Nikolai Nikolaevich Polikarpov

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Nikolai Polikarpov.

Nikolai Nikolaevich Polikarpov (Russian: Никола́й Никола́евич Полика́рпов) (July 8, 1892 - July 30, 1944) was a Soviet aircraft designer, known as "King of Fighters". He designed the I-15 series of fighters, and the I-16 Ishak (Russian: ишак phonetically close to its Russian: И-16 designation) "Little Donkey" fighter.

In 1928, under provisions of the Five Year Plan for experimental aircraft design, N.N.Polikarpov was assigned to develop the I-6 (primarily wooden) fighter for delivery by mid 1930. The plan was unrealistic and failed. As such, in 1929, N.N.Polikarpov and around 450 aircraft designers and engineers were arrested. Polikarpov was sentenced to death.^[1] In 1931, after two years of expectation for execution he was transferred to Special Design Bureau of OGPU (CKB-39 OGPU) set at Butyrka prison and the sentence changed to 10 years of forced labor. Fortunately, after a successful demonstration the sentence was changed to a conditional one, and in July 1931 he was granted amnesty together with a group of other convicts.

Polikarpov was a recipient of numerous awards, including the State Stalin Prize (1941, 1943) and Hero of Socialist Labor (1940).

He died at July 30, 1944 from Gallbladder cancer.

Polikarpov Peak in Pamir was named after him.