May 18, 1935 in Moscow, in the Central airfield plane crashed with the largest airplane of its time – ANT-20 “Maxim Gorky”.
The idea of creating a giant aircraft that would carry the name became Maxim Gorky, was born in October 1932 in connection with the 40th anniversary of the literary and social activities of the writer. He was to be the flagship of a special squadron of aircraft designed for campaigning.
At the initiative of prominent journalist Mikhail Koltsov across the country has been organized to raise funds for the construction of aircraft. In a very short time to gather six million rubles. To guide the design and construction of the aircraft was established All-Union Committee. Project development and construction of the aircraft was assigned to the Central Aero-Hydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI).
Lead the project was entrusted to aircraft designer Andrei Tupolev, who was the first in the Soviet Union created a heavy-metal monoplane, such as bombers TB-1 (ANT-4) TB-3 (ANT-6), TB-4 (ANT-16). The new aircraft was created as a development shestimotornogo bomber TB-4, but unlike him, had to carry 1.5 tons more payload and operate with a relatively small airfields length of the runway during take-off it was to be only 300-400 meters (instead of 800 meters from the TB-4).
In April 1933, was presented the preliminary design of the aircraft, it provides the possibility of using aircraft as agitation, passenger, transport, bomber, it could serve as mobile headquarters for the top military and political structures of power.
In the creation of an aircraft other than the Tupolev Design Bureau, which was the part of TsAGI, attended dozens of other scientific and industrial enterprises of the country. Construction began his July 4, 1933 at the Voronezh aircraft factory, and at the beginning of April 1934 the aircraft was transported in parts to the Central Airport in Moscow, where he started assembling and debugging machines.
April 24, 1934 a special commission made public acceptance of the aircraft. He was given the name “Maxim Gorky” (ANT-20).
At the time of writing it was the largest aircraft in the world. The length of the fuselage, which had a rectangular cross section, is 32.5 meters, width – 3.5 meters, height – 2.5 meters. The sheer size allows you to put the passengers not only in the fuselage, but also in the central part of the wing, more than two meters thick. Aircraft propulsion engines consisted of eight, six of them were installed in the toe wing, two in tandem device on the fuselage. The crew through the passages in the wing had the opportunity to go to the engines to correct possible malfunctions in flight. Power reserve allowed to continue flying while stopping two motors. The fuel tanks are located in the wing panel. The engine is compressed air. To facilitate the management of the stabilizer can be rotated by means of powerful electric mechanisms. The plane was made of duralumin and had corrugated (wavy) trim.
Boarding crew and passengers via integrated ladder at the bottom of the fuselage, which is in the retracted position became part of the floor.
navigation equipment ANT-20 designed to operate day and night, including night landing on unprepared terrain. For the first time in domestic practice has been installed on the aircraft autopilot.
ANT-20 had an automatic telephone exchange with 16 rooms for communication between offices, pneumatic mail, allowing the commander to exchange notes and a radio operator on board journalists, agitators, powerful speaker “Voice from the sky”, radios, film projectors, photo lab, printing and others. For all the equipment on board the installed power plant generates direct and alternating current (for the first time in the domestic aircraft system was applied three-phase AC voltage of 127 volts).
A lot of attention was paid to the comfort on board of ANT-20. The passenger compartments have carpets, spacious seats, curtains, tables with reading lamps. There were also sleeping cabins, electrified buffet with hot and cold snacks, a warehouse for provisions, library, luggage compartment, wash basins and toilets. The total floor space of the aircraft is more than 100 square meters.
Empty weight ANT-20 amounted to 28.5 tons, and a normal take-off – 42 tons. The plane can fly at a speed of 260 kilometers per hour and rise to a height of 7,500 meters (according to other sources – up to 4500 meters). The maximum range was 1,000 kilometers. The crew consisted of 20 people (staff). ANT-20 can transfer the 60 passengers. Like all machines in those years, I disassemble the plane, allowing them to transport by rail.
June 17, 1934 test pilot Mikhail Gromov first raised the ANT-20 into the air. The pilot noted the simplicity and ease of control a huge aircraft. The second flight on 19 June. “Maxim Gorky”, escorted by two fighters I-4, flying over Red Square, welcoming returnees Chelyuskinites. In the same year during the flight tests of the airplane established two unofficial world record – a weight of 10 tons and 15 tons was raised to a height of 5000 meters.
After the production tests in August 1934, the ANT-20 was handed over agiteskadrilyu in them. Gorky as its flagship. Until May 1935 the aircraft was operated successfully for its main purpose. As a passenger on board “Maxim Gorky” flew writer and aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupery, who visited Moscow in the spring of 1935 as part of the French military delegation. ANT-20 was involved in 1935 during the May Day parade on Red Square in Moscow.
May 18, 1935 TsAGI leadership decided to roll over Moscow of people who distinguished themselves in the construction of “Maxim Gorky”. The first flight took 38 people, including seven children of employees of the plant TsAGI and their families. Assigned to pilot the plane experienced pilots: tester of TsAGI Nicholas Zhurova and pilot agiteskadrili Ivan Mikheev. In this flight, “Maxim Gorky” was accompanied by training aircraft TsAGI (the fighter I-5) under the control of the pilot Nicholas Blagina and two-seater F-5 with the operator of the Moscow film studio of military training films Alexander Pullin on board. Planned filming.
During the flight, accompanying I-5 began to do aerobatics in the vicinity of the aircraft “Maxim Gorky” and crashed into his wing. Because of the injuries ANT-20 began to fall apart in the air and separate parts fell to the ground in the village of “Falcon” at the aerodrome. The second plane also crashed. As a result of the disaster killed 50 people – passengers and crew, “Maxim Gorky”, as well as a fighter pilot. All of the victims buried in Moscow at the Novodevichy cemetery.
In May 1935 Council of People’s Commissars decided: instead of the deceased, “Maxim Gorky” to build three aircraft of the same type and size. The catastrophe has stirred up the whole country. In a short time it was collected more than 68 million rubles. This enabled the People’s Commissars of the USSR extend the list further thirteen cars of the same class.
The Tupolev was designed production aircraft, designated ANT-20bis. The design of the airplane made a number of improvements: removed the tandem engine installation on the fuselage by placing six new more powerful engines. The fuselage was converted for placing 64 passengers.
May 15, 1939 the first production car, the designation SS-124 (passenger airplane factory №124), was first raised in the air. After successfully passing the state tests of the aircraft was transferred to Aeroflot. Until December 1940 it was used for transportation of passengers on the route Moscow – Mineralnye Vody. Since November 1941 the SS-124 passed the Uzbek management of the Civil Air Fleet, carrying cargo and passengers on the Central Asian routes. December 14, 1942 the aircraft crashed 90 kilometers from Tashkent (Uzbekistan). PS-124 series was launched.
The material is based on open sources of information
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