On September 14, 1902, Nikolai Kamov, one of the founding fathers of the Russian helicopter industry, was born in Irkutsk.
Kamov was brought up in an intelligent family, where he was instilled with an interest in education and science.
He demonstrated outstanding academic achievement, especially in mathematics.
Nevertheless, in childhood he gravitated more towards medicine and chemistry.
In 1918, after graduating from the Irkutsk commercial school, a successful young man became a student at the Tomsk Technological Institute.
While studying at the university, Kamov "fell ill" with aeronautics.
In Tomsk, he first saw the flight of an airplane, and his desk neighbor was the pilot Khariton Slavorossov (Semenenko), who set several world records before the First World War.
From the third year, Kamov, on his own initiative, purposefully studied aircraft engineering and participated in the work of the institute's aviation club.
After graduating from the institute, the young man took the position of a mechanical engineer at the Junkers Moscow concession plant.
As Dmitry Kornev, the founder of the Military Russia portal, explained in an interview with RT, Kamov began his professional career at a time when helicopter aeronautics was only taking its first and very timid steps.
“A helicopter is a much more complex product than an airplane.
He has great traction power.
This means that to lift it into the air, more powerful engines relative to the mass of the aircraft are required, ”says Kornev.
In addition, as the expert noted, at the dawn of the development of helicopter construction, designers from the leading countries of the world were busy looking for non-standard solutions in the field of mechanics.
First of all, it was required to make reliable elements of the rotors.
“In my opinion, Kamov, like many great inventors, was aware that the scope of his work could be in the plane of theoretical calculations and experiments for a long time.
In the 1920s and 1930s, Kamov lacked much to realize his ideas.
In fact, its design potential began to be realized as soon as Soviet materials science and engine building pulled up, ”said Kornev.
coaxial revolution
In 1927, Kamov began to try himself in the segment of naval aircraft construction.
Working in a bureau under the leadership of aircraft designer Dmitry Grigorovich, he became interested in the idea of installing a main rotor on an aircraft.
So in 1929 the first Soviet autogyro appeared.
The product was a monoplane, which had a pusher propeller (propeller) and a main rotor typical for aircraft of that time.
The first unit provided horizontal speed, and the second one created lift.
Autogyro development 1929
© rostec.ru
Later, while already working at the Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI), Kamov developed the world's first combat gyroplane.
The machine received the name A-7 and was used in battles with the Wehrmacht in the Smolensk region during the Great Patriotic War.
Despite his talent, Kamov still did not become the first inventor of a full-fledged helicopter.
The debut Soviet rotorcraft was developed by engineer Alexei Cheryomukhin.
The device took to the air in 1932 and, as tests showed, could rise above 600 m, that is, to record heights for that time.
The developer of the first serial helicopters was the aircraft designer Igor Sikorsky, who left the Russian Empire for the United States in 1919.
The main merit of Kamov is the creation of the so-called coaxial scheme - a layout with two rotors on the same axis, which rotate in opposite directions.
The first device where Kamov managed to implement a coaxial scheme was the Ka-8 machine.
The device looked more like a flying motorcycle, but its demonstration made a great impression on the Soviet leadership, and Kamov was appointed head of a specialized design bureau for helicopter construction.
“Kamov entered his name in the history of domestic and world aviation, primarily by not only proving the viability of the coaxial scheme.
He created the technological foundation for it to be used with high efficiency,” explained Dmitry Kornev.
The main application of Kamov's efforts was the development of deck rotorcraft.
The first brainchild of his design bureau was the Ka-10 ship helicopter.
A few years later, the Kamov enterprise manufactured the multi-purpose Ka-15 for the Navy.
The machine had a closed double cabin and landing gear instead of floats.
The helicopter was able to fight submarines, carry out reconnaissance and provide communications.
The product has been mass-produced since 1956 at a factory in Ulan-Ude.
Later, for the needs of the Navy, Kamov developed a new carrier-based Ka-25 helicopter.
The machine was equipped with a more powerful engine and could carry the radar equipment necessary to search for enemy submarines.
Anti-submarine helicopters Ka-25
© rostec.ru
This device served in the Soviet fleet for about 30 years.
For his invention, Kamov was awarded a state prize, and in 1972, on the day of his 70th birthday, the designer received the title of Hero of Socialist Labor.
A significant achievement of Kamov is the creation in the 1960s of the multi-purpose Ka-26.
It was the first domestic helicopter to receive conformity certificates in Western countries, including the United States.
The peculiarity of the machine was that a passenger unit, fuel tanks, a winch, agricultural and other equipment could be mounted on it.
The helicopter was operated in 17 foreign countries.
The Soviet industry produced ship, forest patrol, sanitary, geological exploration and other modifications of the Ka-26.
In total, more than 860 machines were manufactured.
The last product that Kamov worked on was the Ka-32 multi-purpose all-weather helicopter.
The designer died in November 1973, and the development of the machine was completed by his followers.
The device turned out to be unusually successful, especially in the fire-fighting version.
The machine has earned a reputation as one of the best in extinguishing forest fires and fight fires in high-rise buildings.
It is used in Russia, South Korea, China, Japan, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal.
The helicopter was constantly upgraded.
The most modern version is the Ka-32A11M.
The machine is equipped with an improved fire extinguishing system, improved VK-2500PS-02 engines and new on-board electronics.
Compactness and maneuverability
According to Dmitry Kornev, the coaxial scheme, which has become the hallmark of the Kamov school, gives the helicopter very tangible advantages.
The disadvantage of this system is the higher cost.
“First of all, it is compactness, which is important when placed on the deck, flying in dense urban areas.
It is also the best maneuverability, stability in crosswinds and stability in hover mode compared to the classic single-rotor scheme, ”Kornev emphasized.
In a RT commentary, Major General Vladimir Popov, Honored Military Pilot of the Russian Federation, said that Kamov's legacy showed itself in the best possible way in the development of rotorcraft for army aviation.
In particular, in the 1980s, designer Sergei Mikheev created the legendary Ka-50 Black Shark reconnaissance and attack helicopter.
The main feature of the machine was a single layout.
Thus, the functions of the navigator-operator were performed by the most modern electronics at that time.
Reconnaissance and attack helicopter Ka-50 "Black Shark"
© Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
The Ka-50 arsenal includes 12 Whirlwind missiles, blocks for eight dozen 80-mm air-to-ground unguided rockets, and a 30-mm A2A42 cannon, which rotates in horizontal and vertical planes.
In 1995, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation adopted the Black Shark, but later set the Kamovites the task of making a two-seat modification of the helicopter.
The result of these efforts was the Ka-52 "Alligator", which also received solid shock and electronic weapons.
Now this machine is actively used in the special operation to protect the Donbass, interacting with the reconnaissance and strike Mi-28NM "Night Hunter" and the transport and assault Mi-8AMTSh "Terminator".
In recent years, the Russian industry has been modernizing the Alligator fleet.
Improvement affects avionics and missile weapons.
“Today, the Ka-52M is the pinnacle of development of the design school created by Nikolai Kamov.
Now his legacy is in great demand in the military sphere, but the coaxial scheme is also used in new civilian vehicles.
Our country is very much indebted to Kamov's outstanding talent and perseverance," Popov summed up.