Sokol Aircraft Plant () is a manufacturer of
MiG fighters, based in
Nizhny Novgorod
Nizhny Novgorod ( ; rus, links=no, Нижний Новгород, a=Ru-Nizhny Novgorod.ogg, p=ˈnʲiʐnʲɪj ˈnovɡərət, t=Lower Newtown; colloquially shortened to Nizhny) is a city and the administrative centre of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast an ...
. It was founded in 1932 and is also known as "Aviation Plant Nr. 21", named after
Sergo Ordzhonikidze
Sergo Konstantinovich Ordzhonikidze, ; (born Grigol Konstantines dze Orjonikidze; 18 February 1937) was an Old Bolshevik and a Soviet statesman.
Born and raised in Georgia, in the Russian Empire, Ordzhonikidze joined the Bolsheviks at an e ...
. During 45 years of serial production the plant manufactured about 13,500 combat aircraft.
The company is headquartered in
Nizhny Novgorod
Nizhny Novgorod ( ; rus, links=no, Нижний Новгород, a=Ru-Nizhny Novgorod.ogg, p=ˈnʲiʐnʲɪj ˈnovɡərət, t=Lower Newtown; colloquially shortened to Nizhny) is a city and the administrative centre of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast an ...
. Their main production facility, with the adjacent airfield (known in the west as
Sormovo Airfield) is located on the western outskirts of the city, in Moskovsky City District. For a long time, it was considered that district's most important industrial enterprise and main employer. The "Sormovo" appellation attached to the plant's air field may be because formerly (1956–1970) today's Moskovsky District was part of the
Sormovo District.
To help financing, Sokol diversified after the
Cold War
The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
and during the
financially desperate 1990s in Russia. Hardly anybody ordered new fighter jets, so Sokol even produced
cutlery
Cutlery (also referred to as silverware, flatware, or tableware) includes any hand implement used in preparing, serving, and especially eating food in Western culture. A person who makes or sells cutlery is called a cutler.
While most cutlers ...
to become less dependent of the aviation sector. From 2006, Sokol encouraged flight tourism for
MiG-29
The Mikoyan MiG-29 (; NATO reporting name: Fulcrum) is a twinjet, twin-engine fighter aircraft designed in the Soviet Union. Developed by the Mikoyan design bureau as an air superiority fighter during the 1970s, the MiG-29, along with the large ...
and
MiG-31
The Mikoyan MiG-31 (; NATO reporting name: Foxhound) is a supersonic interceptor aircraft developed for the Soviet Air Forces by the Mikoyan design bureau as a replacement for the earlier MiG-25 "Foxbat"; the MiG-31 is based on and shares de ...
flights in order to earn some additional income.
The Sokol company is seen as the future manufacturer of
MiG-35 jets.
List of aircraft currently in production
*
MiG-29UB (1984–present),
MiG-29UBT
*
MiG-31
The Mikoyan MiG-31 (; NATO reporting name: Foxhound) is a supersonic interceptor aircraft developed for the Soviet Air Forces by the Mikoyan design bureau as a replacement for the earlier MiG-25 "Foxbat"; the MiG-31 is based on and shares de ...
*
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 ...
Yak-130 (development 1996, 2009–present)
*
Myasishchev
V. M. Myasishchev Experimental Design Bureau (Экспериментальный Машиностроительный Завод им. В. М. Мясищева) or OKB-23, founded in 1951 by MGB UdSSR Vladimir Mikhailovich Mya ...
M-101T Gzhel/Sokol
*
Akkord-201 light twin aircraft
*''Sokol'' sea cutter
*''Volga-2'' WIG aircraft
List of aircraft formerly in production
*
Polikarpov
Polikarpov Design Bureau was a Soviet Union, Soviet OKB (design bureau) for aircraft, led by Nikolai Polikarpov, Nikolai Nikolaevich Polikarpov. Dux Factory was acquired by the USSR and became part of Polikarpov.
After the death of Polikarpo ...
I-5 (1932-1934),
I-16, (since 1934, 22 modifications)
*
Lavochkin
NPO Lavochkin (, OKB-301, also called Lavochkin Research and Production Association or shortly Lavochkin Association, LA) is a Russian aerospace company. It is a major player in the Russian space program, being the developer and manufacturer of t ...
LaGG-3,
La-5,
La-7
The Lavochkin La-7 (; NATO reporting name: Fin) was a piston-engined single-seat Soviet fighter aircraft developed during World War II by the Lavochkin Design Bureau. It was a development and refinement of the Lavochkin La-5, and the last in ...
,
La-15 (1948-1949)
*
Mikoyan-Gurevich
Russian Aircraft Corporation "MiG" (), commonly known as Mikoyan and MiG, is a Russian aerospace and defence company headquartered in Begovoy District, Moscow.
Mikoyan was the successor to the Soviet Mikoyan and Gurevich Design Bureau (Мик ...
MiG-15
The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 (; USAF/DoD designation: Type 14; NATO reporting name: Fagot) is a jet fighter aircraft developed by Mikoyan-Gurevich for the Soviet Union. The MiG-15 was one of the first successful jet fighters to incorporate s ...
(1949-1952)
*
MiG-17
The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 (; NATO reporting name: Fresco) is a high-subsonic fighter aircraft produced in the Soviet Union from 1952 and was operated by air forces internationally. The MiG-17 was license-built in China as the Shenyang J-5 an ...
(1952-1954)
*
MiG-19
The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-19 (; NATO reporting name: Farmer) is a Soviet second generation, single-seat, twinjet fighter aircraft. It was the first Soviet production aircraft capable of supersonic speeds in level flight. A comparable U.S. " Cen ...
(1955-1957)
*
MiG-21
The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 (; NATO reporting name: Fishbed) is a supersonic jet aircraft, jet fighter aircraft, fighter and interceptor aircraft, designed by the Mikoyan, Mikoyan-Gurevich OKB, Design Bureau in the Soviet Union. Its nicknames in ...
(1959-1985),
MiG-21-93
*
MiG-25
The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25 (; NATO reporting name: Foxbat) is a supersonic interceptor and reconnaissance aircraft that is among the fastest military aircraft to enter service. Designed by the Soviet Union's Mikoyan-Gurevich bureau, it is a ...
(1969-1985)
*
MiG-31
The Mikoyan MiG-31 (; NATO reporting name: Foxhound) is a supersonic interceptor aircraft developed for the Soviet Air Forces by the Mikoyan design bureau as a replacement for the earlier MiG-25 "Foxbat"; the MiG-31 is based on and shares de ...
(1979-1994),
MiG-31BM
References
External links
Official SiteOfficial Site about MiG flights
{{Authority control
Russian Aircraft Corporation MiG
Aircraft manufacturers of the Soviet Union
Manufacturing companies based in Nizhniy Novgorod
1932 establishments in the Soviet Union
Military history of Nizhny Novgorod