NPP Zvezda K-36

The Zvezda K-36 is a series of ejection seats made by NPP Zvezda. Variants of this ejection seat have been used on a variety of aircraft, including the Su-25, Su-27, MiG-29, Su-30 MKI and the Su-57.

K-36
A K-36DM Ejection seat

Design

The K-36 Ejection seat provides emergency escape for a crew member in a wide range of speeds and altitudes of aircraft flight, from zero altitude, zero speed (zero-zero) upwards, and can be used in conjunction with protective equipment, such as pressure suits and anti-g garments. The seat consists of the ejection rocket firing mechanism, gear box, headrest rescue system with a dome stowed in the headrest, and other operating systems all of which are aimed at providing a safe bail-out. The ejection seat ensures safe emergency escape of a pilot within the range of velocities (Ve) from 0 to 1,300 km/h (700 kn; 810 mph) to 1,400 km/h (760 kn; 870 mph) (depending on the type of protective equipment), altitudes from 0 to 20,000 m (66,000 ft) and Mach numbers up to 2.5.

The ejection seat is used in combination KKO-15 protective and oxygen equipment and the installation weight of the seat is less than 103 kg (227 lb) (including the parachute system, survival kit, emergency oxygen system and pyrotechnic charges).

Operational ejections

Notable ejections using the K-36 occurred at the 1989 Paris Air Show when Anatoly Kvochur successfully completed a low-altitude ejection from a MiG-29 just prior to ground impact. Two more pilots survived when a pair of MiG-29s collided over Fairford, England, in 1993 at the Royal International Air Tattoo.

Variants
  • K-36D and K-36DM: Used on the MiG-29, Su-27, Su-30[1][2][3]
  • K-36D-3.5: Improved variant providing accommodation for pilots with sitting heights from 810 to 980 mm
  • K-36D-5: Improved variant for the Sukhoi Su-57[4]
  • K-36LM: Used in the Tu-160 Blackjack[5]
  • K-36RB: Variant used on Buran programme
  • K-36VM: Automatic ejection system (SKE) used successfully 20/20 times in the Yak-38[6]

Players of the video game Hitman and Hitman 2 receive an achievement for assassinating the character Jasper Knight using a sabotaged ejection seat. The achievement is named after the K-36D variant.

References
  1. Specker, Lawrence J.; Plaga, John A. "The K-36D Ejection Seat Foreign Comparative Testing (FCT) Progtam" (PDF). DTIC.mil. Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC). Retrieved 4 March 2015.
  2. Coyne, Kevin. "The Ejection Site: K-36D Foreign Comparative Testing (FCT)". EjectionSite.com. The Ejection Site. Retrieved 4 March 2015.
  3. Skaarap, Harold A. (2008). Canadian MiG flights. Bloomington, IN: iUniverse. p. 37. ISBN 978-0595520718. Retrieved 4 March 2015.
  4. Butowski, Piotr. "Russian Supercruiser". Air International, February 2011, pp. 38. Stamford, UK: Key Publishing.
  5. Duffy, Paul; Kandalov, Andrei I. (1996). Tupolev: The Man and His Aircraft (illustrated ed.). Warrendale, PA: SAE International, 1996. p. 170. ISBN 1560918993. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
  6. Hirschberg, Michael J. (1997). Soviet V/STOL aircraft : the struggle for a shipborne combat capability. Reston, Va.: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. p. 55. ISBN 9781563472480. Retrieved 4 March 2015.
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