Mozhaysky Alexander Fedorovich: biography, achievements and interesting facts

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:47

Rear Admiral, aviation pioneer, talented artist, discoverer of the basic law of aerodynamics, strong leader. All these qualities were combined by one person - Alexander Fedorovich Mozhaisky. A brief biography of him will be presented to your attention in the article.

Childhood and youth

March 21, 1825 in the family of the admiral of the Russian fleet, Fyodor Timofeevich Mozhaisky, son Alexander, the future pioneer of aviation, was born. The hometown of the inventor, Rochensalm, a former possession of Finland, went to Russia following the war and was in ruins. Hereditary sailor Fedor Timofeevich insisted on the need to train his son in the famous St. Petersburg Naval Cadet Corps. After graduating from an educational institution with brilliant results, Alexander Fedorovich entered the naval service, went around the B altic and White Seas, and just a year later he was promoted to midshipman. He was well versed in the exact sciences, was fond of marine and military equipment, and drew beautifully. During his trip to Japan, he made many sketches, which, according to experts, represent the ethnographic andhistorical value.

Diana

All this time he dreamed of long-distance voyages. In 1853, having learned about the upcoming Japanese campaign of the frigate "Diana", he began to apply for admission to the team. His reputation as an experienced sailor, as well as brilliant references, played their part. In December 1854, the ship was the victim of a maritime earthquake off the coast of Japan. The frigate was carried to the reef, the gaps formed let the uncontrolled sea flow inside. The whole team worked as a single organism, without sleep and rest, but the water did not subside. After a long struggle to save the ship, it was decided to leave it. Having reached the shore on boats, the team was forced to wait for help in a foreign country. It is not known how long the wait would have lasted if not for the enthusiasm of Mozhaisky, backed up by a sharp mind and a magazine he saved describing the dimensions of the ship. Under his leadership, the crew was able to build a schooner and go back home. After 20 days, the anchor was thrown off the coast of Kamchatka, where Lieutenant Alexander Fedorovich Mozhaisky transferred to the Argun steamer to go to the Nikolaevsky post.

Steamboat "Thundering" and the Khiva Expedition

1857 was marked by an assignment to the steamer "Gremyashchiy", plying along the routes Kronstadt - Estonia, Kronstadt - Germany. Service here gave Alexander the opportunity to gain practical experience in studying the steam engine. In 1858, Mozhaisky again became a member of a distant expedition, but this time on land. Participantsto study the basins of the Aral Sea, the Amudarya and Syrdarya rivers, to get acquainted with the culture and traditions of the local residents. For his contribution to the study and description of the Amur basin, Alexander Fedorovich was awarded the Order of St. Vladimir, 4th degree.

Rider

Despite the resistance to everything new, the pillars of Russian navigation recognized the advantage of steam engines. A decision was made to build the first steam screw clipper, the Horseman, at the shipyards of the Finnish Björneborg. It fell to Alexander Fedorovich Mozhaisky to supervise the construction. The choice was not accidental, the role was played by his experience on the "Thundering", excellent organizational skills, engineering knowledge. In the summer of 1860, Mozhaisky set to work. He had a hard time, because, in addition to leadership, he had to train workers, because no one except him was familiar with the design of steam engines. Thanks to his talent, in just a year the ship was ready and successfully passed all the tests.

Private life

At the end of the Crimean War, like many officers of the navy, he was sent on indefinite leave. This period was marked by the marriage to eighteen-year-old Lyubov Dmitrievna Kuzmina. The couple met in the spring of 1859, when Alexander Fedorovich came to visit his friends in Vologda. Lyubov Dmitrievna had a good education, was reputed to be a deeply religious person and was an excellent musician. Having got married, the family settled in Kotelnikovo, their house is now a museum. Lyubov Dmitrievna gave birth to heirs, the sons of Alexander and Nikolai. Butfamily happiness did not last long - at the age of 23, Lyubov Dmitrievna died from a transient illness. Alexander Fedorovich never married again, devoting his life to children and his dream - to designing the first aircraft.

First experiments

1876 was marked by the beginning of serious work on the development of the first experimental model of a heavier-than-air flying vehicle. The thought of him tormented the inquisitive mind of Alexander Mozhaisky (the designer's biography is full of interesting facts and events) since his service on the Diana. In those years, newspapers often published articles on aeronautics, claiming that the hour was near when people would be able to fly like birds. Once, while on duty on the Diana, Mozhaisky witnessed how a strong gust of wind hit a seagull on the main mast. Alexander Fedorovich carried the bird that had made its last cry to his cabin. With its help, he tried to find properties that help birds fly.

Mozhaisky consulted with the best Russian scientists, made many calculations, conducted thousands of experiments to create the world's first flying machine. More than a decade earlier than Lilienthal, he discovered one of the basic aerodynamic laws about the existence of a relationship between speed, object weight and plane. The test of the model was successful: the kite-glider designed by him (towing was carried out by horses) was able to lift it into the air twice. And already in 1877, Mozhaisky successfully demonstrated a model driven by a clock spring. The speed of her movementreached 15 km / h, a load was even attached to the prototype.

Financial matters

If Alexander Mozhaisky, whose brief biography was the subject of our review, spent his personal savings on the creation of small experimental models, then his funds were not enough to develop a full-fledged aeronautical vessel. For this reason, Mozhaisky wrote a petition to the Ministry of War for funding for the construction of a life-size model. The commission, headed by D. I. Mendeleev, decided to allocate him appropriations in the amount of 3,000 rubles. In 1878, the designer provided drawings of the aircraft, with detailed calculations and explanations, to the Main Engineering Directorate. Hoping to get funding, he suggested that the aircraft be used for military purposes. The management refused to provide funds, questioning the usefulness of the project. This did not stop the inventor, he continued experiments, attracting private investors.

Plan of the aircraft

Having developed an aircraft project, in the spring of 1878 he presented it directly to the Minister of War, asking him to support the development of the aircraft. His plan suggested that the aircraft would consist of the following elements:

• boats to accommodate people;
• fixed wings in the amount of two pieces;
• tail, the main purpose of which is to change the direction of movement due to the ability to rise and fall;
• threescrews: one large front and two small rear;
• cart on wheels, located under the boat, its purpose is to give the aircraft the speed necessary for takeoff;
• two match to secure the wings and lift the tail.

The engine was supposed to be two steam engines: one drives the nose propeller, the second - two pushing rear ones. The attached cost scheme, drawings, calculations and descriptions did not convince the commission of the ministry: referring to the insufficient capacity of the installation, the application was rejected. In 1880, financing was agreed and a business trip abroad was organized, from where Mozhaisky delivered 2 steam plants equipped with a water-tube boiler and a refrigerator. In the autumn of 1881, he became the owner of the country's first patent.

Building and testing aircraft

Since 1882, Alexander Mozhaisky (Studianrussian) began to design the device. He was allocated a plot in Krasnoye Selo, right on the military field. 1883 was the end of many years of work - the assembly of the first Russian aircraft was completed, which reached flight tests. Ground tests showed the viability of the prototype, it was decided to conduct the first flight. However, during the takeoff run on wooden rails, the unexpected happened: the plane lost its wing due to a roll. The development was declared a military secret, but assistance was never provided. Until the last years of his life, A. F. Mozhaisky worked on his invention. After deathdesigner on April 1, 1890, a prototype of the first aircraft of Alexander Fedorovich Mozhaisky (briefly about him - in the article) was delivered to his estate, where it burned down a few years later.

Turbohod

On December 1, 1914, the passenger ship Patria was laid down and made its first voyage in 1919. For 16 years of operation by foreign companies, the ship traveled hundreds of thousands of miles between the Netherlands and Indonesia, and in 1935 it was sold to the USSR. The Soviet Union used it as a training ground, changing its name to "Svir". With the outbreak of World War II, the ship entered military service, and in 1942 it sank during a bombardment near Leningrad. After a year of peaceful life, it was raised and sent for repairs. After a long restoration, the ship acquired a modern look, was modernized into a cargo-passenger liner. The turboship was given a new name - "Alexander Mozhaisky". His life continued on the passenger line of the Far East of the country until the spring of 1970. It is interesting that the Alexander Mozhaisky turboship was transferred to the village of Wrangel as a hostel. After 8 years, the ship was sold to Hong Kong for scrap.

Memory of Mozhaisk

The name of Alexander Fedorovich continues to live. Streets and driveways in many cities of Russia are named after him. The Military Space Academy named after A. F. Mozhaisky proudly bears its name, graduates of which are outstanding scientists, military figures and Hero of the Soviet Union Avdeev M. V. In honor of Alexander Fedorovich, the equation for the existence of a flyingapparatus, and in Ukraine the International Youth Scientific and Technical Readings named after V. I. Mozhaisky.

The name of the inventor was also embodied in culture - the film "Zhukovsky" contains an episode of Alexander Fedorovich testing his aircraft. The experiments of the famous inventor formed the basis of the science fiction novel "Airplanes over Mukden" by A. E. Matvienko and "The Lamps of Methuselah" by Viktor Pelevin. Dedicating his life to working on the creation of the first aircraft, A. F. design engineers. On the basis of his experiments in 1913, the first domestic aircraft "Russian Knight" was developed and constructed. His name is forever inscribed in the history of Russia.