Lavochkin

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The aerospace company NPO SA Lavochkin ( Russian Научно-производственное объединение им. С.А.Лавочкина / Nauchno-proiswódstwennoje objedinénije IMENI SA Láwotschkina ) was (in 1937 as OKB-301 OKB ) of the Soviet designer Semyon Lavochkin established and located in Khimki . As an employee of the Central Aero- and Hydrodynamic Institute and later as head of his own office, he developed weapons and combat aircraft. In addition to the “La” for “Lavotschkin”, the early designs also have the letter “G” twice - for team members Gudkow and Gorbunow .

Especially during the Second World War , Lavochkin was important for the development of the La-5 and La-7 . The La-9 and La-11 were the last piston engine fighters in the Soviet Air Force .

The post-war developments are little known in the West. On December 26, 1948, the Lavochkin La-176 was the first Soviet aircraft to reach supersonic speed . The last aircraft program was the unfortunate La-250 , which was unique for its time in the Soviet Union.

After Semyon Lavochkin's death in 1960, the focus of the design office shifted to cruise missiles , surface-to-air missiles and space projects. Essential technical components of the Soviet lunar and planetary missions as well as performance-enhancing upper stages for the Soyuz and Proton launch vehicles were developed by Lavochkin. The NPO Lavochkin, which emerged from the OKB, is now primarily active in space technology.

Planes

La-15 in the Monino Museum

Unmanned military missiles

Space travel

Most of the interplanetary space probes of the Soviet Union (and later Russia) were developed and built at Lavochkin, including:

In addition, the Fregat upper stage, which is used in the Soyuz rocket , is currently being manufactured by NPO Lavochkin . The Cosmos 1 satellite equipped with solar sails was also built near Lavochkin.

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