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Autogyro AK

This device, designated AK (artillery spotter), was the last gyroplane developed by N.I. Kamov in the pre-war period. In it, the designer summarized all the achievements of previous years that could make AK the most advanced Soviet-built device. It is known that tactical and technical requirements (TTT) for a new gyroplane were prepared at the Air Force Research Institute in the spring of 1940, after which they were sent to the 19th department of Plant No. 156.

The AK was defined as a mobile observation post and was intended to be given to specialized artillery squadrons. In accordance with the TTT, confirmed by the Main Artillery Directorate (GAU), an autogyro equipped with an MV-6 engine with a capacity of 220 liters. Additional requirements included: good visibility in all directions, a folding rotor, making it ready to take off within 15 minutes, good stability and controllability, the possibility of transportation with a folded rotor behind a machine at a speed of up to 40 km / h. The specified technical requirements were approved on March 7, 1940 by the head of the Research Institute of the Air Force Filin.

The development of the autogyro AK coincided with the government’s decision to organize a separate “pilot plant of screw devices” based on existing facilities in the area of the Ukhtomsky airdrome. On March 21, 1940, the People’s Commissar of the Aviation Industry A.I. Shakhurin signed an order to establish a new pilot plant No. 290, the construction and equipment of which should have been completed by January 1, 1941. N.I. Kamov was appointed Chief Designer and Acting Director of this plant, and his deputy was M.L.Mil.

At a new location, the Kamov team, simultaneously with the retrofitting of the factory premises and the performance testing of the A-7 gyroplanes, began designing the AK. This gyroplane in its layout was noticeably different from all previous Soviet designs. Seats of two pilots sitting side by side were placed in front of the ovoid gondola to improve visibility. Behind her, an in-line air-cooled engine MV-6 was equipped with a variable-pitch propeller. The traditional fuselage was absent, its role was played by a spatial truss ending in a powerful tail unit. Longitudinal and transverse control of the gyroplane was carried out using a lever hanging over the cockpit of the left pilot. This control lever allowed changing the plane of rotation of the rotor by changing the cyclic pitch of the blades.

Kamov suggested two options for gyroplane flights. In the version of the “jumping gyroplane” the rise was carried out due to the high kinetic energy of the rotor. In the version “gyroplane-helicopter”, the reactive moment of the bearing rotor was countered by three powerful vertical surfaces equipped with special profiled slots to increase their efficiency. According to initial calculations, the AK could fly in the range 38-195 km/h.

Before the onset of 1941, in the Kamov Design Bureau they completed the detailed design of the AK and began to manufacture its parts and assemblies. The appearance of the machine in its final form has changed somewhat, in particular, the cockpit was equipped with a closed lamp, providing an almost circular view. The changes and additional enhancements increased the weight of the empty AK from 872 kg to 1026 kg. The latter circumstance led to the fact that Kamov, together with Mil, examined the entire structure in order to reduce weight. Nevertheless, the following weight value of the empty gyroplane is included in the reference data.

It was not possible to complete the construction of the AK at the plant in Ukhtomskaya. After the outbreak of the war, AK elements, together with other property of plant No. 290, were transported to the Urals, in the village of Bilimbay. Here it was possible to return to the continuation of work on it only in the middle of 1942. By the onset of the new 1943, almost all units of two AK gyro gyros were manufactured, and their final assembly was carried out. There was very little left, already in February Kamov was planning to begin flight tests of the first prototype. During this period, the epic A-7 had already ended and rumors reached the plant that the work on gyroplanes was stopped. Rumors were not unfounded; on January 30, 1943, the NKAP leadership prepared an order to dismantle plant No. 290.

The director and chief designer of the plant, N.I.Kamov, was appointed head of the serial design department (SKO) of plant No. 494, which produces Po-2 aircraft, and his deputy, M. L. Mil, was sent to TsAGI. A few years later, both of these talented people continued to design rotorcraft, which later became known as the Ka and Mi helicopters. According to M.M. Mil, there was only one step left from the AK gyroplane to the helicopter, it was only necessary to create a main gearbox for transmitting torque from the engine to the rotor.