Russian land has always been rich in specialists of various directions. Engineers in Russia in Soviet times were held in high esteem, and skilled personnel were trained at many universities in the country. One of those who can safely be reckoned to be the old guard of weapons-making masters is the late Shipunov Arkady Georgievich. We will talk about his difficult fate and achievements in the article.
general information
Arkady Shipunov was born on the territory of the Oryol province in the town of Livny on November 7, 1927. By nationality - Russian. He well remembered both the NEP and the terrible famine of 1933-1934, as well as the tremendous joy of subsequent generous harvests.
The hero of the article remembered the period of World War II quite well. According to him, he remembered for his whole life how he and other people walking along the highway were mercilessly shot by a German fighter. At the same time, Arkady himself had a burning desire to shoot at the Nazis in response, but he did not have any weapons. Largely because of this, he subsequently chose the path of a gunsmith in adulthood. In school years, Arkady studied in the same class as the daughters of the famous General Remezov, who headed the Oryol Military District.
In 1950, the future genius of military development with honors graduated from the walls of the Tula Mechanical Institute (Faculty of Mechanical Engineering). Arkady chose for himself the direction of rifle and artillery systems and installations. Five years later, the man had already become a candidate of technical sciences, defending a dissertation.
Start of work
In 1950, Arkady Shipunov, whose biography interests many people even several years after his death, became an employee of the number 61 research institute located in the city of Podolsk (Moscow Region). Having a fairly deep theoretical knowledge, good organizational skills, strong will and determination, a talented innovator managed in a fairly short period of time to make a significant breakthrough in the career ladder from a simple engineer to deputy head of the entire secret institute.
Promotion and development
In 1962, Shipunov Arkady Georgievich became the general designer of TsKB-14 (Tula). Over time, this structure was transformed into the Instrument Design Bureau. Four years later, Comrade Gryazev came to work in this institution, with whom a native of the Oryol region created many types of weapons.
In 1965, these two prominent Soviet engineers transferred the 23-mm GSh-23 gun to the Soviet Army for aviation. This gun allowed firing at a speed of 3200 rounds per minute, reliably ensuring the integrity of the trunks. Many years later, on the basis of this excellently proven in practice guns, they began to produce the GSh-30K gun, which was installed on the Mi-24P helicopter and Su-25, Su-39 aircraft.
Further fate
In 1973, Arkady Shipunov became a doctor of science, and two years later he received recognition as a professor. In 1979, on the basis of a “closed” decree of the leadership of the USSR, he was awarded the title of Hero of Socialist Labor, and also awarded the Order of Lenin and the Gold Medal “Hammer and Sickle”.
In 1987, Arkady Georgievich was appointed to the post of Director General of the NGO Precision. And since 1992, he headed the Instrument Design Bureau (Tula) for a long time.
It was Shipunov who became the person who managed to be at the origins of the modern school of designing controlled, highly accurate small arms and cannon weapons. Under the vigilant control of a brilliant inventor, a number of weapons were created for both artillery and rocket launchers. Also paired with Gryazev, he produced many high-precision guns for aviation.
Today it is no longer a secret that the Kornet, Metis, Competition, Kashtan, Pantsir-1C, Tunguska and many others missile systems are products of Shipunov’s labor. In Soviet times, the scientist's activities were strictly classified, and his authorship was not disclosed to anyone, which is not surprising, given the severity of that period.
but on the other hand
Arkady Shipunov for his long and fruitful life produced not only a great many types of weapons, but also such things that serve in the non-military spheres of human activity. So, for example, the academician had a hand in creating the Berezka household electronic sewing machine, an apparatus for bloodless stitching of blood vessels during surgical operations and other units.
The weapons scientist was an honorary citizen of the city of Tula and the entire region. Today, in this city there is even a street named after the famous engineer and innovator.
Arkady Shipunov died on April 25, 2013. They betrayed him to earth in Moscow at the Troekurovsky cemetery next to the grave of his wife, with whom he raised two children during his life.
On November 7, 2017, in the hometown of the academician and professor, they opened his bust and gave the name to the square in memory of him.