Dmitry Ilyich Kozlov (1 October 1919,
Tikhoretsk
Tikhoretsk () is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. It is the administrative center of the Tikhoretsky urban settlement and the Tikhoretsky District of the Krasnodar Territory. Population:
Administrative and municipal status
Within the framew ...
– 7 March 2009,
Samara
Samara, formerly known as Kuybyshev (1935–1991), is the largest city and administrative centre of Samara Oblast in Russia. The city is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Samara (Volga), Samara rivers, with a population of over 1.14 ...
) was a Russian
aerospace 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 ...
who founded the
Progress Rocket Space Center
Rocket and Space Centre "Progress" (), commonly known as RKTs Progress (), is a Russian joint-stock company under Roscosmos. It is responsible for building and operating the Soyuz family of rockets, which serve as the primary launch vehicles f ...
, the developer and manufacturer of the
Soyuz family of rockets.
Kozlov fought the
Nazis
Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...
in the
Second World War
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 ...
, losing his left arm.
In the 1950s he worked under
Sergey Korolyov
Sergei Pavlovich Korolev (14 January 1966) was the lead Soviet rocket engineer and spacecraft designer during the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union in the 1950s and 1960s. He invented the R-7 Rocket, Sputnik 1, and w ...
and was in charge of designing the
R-7 missile, the design of which would become the basis of the Soyuz rocket. As a leading designer of
intercontinental ballistic missile
An intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is a ballistic missile with a range (aeronautics), range greater than , primarily designed for nuclear weapons delivery (delivering one or more Thermonuclear weapon, thermonuclear warheads). Conven ...
s Kozlov was awarded a
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 ...
(1957), two
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 ...
s (1976, 1983), a
Russian Federation State Prize (1994) and was named a
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 ...
on two occasions (1961, 1979).
Early life
Kozlov was born on October 1, 1919, in the village of Tikhoretskaya in the Caucasian Department of the Kuban Region (now
Tikhoretsk
Tikhoretsk () is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. It is the administrative center of the Tikhoretsky urban settlement and the Tikhoretsky District of the Krasnodar Territory. Population:
Administrative and municipal status
Within the framew ...
, Krasnodar Krai, Russia).
His father worked in railway transport so he moved schools frequently. He studied in
Vladikavkaz
Vladikavkaz, formerly known as Ordzhonikidze () or Dzaudzhikau (), is the capital city of North Ossetia–Alania, Russia. It is located in the southeast of the republic at the foothills of the Caucasus, situated on the Terek (river), Terek River. ...
,
Grozny
Grozny (, ; ) is the capital city of Chechnya, Russia.
The city lies on the Sunzha River. According to the 2021 Russian census, 2021 census, it had a population of 328,533 — up from 210,720 recorded in the 2002 Russian Census, 2002 ce ...
, Novorossiyk and finally graduating from high school in
Pyatigorsk
Pyatigorsk (; Circassian languages, Circassian: Псыхуабэ, ''Psıxwabæ'') is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Stavropol Krai, Russia, located on the Podkumok River, about from the town of Mineralnye Vody, which has an i ...
in 1937.
He'd hoped to be a sailor, but was not accepted into naval school due to his poor eyesight.
In 1937 he enrolled the Leningrad Military Mechanical Institute until his fifth year when he enrolled in the
Leningrad People's Militia in 1941 on the outbreak of
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 ...
.
Military career
While in the Leningrad Peoples Militia, he was wounded in August 1941 in the battles near Luha.
After recovering from his wounds, he enlisted in the
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...
's 165th Construction Battalion of the 2nd Shock Army on the Volkhov Front.
He became a second lieutenant in November 1943 and by the end of 1943, he was the platoon commander of the 71st Separate Marine Rifle Brigade.
During the Leningrad-Novgorod offensive operation (January–February 1944), he was seriously wounded for a second time.
During the Vyborg offensive operation on July 12, 1944, he lost his left arm.
In September 1944, he was finally demobilized for his disabilities, so he returned to his education.
Further education
After Dmitri returned to the Leningrad Military Mechanical Institute, he graduated in December 1945.
In 1946, he studied at a special course at the
Moscow Higher Technical School
The Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU; ), sometimes colloquially referred as the ''Bauman School'' or ''Baumanka'' (), is a public technical university (polytechnic) located in Moscow, Russia. Bauman University offers B.S., M.S ...
.
In June 1946, he worked as part of a technical commission to study the captured rocket technology from Germany when he met Sergey Korolyov.
Work
In May 1946, he worked at Plant No. 88 of the Ministry of Armament of the USSR in
Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad,. known as Königsberg; ; . until 1946, is the largest city and administrative centre of Kaliningrad Oblast, an Enclave and exclave, exclave of Russia between Lithuania and Poland ( west of the bulk of Russia), located on the Prego ...
on the development of long-range guided ballistic missiles.
Starting in June 1951, he worked at OKB-1 of the State Committee of the Council of Ministers of the USSR for Defense Equipment in Kaliningrad where he became the lead designer of the
R-5 ballistic missile and the world's first intercontinental ballistic missile: the
R-7.
In April 1958, he became the Deputy Chief Designer of OKB-1 responsible for the mass production of the R-7 missile in
Kuibyshev.
In January 1961, Kozlov led the design of the first two stages of what would become the launch vehicle of the
Vostok spacecraft
Vostok (, translated as "East") was a class of single-pilot crewed spacecraft built by the Soviet Union. The first human spaceflight was accomplished with Vostok 1 on April 12, 1961, by Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin.
The Vostok programme ma ...
, which enabled
Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin; Gagarin's first name is sometimes transliterated as ''Yuriy'', ''Youri'', or ''Yury''. (9 March 1934 – 27 March 1968) was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut who, aboard the first successful Human spaceflight, crewed sp ...
to make the world's first human flight to outer space.
After 1967, Dmitri led the development of a number of Soviet satellites that studied ecology, mapping and space research.
From 1983, he was the Central Specialized Design Bureau head and general designer.
In 1996, he was the General Designer of the
Progress
Progress is movement towards a perceived refined, improved, or otherwise desired state. It is central to the philosophy of progressivism, which interprets progress as the set of advancements in technology, science, and social organization effic ...
program.
He retired in 2003.
Awards and accolades
* Four
Orders 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 ...
(April 20, 1956, July 29, 1960, June 17, 1961, and July 26, 1979)
*
Orders of the October Revolution (April 26, 1971)
* Patriotic War of the 1st Degree (March 11, 1985)
* Red Star (April 7, 1944)
* Russian Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 2nd Degree (November 11, 1994)
* Gold Medal of the Russian Academy of Sciences (1996)
* Laureate of the Lenin Prize (1957)
* Two
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 ...
s (1976, 1983)
* State Prize of the Russian Federation in the field of Science and Technology (1994)
* Honored Worker of Industry of the USSR (1989)
* Honored Worker of Science and Technology of the Russian Federation (1992)
* A bronze bust of Kozlov was installed in the city of
Tikhoretsk
Tikhoretsk () is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. It is the administrative center of the Tikhoretsky urban settlement and the Tikhoretsky District of the Krasnodar Territory. Population:
Administrative and municipal status
Within the framew ...
* In
Samara
Samara, formerly known as Kuybyshev (1935–1991), is the largest city and administrative centre of Samara Oblast in Russia. The city is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Samara (Volga), Samara rivers, with a population of over 1.14 ...
, a memorial plaque was installed on the house that he lived.
See also
*
List of Russian inventors
This is a list of inventors from the Russian Federation, Soviet Union, Russian Empire, Tsardom of Russia and Grand Duchy of Moscow, including both ethnic Russians and people of other ethnicities.
This list also includes those who were born in ...
Literature
"Rockets and people"–
B. E. Chertok, M: "mechanical engineering", 1999. ;
*
A.I. Ostashev, ''Sergey Pavlovich Korolyov - The Genius of the 20th Century'' — 2010 M. of Public Educational Institution of Higher Professional Training MGUL .
* "S. P. Korolev. Encyclopedia of life and creativity" - edited by C. A. Lopota,
RSC Energia. S. P. Korolev, 2014
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kozlov, Dmitri Ilyich
1919 births
2009 deaths
Russian aerospace engineers
Soviet space program personnel
Soviet engineers
20th-century Russian engineers
Russian inventors
Recipients of the Lenin Prize
Recipients of the USSR State Prize
Heroes of Socialist Labour
Recipients of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 2nd class
Corresponding Members of the USSR Academy of Sciences
Corresponding Members of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Soviet military personnel of World War II