It is called "Ilya Muromets", made in Russia and it is, without exaggeration, a masterpiece of Russian military technology.
It had everything for the convenience of the crew and passengers, even a shower. Unless there was a refrigerator. And what was the cost of a collective breakfast in a comfortable lounge, by the way, also for the first time in the world!
Sikorsky drank hot coffee, put on a warm overcoat and went out onto the upper bridge. A boundless sea of clouds spread around, a huge ship, brightly lit by the sun, majestically sailed among the celestial icebergs. This fabulous picture was a reward for his hard and selfless work. Neither before nor after that day did Sikorsky see a more beautiful panorama. Maybe because later, with the development of aviation, there was no longer such an opportunity to freely exit the fuselage up or onto the wing and admire the world around. "Muromets" in this regard was a unique machine.
"Ilya Muromets" is the common name of several modifications of multi-engine aircraft, mass-produced at the Russian-Baltic Carriage Works in St. Petersburg from 1913 to 1917. During this period, more than eighty aircraft were manufactured, many records were set on them: in terms of flight altitude, carrying capacity, time spent in the air and the number of passengers carried. After the outbreak of the First World War, "Ilya Muromets" retrained as a bomber. The technical solution first used on it determined the development of bomber aviation for many decades to come. After the end of the Civil War, Sikorsky's aircraft were used as passenger aircraft for some time. The designer himself did not accept the new government and emigrated to the United States.
The predecessor of the Ilya Muromets was the Grand aircraft, later called the Russian Knight, the world's first four-engine aircraft. It was also designed at Russbalt under the direction of Sikorsky. Its first flight took place in May 1913, and on September 11 of the same year, the only copy of the aircraft was badly damaged by an engine that fell off the Meller-II aircraft. They did not restore it. The Ilya Muromets became the direct successor of the Russian Knight, the first copy of which was built in October 1913. 
In Muromets, in comparison with the Vityaz, only the general layout of the aircraft and its wing box with four Argus engines of 100 hp installed in a row on the lower wing remained without significant changes. With. The fuselage was fundamentally new. 
For the first time in world practice, it was performed without a protruding cabin. Its front part was occupied by a spacious cabin for several people. Its length, together with the passenger compartment, was 8.5 m, width - 1.6 m, height - up to 2 m. On the sides of the fuselage there were exits to the lower wing so that you could approach the engines during the flight. The total volume of the cabin was 30 m. The cabin was lined with plywood from the inside. The floor was made of plywood 10 mm thick. 
From the cockpit, a glass door led to the passenger compartment. At the end of the cabin, on the left side of the flight, behind the lower wing, there was an entrance sliding door. At the very end of the salon was a staircase leading to the upper bridge. Next was a single cabin with a bunk and a small table, and behind it was a door to the washbasin and toilet. The plane had electric lighting - the current was provided by a generator powered by a windmill. Heat was supplied through two long steel pipes (located at the corners of the cockpit and saloon) through which the exhaust gases passed. 
Scheme "Muromets" - a six-pillar biplane with wings of large span and elongation. The four internal racks were brought together in pairs, and between them were installed engines that stood completely open without fairings. All engines had access in flight - a plywood track with wire railings ran along the lower wing. In the future, this design feature more than once saved the aircraft from an emergency landing. 
The length of the Ilya Muromets hull reached 19 meters, the wingspan was 30, their area (on different modifications of the aircraft) was from 125 to 200 square meters. meters. The weight of an empty airplane was 3 tons, it could stay in the air for up to 10 hours. The plane developed a speed of 100-130 km / h, which was quite good for that time. 
The chassis of the "Murometsev" was attached under medium engines and consisted of paired N-shaped racks with skids, in the spans of which wheels were attached in pairs on short axles with rubber cord shock absorption on hinged pads. All eight wheels were sheathed in pairs with leather, as if wheels with a wide rim were obtained. The landing gear was quite low, because at that time there was an idea that, unusual for pilots, the landing gear could cause an accident due to the difficulty of determining the distance to the ground. 
Another significant difference between the new Vityaz and Muromets from the aircraft that existed at that time, which became a breakthrough in the aircraft industry, is the closed cockpit. In open cockpits, the pilot felt with his face the direction and pressure of the air flow. The head spoke about the speed, the direction of the flow - about the side slip. All this allowed the pilot to instantly respond with rudders. From here came the legends about the "bird's instinct", which was given by nature and allegedly not to everyone. The closed cabin, although it carried convenience and comfort, deprived the pilot of such sensations. It was necessary to trust only the instruments and rely on engineering knowledge, and not on "bird instinct". 
There were few instruments, but they gave the necessary information: a compass, four tachometers (from each engine) made it possible to judge the number of revolutions, two aneroid altimeters, two anemometers for determining airspeed (one of them in the form of a U-shaped glass tube with alcohol, one the end of which was closed, and the other connected to the air pressure receiver). The slip indicator is a curved glass tube with a ball inside. 
The pitch was determined using a similar tube - "a sighting device with measurements for slopes for ascent, level flight and descent." These, in general, primitive devices made it possible, if necessary, to pilot the aircraft in a calm atmosphere, out of sight of the horizon. 
In the winter of 1913, tests began, "Ilya Muromets" for the first time in history was able to lift 16 people and the airfield dog Shkalik into the air. The weight of the passengers was 1290 kg. This was an outstanding achievement, which was noted by the press: “Our talented pilot-designer I. I. Sikorsky set two new world records on his Ilya Muromets on February 12 - for the number of passengers and for carrying capacity. "Ilya Muromets" flew over the airfield and Pulkovo for 17 minutes and safely descended from a height of 200 m. Passengers - about ten military pilots, pilots and employees of the Russian-Baltic Plant were delighted. Two commissioners of the flying club recorded this flight for departure to the bureau of the International Aeronautical Federation in Paris. 
In April 1914, the construction of the second Ilya Muromets aircraft was completed, which was supposed to combine all the improvements, taking into account the identified shortcomings, and the first, at the insistence of the Naval Department, was converted into a seaplane. The second differed from the first in smaller dimensions and a more powerful power plant - four Argus engines of 140 hp each. With. (internal) and 125 l. With. (external). On June 4, 1914, I. I. Sikorsky raised the Muromets with 10 people on board. There were five members among the passengers State Duma, including a member of the Duma Committee on Military Supply. Gradually they gained 2000 m, and tall passengers recognized that this height was sufficient for a heavy bomber. The flight, which again became a world achievement, convinced the most ardent skeptics of the large reserves of Ilya Muromets. 
But in order to finally convince everyone of the extraordinary capabilities of the machine, the designer decides to take a long flight. Estimated calculations made it possible to choose the route St. Petersburg - Kyiv with one landing for refueling in Orsha.
June 16, 1914 Corps airfield. Crew: Captain I. Sikorsky, co-pilot staff captain Christopher Prussis, navigator, co-pilot Lieutenant Georgy Lavrov and mechanic Vladimir Panasyuk. They took on board 940 kg of gasoline, 260 kg of oil and 150 kg of spare parts and materials (a spare propeller, additional cans of gasoline and oil, pumps and hoses for injection, some tools). The total load, including all crew members, was 1610 kg. 
The weather was great. The morning sun illuminated the still sleeping earth. There is no haze over the villages. Forests, meadows, smooth surface of rivers and lakes. The plane floated calmly in still air. In turn, after half an hour, the pilots replaced each other. Sikorsky twice got out on the wing to the extreme engine in order to observe the airship as if from the side, look at the ground and see for himself that it was possible to repair the engine in a dense air stream. He groped for a space more or less protected from the cold wind behind the engine and from there watched with rapture how in the clear morning air against the background of the awakening earth the huge body of a ship with outstretched yellow wings was hanging. The spectacle was simply fantastic. 
Around seven in the morning, when Prussis remained at the helm, Sikorsky, Lavrov and Panasyuk sat down at a table covered with a white tablecloth. It has a light breakfast - fruits, sandwiches, hot coffee. Comfortable wicker chairs made it possible to relax and enjoy the rest. This collective breakfast in a comfortable lounge on board an airship was also the first in the world. 
Then there was a landing in Orsha, bad weather, an engine fire, a grandiose meeting and a solemn reception in Kyiv, and no less difficult way back.
The Kiev magazine "Automotive Life and Aviation" assessed the flight of "Ilya Muromets" as follows: "These brilliant flights ended a severe exam new system Russian airplane. The results were stunning.”
The press celebrated the flight, but its importance was already obscured by events that affected everyone: a world war was approaching. 
On December 23, 1914, all Muromets operating at the front were consolidated into a squadron. Today in Russia it is the Day of Long-Range Aviation. 
Just the facts:
The first regular domestic flights in the RSFSR began in January 1920 with flights between Sarapul and Yekaterinburg of the decommissioned Ilya Muromets bomber.
On May 1, 1921, the Moscow-Kharkov postal passenger airline was opened. The line was served by 6 "Muromtsev", heavily worn out, which is why it was closed on October 10, 1922. During this time, 60 passengers and about 2 tons of cargo were transported. One of the mail planes was handed over to the aviation school (Serpukhov). After that, the Muromets did not rise into the air.
The Air Force Museum exhibits a model of Ilya Muromets, equipped with Czech-made engines. It was made in full size by order of the film studio "Mosfilm" for the filming of the film "Poem of Wings" (1979)
Sources: G. Katyshev, V. Mikheev. "Wings of Sikorsky", M. Khairulin "Ilya Muromets". Pride of Russian aviation",
Ilya Muromets(S-22 "Ilya Muromets") - the common name for several series of four-engine all-wood biplanes, produced in the Russian Empire at the Russian-Baltic Carriage Plant during 1914-1919. The aircraft set a number of records for carrying capacity, number of passengers, time and maximum flight altitude. It is the first serial multi-engine bomber in history.
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The aircraft was developed by the aviation department of the Russian-Baltic Carriage Works in St. Petersburg under the leadership of I. I. Sikorsky. The technical staff of the department consisted of such designers as K.K. Ergant, M.F. Klimikseev, A.A. Serebryannikov, V.S. Panasyuk, Prince A. S. Kudashev, G. P. Adler and others. "Ilya Muromets" appeared as a result of further development of the design of the "Russian Knight", during which it was almost completely redesigned, only the general scheme of the aircraft was left without significant changes and its box of wings with four engines installed in a row on the lower wing, the fuselage was fundamentally new. As a result, with the same four 100 hp Argus engines. With. the new aircraft had twice the mass of the load and the maximum flight altitude.
In 1915, at the Russo-Balt plant in Riga, the R-BVZ aircraft engine was designed by engineer Kireev. The engine was a six-cylinder, two-stroke, water-cooled. Automotive-type radiators were located on its sides. R-BVZ was installed on some modifications of Ilya Muromets.
"Ilya Muromets" became the world's first passenger aircraft. For the first time in the history of aviation, it was equipped with a comfortable cabin separate from the cockpit, sleeping rooms and even a bathroom with a toilet. The "Muromets" had heating (exhaust gases from engines) and electric lighting. On the sides there were exits to the consoles of the lower wing. The beginning of the First World War and the Civil War in Russia prevented the further development of domestic civil aviation.
The construction of the first machine was completed in October 1913. After testing, demonstration flights were made on it and several records were set, in particular, a load-carrying record: on December 12, 1913, 1100 kg (the previous record on Sommer's plane was 653 kg), on February 12, 1914, 16 people and a dog were lifted into the air, with a total weight of 1290 kg. The plane was piloted by I. I. Sikorsky himself.
The second plane IM-B Kyiv) smaller and with more powerful engines on June 4th lifted 10 passengers to a record height of 2000 meters, on June 5th set a flight duration record (6 hours 33 minutes 10 seconds), on June 17th flew Petersburg-Kiev with one landing . In honor of this event, the series was named Kyiv. B - 3 more aircraft with the name "Kiev" were produced (one of the G-1 series, the other G-2, see below).
Aircraft such as the first and Kyiv received the name series B. In total, 7 copies were produced.
Use during World War I
Aircraft production started during the war series B, the most massive (30 units produced). They differed from the B series in their smaller size and greater speed. The crew consisted of 4 people, some modifications had two motors. Bombs weighing about 80 kg were used, less often up to 240 kg. In the fall, an experience was made of bombing the world's largest, at that time, 410-kilogram bomb.
In 1915, production began G series with a crew of 7 people, G-1, in 1916 - G-2 with a shooting cabin, G-3, in 1917 - G-4. Three cars were produced in 1915-1916 D series (DIM). Aircraft production continued until 1918. Aircraft G-2, on one of which (the third in a row with the name "Kiev") a height of 5200 m was reached (at that time - a world record), were used in the Civil War.
From the battle report:
... In flight (July 5, 1915) at an altitude of about 3200-3500 m, the plane under the command of Lieutenant Bashko was attacked by three German aircraft. The first of them was seen in the lower hatch, and it was 50 meters below our car. Our plane at the same time was over Shebrin, 40 versts from the forward positions under the control of Lieutenant Smirnov. Lieutenant Smirnov was immediately replaced by Lieutenant Bashko. The German car, having greater speed and a large reserve of power, quickly overtook our plane and turned out to be 50 meters higher from right side in front, opening machine-gun fire on our aircraft. In the cockpit of our car at that time, the work of the crew members was distributed as follows: lieutenant Smirnov was near the commander, staff captain Naumov opened fire from a machine gun and co-pilot Lavrov from a carbine. During the first attack of the enemy with machine-gun fire from an enemy vehicle, both upper tanks of gasoline, the filter of the right engine group, the radiator of the 2nd engine were pierced, both gasoline pipes of the left engine group were broken, the glasses of the right front windows were broken and the commander of the aircraft Lieutenant was wounded in the head and leg Basko. Since the gasoline lines to the left engines were broken, the left cocks from the gasoline tanks were immediately closed and the fuel pump of the left tank was turned off. Further flight of our car was on two right engines. The German plane, after the first time it crossed our road, tried to attack us again from the left side, but was met by machine-gun and rifle fire from our plane, turned sharply to the right and with a huge roll went down towards Zamość. After the attack was repulsed, Lieutenant Smirnov replaced Lieutenant Bashko, who was bandaged by co-pilot Lavrov. After bandaging, Lieutenant Bashko again began to fly the plane, Lieutenant Smirnov and co-pilot Lavrov, in turn, closed the filter holes of the right group with their hands and took all possible measures to preserve the remaining gasoline in the tanks to continue the flight. When repulsing the attack of the first enemy aircraft, a cassette of 25 pieces was completely fired from a machine gun, only 15 pieces were fired from the second cassette, then a cartridge jammed inside the magazine and further firing from it was completely impossible.
Following the first plane, the next German car immediately appeared, which flew only once above us on the left and fired at our plane with a machine gun, and the oil tank of the second engine was pierced. Lieutenant Smirnov opened fire on this aircraft from a carbine, co-pilot Lavrov was in the front compartment of the cockpit near the filter, and staff captain Naumov was repairing the machine gun. Since the machine gun was completely out of order, Lieutenant Smirnov handed over the carbine to Naumov, and he himself replaced the co-pilot Lavrov, taking measures to preserve gasoline, since both hands of Lavrov were numb from great tension. The second German aircraft did not attack us again.
On the line of forward positions, our car was fired from a machine gun by a third German aircraft, which was flying at a great distance to the left and above us. At the same time, artillery was firing at us. The altitude at that time was about 1400-1500 m. When approaching the city of Kholm, at an altitude of 700 m, the right engines also stopped, because the entire supply of gasoline was exhausted, so we had to make a forced descent. The latter was made 4-5 versts from the city of Kholm near the village of Gorodishche, near the airfield of the 24th Aviation Regiment in a swampy meadow. At the same time, the wheels of the chassis got bogged down to the very racks and were broken: the left half of the chassis, 2 racks, the propeller of the second engine, several gear levers, and the right rear lower spar of the middle compartment was slightly cracked. When examining the aircraft after landing, in addition to the above, the following damage from machine-gun fire was found: the screw of the 3rd engine was pierced in two places, the iron strut of the same engine was broken, the tire was pierced, the rotor of the second engine was damaged, the cargo frame of the same engine was pierced, the rear rack was pierced the first engine, the front strut of the second engine and several holes in the surface of the aircraft. The descent was made personally by the commander of the aircraft, Lieutenant Bashko, despite the injuries.
During the war years, the troops received 60 vehicles. The squadron made 400 sorties, dropped 65 tons of bombs and destroyed 12 enemy fighters. At the same time, during the entire war, only 1 car was shot down directly by enemy fighters (which was attacked by 20 aircraft at once), and 3 were shot down. ]
- On September 12 (25), during a raid on the headquarters of the 89th Army in the village of Antonovo and the Boruny station, the plane (ship XVIth) of Lieutenant D. D. Maksheev was shot down.
Two more Muromets were shot down by anti-aircraft batteries:
- 11/2/1915 the plane of the captain Ozersky was shot down, the ship crashed
- 04/13/1916 Lieutenant Konstenchik's plane came under fire, the ship managed to reach the airfield, but due to the damage received, it could not be restored.
In April 1916, 7 German airplanes bombed the airfield in Zegewold, as a result of which 4 Muromets were damaged.
But the most common cause of losses was technical problems and various accidents - because of this, about two dozen cars were lost. "IM-B Kyiv" made about 30 sorties, later it was used as a training one.
Use after the October Revolution
In 1920, several sorties were made during the Soviet-Polish war and military operations against Wrangel. On November 21, 1920, the last sortie of the Ilya Muromets took place.
On May 1, 1921, the Moscow-Kharkov postal passenger airline was opened. The line was served by 6 "Muromtsev", heavily worn out and with exhausted engines, which is why it was closed on October 10, 1922. During this time, 60 passengers and about 2 tons of cargo were transported.
In 1922, Socrates Monastyrev flew from Moscow to Baku on the Ilya Muromets plane.
One of the mail planes was handed over to the aviation school (Serpukhov), where about 80 training flights were made on it during 1922-1923. After that, the Muromets did not rise into the air. The Air Force Museum exhibits a model of Ilya Muromets, equipped with Czech-made engines. It was made in full size by order of the Mosfilm film studio for the filming of the film Poem About Wings. The layout is able to steer and jog around the airfield. It entered the Air Force Museum in 1979 and has been exhibited since 1985 after restoration repairs.
Technical data
Ilya Muromets IM-B IM-V IM-G-1 IM-D-1 IM-E-1 aircraft type bomber Developer Aviation Department of the Russian-Baltic Carriage Works Who was used Air Fleet of the Russian Empire Production time 1913-1914 1914-1915 1915-1917 1915-1917 1916-1918 Length, m 19 17,5 17,1 15,5 18,2 Upper wing span, m 30,9 29,8 30,9 24,9 31,1 Lower wing span, m 21,0 Wing area, m² 150 125 148 132 200 Empty weight, kg 3100 3500 3800 3150 4800 Loaded weight, kg 4600 5000 5400 4400 7500 Flight duration, hour 5 4,5 4 4 4,4 Ceiling, m 3000 3500 3000 ? 2000 rate of climb 2000/30" 2000/20" 2000/18" ? 2000/25" Maximum speed, km/h 105 120 135 120 130 Engines 4 things.
Argus
140 HP
(in-line)4 things.
"Russobalt"
150 HP
(in-line)4 things.
"Sunbeam"
160 HP
(in-line)4 things.
"Sunbeam"
150 HP
(in-line)4 things.
Renault
220 HP
(in-line)How much is produced 7 30 ? 3 ? Crew, pers. 5 5-6 5-7 5-7 6-8 Armament 2 machine guns
350 kg of bombs4 machine guns
417 kg of bombs6 machine guns
500 kg of bombs4 machine guns
400 kg of bombs5-8 machine guns
up to 1500 kg of bombsArmament
The bombs were placed both inside the aircraft (vertically along the sides) and on the external sling. By 1916, the bomb load of the aircraft had increased to 500 kg, and an electric drop was designed to drop the bombs.
The first armament of the Ilya Muromets aircraft was the 37 mm Hotchkiss rapid-fire gun. It was installed on the front artillery platform and was intended to fight the Zeppelins. The calculation of the gun included a gunner and loader. Sites for the installation of the gun were available on the modification "IM-A" (No. 107) and "IM-B" (No. 128, 135, 136, 138 and 143), however, the guns were installed only on two machines - No. 128 and No. 135. They were tested, but were not used in combat conditions.
Also, various modifications of the Ilya Muromets aircraft were equipped with defensive small arms: in various quantities and in various combinations, they were equipped with
Ilya Muromets - the aircraft, named after the Russian epic hero, began to be created in August 1913. The name of Ilya Muromets has become a common name for various modifications this machine, built by the Petrograd branch of the plant from 1913 to 1917.
The prototype was ready by December 1913, and on the 10th its first flight took place. On this device, between the wing box and the plumage, there was a middle wing with boars for attaching braces, and an additional middle landing gear was made under the fuselage. The middle wing did not justify itself and was soon removed. After successful tests and a number of achievements of the first built apparatus, the Main Military Technical Directorate (GVTU) signed contract 2685/1515 on May 12, 1914 with RBVZ for the construction of 10 more airplanes of this type.
Test flights of Sikorsky on Ilya Muromets were carried out in unfavorable conditions. winter conditions. During thaws, the ground became wet and viscous. It was decided to equip Ilya Muromets with skis. Only in this way could the aircraft take to the air. Under normal conditions, the takeoff of Ilya Muromets required a distance of 400 steps - 283 meters. Despite the big own weight, Ilya Muromets was able on December 11, 1913 to lift a 1100-kilogram load to a height of 1000 meters. The previous record on Sommeret was 653 kg.
In February 1914, Sikorsky lifted Ilya Muromets into the air with 16 passengers on board. The weight of the lifted load on that day was already 1190 kg. During this memorable flight, there was another passenger on board, the favorite of the entire airfield - a dog named Shkalik. This unusual flight with numerous passengers was an unprecedented achievement. Payload during this flight over St. Petersburg was 1300 kg. Following the example of Grand, Ilya Muromets made many flights over the imperial capital and its suburbs. Quite often, Ilya Muromets flew over the city at a low altitude - about 400 meters. Sikorsky was so confident in the safety provided by the aircraft's multiple engines that he was not afraid to fly at such a low altitude. In those days, pilots flying small, single-engine aircraft generally avoided flying over cities, especially at low altitudes, because mid-air engine shutdown and the inevitable forced landing could prove fatal.
During these flights, made by Ilya Muromets, passengers could sit comfortably in a closed cabin and observe the majestic squares and boulevards of St. Petersburg. Each flight of Ilya Muromets brought all transport to a halt, as whole crowds gathered to look at the huge plane with its engines making loud noises.
By the spring of 1914, Sikorsky built a second Ilya of Muromets. It was equipped with more powerful Argus engines, two inboard engines, 140 hp, and two external ones, 125 hp. The total engine power of the second model reached 530 hp, which was 130 hp more than the power of the first Ilya Muromets. Accordingly, more engine power meant greater payload, speed and the ability to reach a height of 2100 meters. During the initial test flight, this second Ilya Muromets carried 820 kg of fuel and 6 passengers.
On June 16-17, 1914, Sikorsky flew from Petersburg to Kyiv with one landing in Orsha. In honor of this event, the series was named Kyiv.According to its design, the aircraft was a six-pillar biplane with wings of a very large span and elongation (up to 14 at the upper wing). The four internal racks were brought together in pairs, and engines were installed between their pairs, standing completely open, without fairings. All engines were accessed in flight, for which a plywood walkway with wire railings ran along the lower wing. There were many examples when this saved the plane from an emergency landing. On several aircraft, four engines were supplied in two tandems, and in a few cases, training Muromets had only two engines. The design of all Muromets was also almost the same for all types and series. Its description is given here for the first time.
The wings were two-spar. The swing of the upper was, depending on the series and modification, from 24 to 34.5 m, the lower - 21 meters. The spars were placed on average at 12 and 60% of the length of the chords. The thickness of the wings profile ranged from 6% of the chord in narrower wings to 3.5% of the chord in wider ones.
The spars were box-shaped. Their height was 100 mm (sometimes 90 mm), width 50 mm, thickness of plywood walls 5 mm. The thickness of the shelves varied from 20 mm in the center section to 14 mm at the ends of the wings. The material of the shelves was originally imported Oregon pine and spruce, and later - ordinary pine. In the lower wing spars under the engines, the shelves were made of hickory wood. The spars were assembled on wood glue and brass screws. Sometimes a third was added to the two spars - behind the rear, an aileron was attached to it. The bracing crosses were single, located on the same level, made of 3 mm piano wire with turnbuckles.
The ribs of the wings were simple and reinforced - with thickened shelves and walls, and sometimes with double walls made of 5 mm plywood, with very large oblong relief holes, the shelves were made of pine lath 6 × 20 mm with a groove 2-3 mm deep, into which included a wall rib. The assembly of the ribs was carried out on wood glue and nails. The pitch of the ribs was 0.3 m everywhere. In general, the design of the wings was light.
The design of the fuselage was braced with fabric covering the tail section and plywood (3 mm) covering the nose section. The frontal part of the cabin was originally curvilinear, glued from veneer, and in later Muromets it was multifaceted with a simultaneous increase in the glazing surface. Part of the glazing panels was opening. The midsection of the fuselage in the latest types of Muromets reached 2.5 m in height and 1.8 m in width.
In the later types of Muromets, the fuselage behind the wing box was split.
The horizontal plumage of the Muromets was load-bearing and had relatively big sizes- up to 30% of the wing area, which is rare in aircraft construction. The profile of the stabilizer with elevators was similar to that of the wings, but thinner. The stabilizer is two-spar, the spars are box-shaped, the rib pitch is 0.3 m, the rim is pine. The stabilizer was divided into independent halves, attached to the upper fuselage spars, a tetrahedral boar and to the top of the crutch pyramid. Braces - wire, single.
There were usually three rudders: the middle main one and two side ones. With the advent of the rear shooting point, the side rudders were widely spaced along the stabilizer, increased in size and provided with axial compensation, and the middle rudder was abolished.
The ailerons were only on the upper wing and were located on its consoles. Their chord was 1–1.5 m (from the rear spar). The rudder levers were 0.4 m long, and sometimes a special pipe with braces up to 1.5 m long was added to such levers. pairs of wheels on short axles with rubber cord shock absorption. Eight wheels were paired with leather. It turned out dual wheels with a very wide rim.
The fuselage in the parking lot occupied an almost horizontal position. Because of this, the wings were set at a very large angle of 8–9°. The position of the aircraft in flight was almost the same as on the ground. The angle of installation of the horizontal tail was 5–6 °. Therefore, even with the unusual layout of the aircraft with the position of the center of gravity behind the wing box, it had a positive longitudinal V of about 3 ° and the aircraft was stable.
The engines were mounted on low vertical trusses or on beams consisting of ash shelves and braces, sometimes sewn up with plywood.
Gas tanks - brass, cylindrical, with pointed streamlined ends - were usually hung under the upper wing. Their bows sometimes served as oil tanks. Sometimes the gas tanks were flat and placed on the fuselage.
Engine management was separate and common. In addition to the gas control levers for each engine, there was one common autologous lever for simultaneously controlling all engines.
By the beginning of the war (August 1, 1914), four Ilya Muromets had already been built. By September 1914 they were transferred to the Imperial Air Force. By that time, all airplanes of the warring countries were intended only for reconnaissance, and therefore Ilya Muromets should be considered the world's first specialized bomber aircraft.
On December 10 (23), 1914, the emperor approved the decision of the military council on the creation of the Ilya Muromets bomber squadron (Aircraft Squadron, EVC), which became the world's first bomber formation. M. V. Shidlovsky became her boss. The Directorate of the Ilya Muromets Aircraft Squadron was located at the headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief at the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief. He had to start work almost from scratch - the only pilot capable of flying Murometsy was Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky, the rest were distrustful and even hostile to the very idea of heavy aviation, they should have been retrained, and the machines had to be armed and re-equipped.For the first time, the squadron's aircraft flew on a combat mission on February 14 (27), 1915. During the entire war, the squadron made 400 sorties, dropped 65 tons of bombs and destroyed 12 enemy fighters, while losing only one aircraft directly in battles with enemy fighters. (September 12 (25), 1916) 09/12/1916 during a raid on the headquarters of the 89th Army in the village of Antonovo and the Boruny station, an aircraft (ship XVI) of Lieutenant D. D. Maksheev was shot down. Two more Muromets were shot down by the fire of anti-aircraft batteries: on 11/2/1915 the plane of captain Ozersky was shot down, the ship crashed, and on 04/13/1916 the plane of Lieutenant Konstenchik came under fire, the ship managed to reach the airfield, but due to the damage received, it was not subject to recovery. In April 1916, seven German airplanes bombed the airfield in Zegewold, as a result of which four Muromets were damaged. But the most common cause of losses were technical problems and various accidents. Because of this, about two dozen cars were lost. Himself IM-B Kyiv made about 30 sorties and was later used as a training one.
During the war, the production of B-series aircraft was launched, the most massive (30 units were produced). They differed from the B series in their smaller size and greater speed. The crew consisted of 4 people, some modifications had two motors. Bombs weighing about 80 kg were used, less often up to 240 kg. In the autumn of 1915, an experiment was made in bombing a 410-kilogram bomb.
In 1915, the production of the G series began with a crew of 7 people, G-1, in 1916 - G-2 with a shooting cabin, G-3, in 1917 - G-4. In 1915-1916, three machines of the D series (DIM) were produced. Aircraft production continued until 1918. G-2 aircraft, on one of which (the third in a row with the name Kiev) an altitude of 5200 m was reached, were used in the Civil War.
In 1918, not a single sortie of the Muromets was made. Only in August-September 1919 was the Soviet Republic able to use two cars in the Orel region. In 1920, several sorties were made during the Soviet-Polish war and military operations against Wrangel. On November 21, 1920, the last sortie of Ilya Muromets took place.On May 1, 1921, the first postal-passenger airline Moscow-Kharkov was opened in the RSFSR. The line was serviced by 6 Muromets, heavily worn and with exhausted engines, which is why it was liquidated on October 10, 1922. During this time, 60 passengers and about two tons of cargo were transported.
In 1922, Socrates Monastyrev flew from Moscow to Baku on the plane Ilya Muromets.
One of the mail planes was handed over to the School of Aerial Shooting and Bombing (Serpukhov), where about 80 training flights were made on it during 1922-1923. After that, the Muromets did not rise into the air.On January 26, 1914, the first Russian four-engine all-wood biplane Ilya Muromets took off - the first Russian bomber built under the guidance of pilot-aircraft designer I. I. Sikorsky at the Russian-Baltic wagon plant.
Wingspan: upper - 30.87 m, lower - 22.0 m; total wing area - 148 m2; empty aircraft weight - 3800 kg; flight weight - 5100 kg; maximum speed near the ground - 110 km / h; landing speed - 75 km / h; flight duration - 4 hours; flight range - 440 km; climb time - 1000 m - 9 minutes; takeoff run - 450 m; run length - 250 m.
On December 23, 1914, the decision of the military council on the creation of a bomber squadron was approved by Ilya Muromets
Ilya Muromets - the aircraft, named after the Russian epic hero, began to be created in August 1913. The name of Ilya Muromets became a common name for various modifications of this machine, which was built by the Petrograd branch of the plant from 1913 to 1917.
The prototype was ready by December 1913, and on the 10th its first flight took place. On this device, between the wing box and the plumage, there was a middle wing with boars for attaching braces, and an additional middle landing gear was made under the fuselage. The middle wing did not justify itself and was soon removed. After successful tests and a number of achievements of the first built apparatus, the Main Military Technical Directorate (GVTU) signed contract 2685/1515 on May 12, 1914 with RBVZ for the construction of 10 more airplanes of this type.Test flights of Sikorsky on Ilya Muromets were carried out in adverse winter conditions. During thaws, the ground became wet and viscous. It was decided to equip Ilya Muromets with skis. Only in this way could the aircraft take to the air. Under normal conditions, the takeoff of Ilya Muromets required a distance of 400 steps - 283 meters. Despite the large dead weight, Ilya Muromets was able to lift a 1,100-kilogram load to a height of 1,000 meters on December 11, 1913. The previous record on Sommeret was 653 kg.
In February 1914, Sikorsky lifted Ilya Muromets into the air with 16 passengers on board. The weight of the lifted load on that day was already 1190 kg. During this memorable flight, there was another passenger on board, the favorite of the entire airfield - a dog named Shkalik. This unusual flight with numerous passengers was an unprecedented achievement. The payload during this flight over St. Petersburg was 1300 kg. Following the example of Grand, Ilya Muromets made many flights over the imperial capital and its suburbs. Quite often, Ilya Muromets flew over the city at a low altitude - about 400 meters. Sikorsky was so confident in the safety provided by the aircraft's multiple engines that he was not afraid to fly at such a low altitude. In those days, pilots flying small, single-engine aircraft generally avoided flying over cities, especially at low altitudes, because mid-air engine shutdown and the inevitable forced landing could prove fatal.During these flights, made by Ilya Muromets, passengers could sit comfortably in a closed cabin and observe the majestic squares and boulevards of St. Petersburg. Each flight of Ilya Muromets brought all transport to a halt, as whole crowds gathered to look at the huge plane with its engines making loud noises.
By the spring of 1914, Sikorsky built a second Ilya of Muromets. It was equipped with more powerful Argus engines, two inboard engines, 140 hp, and two external ones, 125 hp. The total engine power of the second model reached 530 hp, which was 130 hp more than the power of the first Ilya Muromets. Accordingly, more engine power meant greater payload, speed and the ability to reach a height of 2100 meters. During the initial test flight, this second Ilya Muromets carried 820 kg of fuel and 6 passengers.On June 16-17, 1914, Sikorsky flew from Petersburg to Kyiv with one landing in Orsha. In honor of this event, the series was named Kyiv.
According to its design, the aircraft was a six-pillar biplane with wings of a very large span and elongation (up to 14 at the upper wing). The four internal racks were brought together in pairs, and engines were installed between their pairs, standing completely open, without fairings. All engines were accessed in flight, for which a plywood walkway with wire railings ran along the lower wing. There were many examples when this saved the plane from an emergency landing. On several aircraft, four engines were supplied in two tandems, and in a few cases, training Muromets had only two engines. The design of all Muromets was also almost the same for all types and series. Its description is given here for the first time.
The wings were two-spar. The swing of the upper was, depending on the series and modification, from 24 to 34.5 m, the lower - 21 meters. The spars were placed on average at 12 and 60% of the length of the chords. The thickness of the wings profile ranged from 6% of the chord in narrower wings to 3.5% of the chord in wider ones.
The spars were box-shaped. Their height was 100 mm (sometimes 90 mm), width 50 mm, thickness of plywood walls 5 mm. The thickness of the shelves varied from 20 mm in the center section to 14 mm at the ends of the wings. The material of the shelves was originally imported Oregon pine and spruce, and later - ordinary pine. In the lower wing spars under the engines, the shelves were made of hickory wood. The spars were assembled on wood glue and brass screws. Sometimes a third was added to the two spars - behind the rear, an aileron was attached to it. The bracing crosses were single, located on the same level, made of 3 mm piano wire with turnbuckles.
The ribs of the wings were simple and reinforced - with thickened shelves and walls, and sometimes with double walls made of 5 mm plywood, with very large oblong relief holes, the shelves were made of pine lath 6x20 mm with a groove 2-3 mm deep, which included a rib walls. The assembly of the ribs was carried out on wood glue and nails. The pitch of the ribs was 0.3 m everywhere. In general, the design of the wings was light.
The design of the fuselage was braced with fabric covering the tail section and plywood (3 mm) covering the nose section. The frontal part of the cabin was originally curvilinear, glued from veneer, and in later Muromets it was multifaceted with a simultaneous increase in the glazing surface. Part of the glazing panels was opening. The midsection of the fuselage in the latest types of Muromets reached 2.5 m in height and 1.8 m in width.
In the later types of Muromets, the fuselage behind the wing box was split.The horizontal tail of the Muromets was load-bearing and had a relatively large size - up to 30% of the wing area, which is rare in aircraft construction. The profile of the stabilizer with elevators was similar to that of the wings, but thinner. The stabilizer is two-spar, the spars are box-shaped, the rib pitch is 0.3 m, the rim is pine. The stabilizer was divided into independent halves, attached to the upper fuselage spars, a tetrahedral boar and to the top of the crutch pyramid. Braces - wire, single.
There were usually three rudders: the middle main one and two side ones. With the advent of the rear shooting point, the side rudders were widely spaced along the stabilizer, increased in size and provided with axial compensation, and the middle rudder was abolished.
The ailerons were only on the upper wing and were located on its consoles. Their chord was 1–1.5 m (from the rear spar). The rudder levers were 0.4 m long, and sometimes a special pipe with braces up to 1.5 m long was added to such levers. pairs of wheels on short axles with rubber cord shock absorption. Eight wheels were paired with leather. It turned out dual wheels with a very wide rim.
The fuselage in the parking lot occupied an almost horizontal position. Because of this, the wings were set at a very large angle of 8–9°. The position of the aircraft in flight was almost the same as on the ground. The angle of installation of the horizontal tail was 5–6 °. Therefore, even with the unusual layout of the aircraft with the position of the center of gravity behind the wing box, it had a positive longitudinal V of about 3 ° and the aircraft was stable.
The engines were mounted on low vertical trusses or on beams consisting of ash shelves and braces, sometimes sewn up with plywood.
Gas tanks - brass, cylindrical, with pointed streamlined ends - were usually hung under the upper wing. Their bows sometimes served as oil tanks. Sometimes the gas tanks were flat and placed on the fuselage.
Engine management was separate and common. In addition to the gas control levers for each engine, there was one common autologous lever for simultaneously controlling all engines.By the beginning of the war (August 1, 1914), four Ilya Muromets had already been built. By September 1914 they were transferred to the Imperial Air Force. By that time, all airplanes of the warring countries were intended only for reconnaissance, and therefore Ilya Muromets should be considered the world's first specialized bomber aircraft.
On December 10 (23), 1914, the emperor approved the decision of the military council on the creation of the Ilya Muromets bomber squadron (Aircraft Squadron, EVC), which became the world's first bomber formation. M. V. Shidlovsky became her boss. The Directorate of the Ilya Muromets Aircraft Squadron was located at the headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief at the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief. He had to start work almost from scratch - the only pilot capable of flying Murometsy was Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky, the rest were distrustful and even hostile to the very idea of heavy aviation, they should have been retrained, and the machines had to be armed and re-equipped.
For the first time, the squadron's aircraft flew on a combat mission on February 14 (27), 1915. During the entire war, the squadron made 400 sorties, dropped 65 tons of bombs and destroyed 12 enemy fighters, while losing only one aircraft directly in battles with enemy fighters. (September 12 (25), 1916) 09/12/1916 during a raid on the headquarters of the 89th Army in the village of Antonovo and the Boruny station, an aircraft (ship XVI) of Lieutenant D. D. Maksheev was shot down. Two more Muromets were shot down by the fire of anti-aircraft batteries: on 11/2/1915 the plane of captain Ozersky was shot down, the ship crashed, and on 04/13/1916 the plane of Lieutenant Konstenchik came under fire, the ship managed to reach the airfield, but due to the damage received, it was not subject to recovery. In April 1916, seven German airplanes bombed the airfield in Zegewold, as a result of which four Muromets were damaged. But the most common cause of losses were technical problems and various accidents. Because of this, about two dozen cars were lost. Himself IM-B Kyiv made about 30 sorties and was later used as a training one.
During the war, the production of B-series aircraft was launched, the most massive (30 units were produced). They differed from the B series in their smaller size and greater speed. The crew consisted of 4 people, some modifications had two motors. Bombs weighing about 80 kg were used, less often up to 240 kg. In the autumn of 1915, an experiment was made in bombing a 410-kilogram bomb.In 1915, the production of the G series began with a crew of 7 people, G-1, in 1916 - G-2 with a shooting cabin, G-3, in 1917 - G-4. In 1915-1916, three machines of the D series (DIM) were produced. Aircraft production continued until 1918. G-2 aircraft, on one of which (the third in a row with the name Kiev) an altitude of 5200 m was reached, were used in the Civil War.
In 1918, not a single sortie of the Muromets was made. Only in August-September 1919 was the Soviet Republic able to use two cars in the Orel region. In 1920, several sorties were made during the Soviet-Polish war and military operations against Wrangel. On November 21, 1920, the last sortie of Ilya Muromets took place.
Ilya Muromets Red Army
On May 1, 1921, the first postal-passenger airline Moscow-Kharkov was opened in the RSFSR. The line was serviced by 6 Muromets, heavily worn and with exhausted engines, which is why it was liquidated on October 10, 1922. During this time, 60 passengers and about two tons of cargo were transported.
In 1922, Socrates Monastyrev flew from Moscow to Baku on the plane Ilya Muromets.
One of the mail planes was handed over to the School of Aerial Shooting and Bombing (Serpukhov), where about 80 training flights were made on it during 1922-1923. After that, the Muromets did not rise into the air.
