Aircraft designer Oleg Antonov was the creator of many models of aircraft for various purposes. After World War II, he became the head of the design bureau in Kiev, where most of his projects were implemented.
A family
February 7, 1904 in the family of civil engineer Konstantin Antonov Oleg Antonov was born. The aircraft designer was born in a small village of Trinity Podolsky district of Moscow province. When the boy was 8 years old, his parents moved to Saratov.
To the Antonovs often came the brother of his father, Vladislav. Uncle told amazing stories about aviation to his nephew. It was just in its infancy, and that is why it was especially striking for the imagination of contemporaries. Oleg Antonov was among this enthusiastic audience. The aircraft designer later recalled how his uncle's stories greatly influenced his childhood dreams of the future. It was then that the little boy realized that he was destined to fly, and any other career would be a waste of time for him.
Passion for life
Oleg’s hobby in the family was shared only by his grandmother. Once she gave her grandson a toy model of an airplane. At the same time, father and mother did not pay attention to the son’s passion, believing that in the future he should do something more thorough and familiar for that time. But, despite this, photos and books about airplanes that were collected by young Oleg Antonov began to appear in the house. The aircraft designer kept these materials until the end of his days. From literature at hand and newspaper clippings, the boy compiled his own directory, which greatly helped him in the near future. Oleg at a very young age knew the history of aircraft manufacturing very well and was ready to spend hours discussing the biographies of his favorite pilots.
In Saratov, the boy went to study at a local real school. He made that choice for the exact sciences. But, besides them, the student was fond of other subjects. For example, Oleg perfectly mastered the French language. Later, this skill became his indispensable assistant in meetings with foreign delegations of Western experts.
The childhood of the future aircraft designer was overshadowed by a terrible loss. In 1914, the First World War began. Oleg’s mother signed up for sisters of mercy and began to help the wounded in a local hospital. During one of the dressings, Anna Efimovna was hit by a deadly infection that got into her body through a small scratch. In the summer of 1915, she died of blood poisoning. Her only son was brought up by her grandmother.
"Aviation Fans Club"
After completing primary education, Oleg decided to enter a flight school. However, he was not accepted due to non-compliance with physical requirements. Typhoid fever and famine during the war years affected the youth’s health. There came a defining moment when the biography of aircraft designer Antonov could have developed completely differently.
Finding himself at a crossroads, the young man decided to enter the railway department of Saratov University. In this city, it was as close to aviation topics as possible. However, a year later the university was reorganized, and the Antonov faculty was abolished. He was offered to go to the construction department, but he refused.
The guy was saved by his Aviation Fans Club. He created this circle with his childhood friends, who shared a passion for airplanes. The comrades were engaged in amateur performances - in the conditions of information hunger, they collected thematic materials and saved up money to collect their own glider. Meanwhile, the Society of Friends of the Air Fleet appeared in Saratov. The organization allocated the Club a small room within the walls of an industrial technical school. Thanks to this help, in 1924 the biography of aircraft designer Antonov was marked by an important event. He created his first aircraft - the dove glider.
From Koktebel to Leningrad
Soon Oleg and his comrades were invited to Koktebel. The second all-union glider rally was held in this Crimean town. Antonov, along with his friend Zhenya Bravara miracle, were able to deliver their “Dove” to the other end of the country. To do this, they had to load the car onto the train platform.
In Koktebel, a general review of vehicles assembled by the same enthusiasts as Antonov took place. The aircraft designer later recalled his mixed feelings when his Dove, piloted by a professional pilot, never took off, but only made a few timid jumps. Of course, this was a failure, but it was the trip to Koktebel that was able to breathe new strength into the young man. In Crimea, he met with numerous associates who, like him, only dreamed of conquering the sky.
Antonov’s participation in the glider rally was not in vain. His candidacy was recommended for admission to the Leningrad Polytechnic Institute. The young man was really enrolled in the faculty of ships, in the department of hydroaviation. This place was almost the best in the country, what can we say about comparison with the former Saratov University, in which Oleg Antonov first appeared. The aircraft designer got there the necessary experience and skills that made him a first-class expert in his field. There were no problems with specialized literature in Leningrad. The habit of cutting photos from yellowed newspaper chronicles is a thing of the past. The student quickly got used to the new city. He became an active participant in various circles and sections.
Glider Designer
Studying at the university ended in 1930. In 1933, the 27-year-old designer was appointed head of the design bureau of one of Moscow's glider factories. For this age, it was an unprecedented success. What did Oleg Antonov deserve it? The aircraft designer was not only a pro, he was distinguished by leadership qualities and was not afraid to be proactive where his colleagues could get confused. Antonov showed all his outstanding skills and character traits already at the first "real" place of work.
These were the years of the “great leap”, when new types of industry were just being created. Antonov Design Bureau was assigned to the plant in Tushino. The only catch was that this enterprise had not yet been built. The designers had to work in the workshop allocated by Osaviahim. She was not somewhere, but in the basement on the Garden Ring. It used to be used as a wine cellar. Now two teams worked there - gliders and reactivists. The head of the first group was Oleg Antonov, the leader of the second was the equally legendary Sergey Korolev. Then the famous designer lived in the same cramped conditions in which he created the future of domestic aviation.
The team working on the creation of new aircraft models was set a clear goal - to give the country a ship that could become accessible to a wide variety of layers of the Soviet population. In fact, the industry leadership wanted to deprive aviation of its elitism. Antonov achieved his goal. His company began to produce two thousand new ships a year, which was unheard of for the young Soviet economy.
The Great Patriotic War
On June 22, 1941, Soviet aircraft designer O.K. Antonov met in Kaunas, Lithuania. This city was located very close to the state border of the USSR. Therefore, it was him who was among the first to attack the Germans. Antonov managed to evacuate from the city just a few hours before the arrival of the Wehrmacht forces. Despite the bombing, he still returned to Moscow.
In the capital, it all started from scratch. A new team was selected, led by Oleg Konstantinovich Antonov. The biography of the talented designer was already well known to the state leadership. Therefore, he received several strategically important tasks. Antonov was instructed to develop a ship that would be an excellent tool for transporting troops. In just a few months of painstaking work, the A-7 appeared. The ship was designed for seven passengers. They began to use it to provide food and ammunition to partisan groups that were seated behind enemy lines.
In 1943, the Yakovlev Design Bureau received an important new employee. They became Oleg Antonov. The aircraft designer, whose biography was already full of various implemented projects, took part in the creation and modification of such models as the Yak-3 and Yak-9. These were fighters, which became formidable weapons in the hands of the Soviet army. Antonov and Yakovlev were familiar from their youthful years. For the first time they met at the already mentioned rally in Koktebel, where then, by the will of fate, there were many future luminaries of aircraft building business.
Moving to Kiev
At the end of the war, when the country was already waiting for news of the long-awaited victory, Antonov received an offer to prepare a draft of a new multi-purpose aircraft. The designer has not yet taken up such machines. The future An-2 was intended including for agricultural purposes. It had to be universal and be able to land both at the airfield and on an unprepared field.
A special department for the Yakovlev Design Bureau in Novosibirsk was created for the project. Antonov moved to the east of the country. There he gathered a new team, which consisted mainly of yesterday's students - fresh graduates of the local aviation technical school. It was a big risk, but the authority of the specialist and his unprecedented energy did their job. An-2 began to be produced in 1947. However, for the further release of this model, the team moved to Kiev.
In this city, Antonov’s donkey was also the end of his life. The aircraft designer, whose biography was full of travels and business trips to various parts of the country, finally found its place. The Kiev bureau became his well-deserved estate. However, Antonov’s professional authority often meant nothing to the Soviet bureaucracy, which “cut down” projects and initiatives, knowing for sure how it would be “better” for the industry. Therefore, the designer had to literally beat off their planes. The struggle with nomenclature bureaucracy could not but affect how Oleg Antonov Antonov felt. The personal life of this person was hardly imagined without sports. But even he did not save the designer from stress and complications. While still studying in Leningrad, Antonov earned tuberculosis. This disease periodically reminded itself and most often precisely at the moments of the most intense struggle with party functionaries.
An series
In the 50s, many new models appeared, the creator of which was Antonov. The aircraft designer, whose photos began to get into all Soviet newspapers, worked on a strict schedule every day. He laid out more than 100%, so his design bureau became a platform for testing more and more aircraft. In the late 50s, passenger ships An (An-10 and An-24) appeared. True, Oleg Konstantinovich stopped such projects when one of his models with passengers on board crashed.
Each new aircraft created in the bowels of the Antonov Design Bureau experienced several more modifications. In this characteristic attitude towards the car, the professional handwriting of Oleg Konstantinovich was manifested. For him, any project in the An series was a significant part of his own life. In addition, Antonov was well aware of his own responsibility to the Soviet people and the price of even the slightest mistake.
Much more appeared transport "Anov". The apogee of this line was the An-124, which is also known as Ruslan. This aircraft, which appeared in 1982, was the world's largest mass-produced cargo aircraft. As it turned out, this project became the swan song of a great designer. In this machine, he managed to realize all those ideas that accompanied his professional path. Then the head of the Kiev Design Bureau was elected an academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences. This was another confirmation of his merits and the milestone through which all outstanding aircraft designers passed. Oleg Antonov, in addition to his main activity, was engaged in teaching. At the Zhukovsky Kharkov Aviation Institute, he was the head of the department of aircraft construction.
The nature and tastes of the aircraft
Oleg Antonov stood out from his colleagues not only because of his unique professionalism. This man managed to spend his time as efficiently as possible. The designer was a comprehensively developed person, whose life consisted not only of airplanes and numerous details of these complex machines. Oleg Konstantinovich loved art and even organized art exhibitions in Kiev and Moscow.
Antonov (an aircraft designer whose family consisted of many relatives) loved friendly feasts, although he always tried to stay out of the spotlight. All loved ones in his memoirs emphasized his sincere modesty. If it wasn’t about business, then Antonov liked to start a conversation about literature or music. His favorite writers were Gogol and Saint Exupery. However, always an active and proactive aircraft designer paid attention not only to art. In the 80s, Oleg Konstantinovich led the campaign in defense of Lake Baikal, which was threatened with industrial pollution. Having lived in the workshop all his youth, Antonov appreciated nature more and more over the years. At home, he started a garden, which he carefully looked after.
The ideal of a professional
In the professional environment, there were many rumors about those unique features that Antonov Oleg Konstantinovich possessed. The aircraft designer was remarkable for its democratic democracy. All disputes and issues related to the future of aircraft in his design bureau were discussed by the whole team in a public mode. There are cases when Antonov (an aircraft designer whose "children" flew over the entire Soviet Union) admitted his own mistakes and introduced changes to the project proposed by his subordinates.
Oleg Konstantinovich remained active and active until his last days. He continued to work as if nothing had happened, despite his steadily aging age. However, even in the eighth dozen, the colossus of the aviation industry remained alert and fresh. He looked younger than his age and also behaved youthfully.
The great aircraft designer died on April 4, 1984 in Kiev, the city to which he devoted almost 40 years of his life. It is with this place that a large part of the professional biography of the deceased is connected. After his death, the Kiev design bureau was naturally renamed the Antonov Design Bureau. The merits of a specialist were emphasized during his lifetime with numerous awards. Oleg Antonov was a laureate of the Lenin Prize, he received immediately three orders of Lenin, the title of Hero of Socialist Labor, etc.