secretary of the Central Committee Suslov left the following entry in the festival’s book of honorary visitors:

“The wonderful motor ship “Raketa” will be especially useful on big rivers, where it can compete with aviation. We wish the designer Comrade. Alekseev success in this matter.”

In 1959, serial production of this ship began, in the same year the Meteor (70 km/h) was created, on which Rostislav Evgenievich sailed to the Black Sea, tested it there and returned back by water.

And the tiny laboratory turned into a building made of glass and concrete - the Central Design Bureau for Hydrofoils (CDB for SPK).

The Central Design Bureau team created a whole flotilla of cruise ships - both river and sea. The Burevestnik is considered the most advanced SPK, capable of accommodating 150 passengers and reaching a speed of 90 km/h. Unfortunately, today they have forgotten about this brainchild of Alekseev, not a single “Burevestnik” remains...

He tested new ships himself

To say that the work of the designers was intense is an understatement. A striking fact: conflicts regularly occurred in the families of Central Clinical Hospital employees, and even divorces occurred. Finally, Alekseev was forced to soften the conditions and declared... Sunday a day off.

“My father subscribed to all the scientific journals related to shipbuilding and aviation,” says the designer’s daughter, Tatyana Rostislavna, “at home, of course, he was often busy with work. But it cannot be said that I was deprived of my father’s attention. There was some kind of elusive connection between us, some kind of strong mutual understanding, even when he was very busy. If I tried to distract my father’s attention at this time, he would give me puzzles that he himself made from wire. It was our custom that I should not disturb my father until I solved the puzzle. But it’s also impossible to say that he didn’t care about me at all. My father made me toys - for example, tin dishes, which we then painted together.

Tatyana Rostislavna recalls that Alekseev never idle, that is, he did not sit just like that. His vacation, of course, was active. In addition to yachts, the designer was interested in alpine skiing, jumped with a parachute, drove a car "with eyes closed"flying the plane. Rostislav Evgenievich had a strict rule: he himself sat behind the wheel of the newly created vessel for the first time. Alekseev controlled the SPK perfectly and was one of the few people who could competently control the ekranoplan.

Never made it to the Olympics

The idea of ​​creating ekranoplanes came naturally. After all, the SPK also had a speed barrier - about 100 km/h. Everything rested on the wings, which remained submerged in water. Meanwhile, at the dawn of aviation, the screen effect was discovered: a low-flying aircraft is kept above the ground, and its movement does not require much energy.

This principle was the basis for the operation of ekranoplans.

After testing a number of models, Alekseev had a grandiose and daring idea - to create an ekranoplan, later famous under the name KM (model ship). In 1966, the KM with a displacement of 500 tons was launched. Until now, no larger ekranoplan has been created on the planet. Its speed is 500 km/h.

The fishermen were simply shocked when this miracle device rushed past them, just a meter above the water.

Soon Alekseev’s brainchild was “spotted” by Western intelligence. Having received satellite images of the ekranoplan, the Americans nicknamed it the “Caspian Monster.”

And again orders from the military poured in. In the early 70s, the transport-landing ekranoplan "Eaglet" was created, a surviving copy of which is today in the Navy Museum.

In 1974, it was possible to “break through” the Chaika project, a civilian ekranoplan. But in the same year there was an accident with the “Eaglet”. The tail of the device fell off, creating a critical situation. Alekseev grabbed the steering wheel from the pilot and brought the ekranoplan to the base. After this accident, officials gave up on the Chaika.

I remember how we sat and spent the whole day doing nothing but destroying documents related to Chaika on the orders of our superiors,” recalls Tatyana Rostislavna, who at that time was already working at the Central Clinical Hospital for the SEC.

Alekseev and the courts he created had many well-wishers, but there were also many opponents. The Orlyonok accident was a formal reason to remove Rostislav Evgenievich from the management of the Central Clinical Hospital. And it was done.

In recent years, Alekseev has been directing the creation of only dynamic hovercraft. SDVP "Volga-2", "Raketa-2", "Meteor-2", created under the leadership of Alekseev, were intended for passenger transportation. Today these ships are used on the Volga for crossing from one bank to another.

In 1980, Alekseev was going to go on the Volga-2 to Moscow for the Olympics - but he never got there. As a result of a serious illness genius designer died.

Alekseev has not yet been overtaken abroad

Today, the Central Design Bureau created by Alekseev no longer designs winged ships, and they are almost never seen on the Volga banks. There is an opinion that this type of transport is not cost-effective. The issue is quite controversial. Firstly, without government subsidies, bus transportation will also not be profitable. Secondly, in areas with winding banks, buses are inferior to SPK - both in terms of capabilities and economic efficiency. It is no coincidence that Greece used our “Comets” - until the resource of these ships was finally exhausted...

Civilian ekranoplanes are still a novelty for many - these devices are so rare. And they are still called the ships of the future. After all, the ekranoplan is an off-season vehicle. It can fly over water, over land, over snow...

The Navy's balance sheet still includes the Lun ekranoplane, created by Alekseev's associate Vladimir Kirillov. Another one-piece specimen - “Eaglet” - is stored, as we have already said, in the Navy Museum.

The projects of our military ekranoplanes are still classified. They say that in America for several years in a row they have been creating a huge ekranoplan with a displacement of 1000 tons. True, they have been saying this for a long time, for several years in a row, so these are most likely just rumors. Be that as it may, so far Rostislav Alekseev’s “KM” remains an unsurpassed apparatus.