Alexander Sergeyevich Yakovlev (; 22 August 1989) was a

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

aeronautical engineer Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is s ...

. He designed the

Yakovlev The Joint-stock company, JSC A.S. Yakovlev Design Bureau () is a Russian aircraft designer and manufacturer (design office prefix Yak). Its head office is in Aeroport District, Northern Administrative Okrug, Moscow. It is a subsidiary of Yakovle ...

military aircraft and founded the Yakovlev Design Bureau. Yakovlev joined the

Communist Party of the Soviet Union The Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU),. Abbreviated in Russian as КПСС, ''KPSS''. at some points known as the Russian Communist Party (RCP), All-Union Communist Party and Bolshevik Party, and sometimes referred to as the Soviet ...

in 1938.

Biography

Yakovlev was born in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

, where his father was an employee of the Nobel Brothers oil company. From 1919 to 1921, he worked as a part-time courier while still in school, and in 1922 he built his first model aeroplane as part of a school project. In 1924, he built a glider, the AVF-10, which made its first flight on 24 September 1924. The design won an award and secured him a position as a worker at the Zhukovsky Air Force Military Engineering Academy. However, his repeated attempts to gain admission to the Academy were denied due to his “lack of

proletariat The proletariat (; ) is the social class of wage-earners, those members of a society whose possession of significant economic value is their labour power (their capacity to work). A member of such a class is a proletarian or a . Marxist ph ...

origins”. In 1927, Yakovlev designed the AIR-1 ultralight aircraft. This was the first of ten aircraft he designed between 1927 and 1933. In 1927, Yakovlev finally gained admittance to the Academy and graduated in 1931. He was then assigned to the Moscow Aviation Plant No. 39, where his first design bureau of lightweight aviation was established in 1932. He became the main designer in 1935, then the chief designer (1956–1984) of aircraft for the

Design Bureau. The Yakovlev Design Bureau developed many fighter aircraft used by the

Soviet Air Force The Soviet Air Forces (, VVS SSSR; literally "Military Air Forces of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics"; initialism VVS, sometimes referred to as the "Red Air Force") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Sovie ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Particularly well known are the Yak-1, Yak-3, Yak-7 and

Yak-9 The Yakovlev Yak-9 (; NATO reporting name: Frank) is a single-engine, single-seat multipurpose fighter aircraft used by the Soviet Union and its allies during World War II and the early Cold War. It was a development of the robust and successful ...

as well as the Yak-6 transport. In 1945 Yakovlev designed one of the first Soviet aircraft with a jet engine, the

Yak-15 The Yakovlev Yak-15 (; NATO reporting name: Feather, USAF/ DOD designation Type 2) is a first-generation Soviet turbojet fighter developed by the Yakovlev design bureau (OKB) immediately after World War II. The main fuselage was that of Yako ...

. He also designed the first Soviet all-weather interceptor, the Yak-25P, and the first Soviet supersonic bomber, the

Yak-28 The Yakovlev Yak-28 () is a swept wing, turbojet-powered combat aircraft used by the Soviet Union. Produced initially as a tactical medium bomber, it was also manufactured in reconnaissance aircraft, reconnaissance, electronic warfare aircraft, ...

. In the post-war period, Yakovlev was best known for the civilian airliner, the

Yak-42 The Yakovlev Yak-42 (; NATO reporting name: "Clobber") is a 100/120-seat Trijet, three-engined mid-range passenger jet developed in the mid 1970s to replace the technically obsolete Tupolev Tu-134. It was the first airliner produced in the Sovie ...

, a three-engine medium-range aircraft, and numerous aerobatic models. Yakovlev served under

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

as a Vice-Minister of Aviation Industry between 1940 and 1946. Before the start of World War II, he made a number of trips abroad, including Italy, England and Germany, to study aircraft development in those countries. After the start of the war, he helped supervise the evacuation of aircraft factories to the east, and the production organisation, while continuing as head designer of his Bureau. He was also a correspondent member of the USSR Academy of Science in 1943. In 1946 he was awarded the title " General-Colonel of Aviation". In 1976 Yakovlev became academician of the USSR Academy of Science. He was a deputy of the

Supreme Soviet of the USSR The Supreme Soviet of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (SSUSSR) was the highest body of state authority of the Soviet Union (USSR) from 1936 to 1991. Based on the principle of unified power, it was the only branch of government in the S ...

(1946–1989). Yakovlev retired 21 August 1984. He was buried in the

Novodevichy Cemetery Novodevichy Cemetery () is a cemetery in Moscow. It lies next to the southern wall of the 16th-century Novodevichy Convent, which is the city's third most popular tourist site. History The cemetery was designed by Ivan Mashkov and inaugurated ...

in Moscow.

Awards and honors

Hero of Socialist Labour The Hero of Socialist Labour () was an Title of honor, honorific title in the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries from 1938 to 1991. It represented the highest degree of distinction in the USSR and was awarded for exceptional achievem ...

(1940, 1957) *

Lenin Prize The Lenin Prize (, ) was one of the most prestigious awards of the Soviet Union for accomplishments relating to science, literature, arts, architecture, and technology. It was originally created on June 23, 1925, and awarded until 1934. During ...

(1972) * Stalin Prize (1941, 1942, 1943, 1946, 1947, 1948) *

USSR State Prize The USSR State Prize () was one of the Soviet Union’s highest civilian honours, awarded from its establishment in September 1966 until the dissolution of the USSR in 1991. It recognised outstanding contributions in the fields of science, mathem ...

1977) *

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (, ) was an award named after Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the October Revolution. It was established by the Central Executive Committee on 6 April 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration bestowed by the Soviet ...

(10 times) *

Order of the October Revolution The Order of the October Revolution (, ''Orden Oktyabr'skoy Revolyutsii'') was instituted on 31 October 1967, in time for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution. It was conferred upon individuals or groups for services furthering communis ...

Order of the Red Banner The Order of the Red Banner () was the first Soviet military decoration. The Order was established on 16 September 1918, during the Russian Civil War by decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. It was the highest award of S ...

(twice) *

Order of Suvorov The Order of Suvorov () is a military decoration of the Russian Federation named in honor of Russian Generalissimo Prince Alexander Suvorov (1729–1800). History The Order of Suvorov was originally a Soviet Union, Soviet award established on ...

, 1st and 2nd class, *

Order of the Patriotic War The Order of the Patriotic War () is a Soviet Union, Soviet military Order (decoration), decoration that was awarded to all soldiers in the Soviet armed forces, security troops, and to Partisan (military), partisans for heroic deeds in the Easte ...

of the 1st class (twice) *

Order of the Red Banner of Labour The Order of the Red Banner of Labour () was an order of the Soviet Union established to honour great deeds and services to the Soviet state and society in the fields of production, science, culture, literature, the arts, education, sports ...

Order of the Red Star The Order of the Red Star () was a military decoration of the Soviet Union. It was established by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 6 April 1930 but its statute was only defined in decree of the Presidium of the ...

Legion of Honor The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and civil. Currently consisting of five classes, it was ...

, Officer (France) * Gold medal of the

Fédération Aéronautique Internationale The World Air Sports Federation (; FAI) is the world governing body for air sports, and also stewards definitions regarding human spaceflight. It was founded on 14 October 1905, and is headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland. It maintains worl ...

Memory

* A bronze bust of Yakovlev is installed in the Aviator Park in Moscow. * Yakovlev's name is: ** Design Bureau 115 (OKB 115); ** Moscow Machine-building Plant "Speed"; ** Aircraft Designer Yakovlev Street (formerly 2nd Usievich Street) in the Airport area (since 2006) in the CAO of Moscow; ** a street in

Novorossiysk Novorossiysk (, ; ) is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. It is one of the largest ports on the Black Sea. It is one of the few cities designated by the Soviet Union as a Hero City. The population was History In antiquity, the shores of the ...

; ** street in

Ulan-Ude Ulan-Ude (; , ; , ) is the capital city of Buryatia, Russia, located about southeast of Lake Baikal on the Uda River, Buryatia, Uda River at its confluence with the Selenga River, Selenga. According to the Russian Census (2021), 2021 Census, 43 ...

; ** the street in Kopishche (Minsk district).

Biography

Awards and honors

Memory

See also

References

Further reading