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-30MKI 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.

Operational ejections

Notable ejections using the K-36 include one in 1975, when a Russian Air Force Su-24 from the 63rd Bomber Regiment suffered an accidental ejection when the navigator's control stick snagged the ejection handle of his ejection seat. This was the first ever successful ejection from an aircraft in zero-zero conditions outside of a testing environment.^[1] 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. A first person view video of a Russian Sukhoi Su-25 pilot ejecting during the Russian invasion of Ukraine was posted to the Internet on October 22, 2022.^[2]

Variants

• K-36D and K-36DM: Used on the MiG-29, Su-27, Su-30^[3][4][5]
• 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^[6]
• K-36LM: Used in the Tu-160 Blackjack^[7]
• K-36RB: Variant used on Buran programme
• K-36VM: Automatic ejection system (SKE) used successfully 20/20 times in the Yak-38^[8]

References

1. "WATCH: The Ridiculous Design Flaw of the Sukhoi Su-24" (video). youtube.com. Paper Skies. April 29, 2024.
2. Rogoway, Tyler (2022-10-23). "Russian Pilot's Ejection From An Su-25 Seen In Incredible Headcam Video". The Drive. Retrieved 2023-01-12.
3. Specker, Lawrence J.; Plaga, John A. "The K-36D Ejection Seat Foreign Comparative Testing (FCT) Progtam" (PDF). DTIC.mil. Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC). Archived (PDF) from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved 4 March 2015.
4. Coyne, Kevin. "The Ejection Site: K-36D Foreign Comparative Testing (FCT)". EjectionSite.com. The Ejection Site. Retrieved 4 March 2015.
5. Skaarap, Harold A. (2008). Canadian MiG flights. Bloomington, IN: iUniverse. p. 37. ISBN 978-0595520718. Retrieved 4 March 2015.
6. Butowski, Piotr. "Russian Supercruiser". Air International, February 2011, pp. 38. Stamford, UK: Key Publishing.
7. 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.
8. 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.

External links

• K-36 Archived 2016-04-17 at the Wayback Machine