Kraków 2018-09-24
Emergency lowering of a military plane.
Part 4
Catapult seat.
When an article was developed in 2017 – "Emergency abandonment of the military aircraft, Part 1, 2, 3" – None of us expected that the topic would have to be elaborated on, against the background of the tragedy of Captain Krzysztof Sobański, who piloted the MiG plane 29 died. Honor his memory! The captain did not manage to save himself successfully using the K-36 catapult chair.
The K-36 ejection seat family is used in the Polish MiG-29 and Su-22 combat aircraft.
The K-36 is an ejection armchair designed and manufactured by the Moscow state, which became famous for its spectacular rescue of pilots during air shows. Work on the armchair, which was equipped with a missile system, began in 1969. The newest seats from the K-36 family enable catapulting in the height range of 0–25 thousand. m when flying at a speed of 70 km / h to 1400 km / h. Although there are known cases of rescue of aviators from a height of 0 m and a speed of 0 km / h. The seats are used in planes: MiG-29, Su-22, Su-27, Su-24, MiG-31 and others. The K-36 family seat is also used in the Ka-50 helicopter, and before it is used, the blades of the main rotors are shot off.
Catapulting with the use of the K-36 seat takes place after unlocking and removing the double ejection handle by the pilot. When this is done, all seat systems and the airplane cabin cover emergency dump system automatically activate in a preset sequence. First: the belts holding the pilot are pulled up, the side elements that press the pilot’s hands against the torso drop down, the elements that pull the pilot’s legs to the torso and take the feet off the pedals under the knees. The last element is a curtain that extends between the legs and protects the body and head against air pressure.
The K-36 armchair has a KSMU-36M two-stage firing mechanism. The first stage is the pyrotechnic charge. In 0.2 seconds, it gives the chair a speed of 134.6 m / s, or 13.5 g. Second stage rocket engine, which operates for 0.2 seconds, generating a thrust of 3300 kN. In addition, the system stabilizes the flight path of the pilot’s chair. If necessary, two stabilizing and speed-reducing parachutes are released. The rescue parachute is placed in the headrest. Its operation is determined by the PPK-1M-T424 (PPK-U-T424) automatic unit. The flight speed of the aircraft at the time of catapulting takes into account the KPA-4M parachute machine. Safe landing or launching of the aviator is ensured by the PSU-36 rescue equipment. The NAZ-7M emergency supply, detachable from the seat along with the pilot, is used to keep the pilot in good physical and mental condition until the rescue team arrives. The kit includes an emergency radio that automatically tells you where you touch down.
The K-36 armchair is equipped with the MPS-7 electro-mechanism for height adjustment depending on the pilot’s height. Range 0.16 m. The chair has an automatic lap and shoulder belt puller. When the crew ejects at a speed> 800 km / h, a curtain extends over the pilot’s face. The weight of the chair is 145 kg.
The K-36 DM ejection seat made a tremendous career at the turn of the 1980s and 1990s, saving pilots’ lives during the Air Show. First time during the shows at Le Bourget airport in June 1989. The second time was in July 1993 in Fairford, UK, when two MiG-29 planes collided in the air. Third time at Paris Le Bourget airport, on June 12, 1999. During the acrobatics, the Soviet Su-30 MK caught its tail on the ground and caught fire. The pilots successfully launched themselves. Fourth time in Lviv. The Ukrainian Su-27 plowed up the audience, killing over 70 people, and the pilots successfully catapulted. And probably several dozen other times, about which the world has not been informed.
The purpose of the ejection seats is to save the pilot’s life, without looking at his comfort during the rescue. In Western designs, the acceleration during catapulting is 12 to 14 g (120 to 140 m / s²). The CCCP tried to prove that man can withstand government accelerations up to 20-22 g. Therefore, only pyrotechnic charges were used, not constructing rocket seats. Unfortunately, the pilots often suffered from a back injury and became disabled, with no chance of returning to flying. Therefore, the K-36 armchair was a breakthrough.
There is no official data on the use of K-36 armchairs. There are only estimates that say it has been used about 200-500 times. For comparison, British Martin-Baker seats saved 7,152 pilots from July 1946 to May 2006.
There are known cases of the effective use of the K-36 chair in Poland:
- On June 22, 1991, a pilot successfully ejected from the Su-22 aircraft over the training ground.
- On June 4, 1993, during the take-off of the Su-22 nb 3619 No. 23619 from the 6th PLMB in Piła, there was a failure and engine shutdown. The pilot successfully catapulted at an altitude of 20 meters. After this incident, he returned to flying. The plane burned down after hitting the ground.
- On April 4, 1995, the pilot, who served as a pilot in the Polish Army for many years, successfully catapulted from the Su-22 nb 3818 from the 8th PLM-B.
- On August 2003, Lt. Col. Andrzej Andrzejewski (he died tragically on January 23, 2008) successfully catapulted from the Su-22 aircraft No. 29307 of the 8th ELT.
All Polish MiG-29s were serviced domestically in WZL-2 in Bydgoszcz. The engines were repaired by the WZL-4 plant in Warsaw. The machines were modernized at the beginning of the 21st century in order to extend their service life. On the other hand, all 16 aircraft from the 23rd BLT in Mińsk Mazowiecki (13 MiG-29 A single-seater and 3 MiG-29 UB two-seater) were upgraded to the standard compliant with NATO requirements. It happened under an agreement from August 2011 concluded with WZL-2 in cooperation with Israel Aerospace Industries, which was a supplier of equipment for these aircraft.
So the questions remain – Why didn’t the pilot survive on July 6, 2018?
After the MiG-29 nb 67 accident on December 18, 2017, all MiG-29 planes were grounded as standard. After three weeks, the machines returned to service.
The effects of the MiG-29 nb 4103 tragedy of July 6, 2018 turned out to be much more extensive than one could imagine. Not only the MiG-29 planes were grounded, but also the Su-22. The common element that connects these planes is the K-36 armchair. It cannot be denied that the chair could have been the problem. The more that on December 18, 2017, the pilot should theoretically launch himself. And there the pilot left the wreckage on his own, and the seat was in place. We don’t know if the pilot tried to fire himself.
The MiG-29 A nb 67 plane lost on December 18, 2017 belonged to this modernized group of fighters. This copy was modernized in 2014. During the renovation and modernization, on its vertical stabilizers were placed the images of Colonel Wojciech Kołaczkowski, who was the pilot of the 303 Squadron, and later the commander of the 1st and 2nd Polish Fighter Wing in Great Britain. This plane was one of the machines purchased directly from the manufacturer and served in the Polish Aviation from July 17, 1989. It has undergone three major renovations, the last of which took place in 2017.
The MiG-29 A nb 4103 No. 26301 plane, lost on July 6, 2018, was one of the planes acquired from Germany. After the collapse of the GDR, the plane was intensively exploited in Germany, along with others, in order to assess the proper combat value and develop a tactic for fighting against them. The MiG-29 aircraft unit in Germany was financially supported by the USAF so that the exercises could be carried out. In the period 2005-2007, the aircraft underwent overhaul at the WZL-2 in Bydgoszcz. He received nb 4103 and served in the 41st ELT in Malbork.
At the moment, Polish Aviation has 30 MiG-29 and 18 Su-22 machines. From 6 July 2018, MiG-29 and Su-22 planes do not take part in any exercises, missions or flight demonstrations. They did not participate in the parade in Warsaw on August 15, 2018. They were not in Radom and Dęblin. The Su-22 did not fly to the Czech Republic. They were to take part in the Ample Strike exercises. During the NATO Days shows in Ostrava, there were no MiG-29 aircraft in the air either. They were exceptionally presented at static exhibitions.
The MiG-29 was also withdrawn from its planned participation in the Baltic Air Policing mission in early 2019. They will fly F-16s instead, which is good news.
We officially know that on February 2, 2018, the Armament Inspectorate launched a tender for the purchase of gunpowder charges for the K-36 seats of the Su-22 and MiG-29 aircraft. This cargo is marked with the symbol PZ-AM. According to the Armament Inspectorate, the subject of the order in 2018 is the delivery of 62 sets of PZ-AM powder charge or an equivalent product. The PZ-AM powder charge is intended for installation in the chambers of the second stage of the KSMU complex blasting mechanism of the K-36 DM catapult seats operated on the Su-22 and MiG-29 airplanes. The inspectorate assumed that the delivery would be carried out by November 30, 2018. The total value of the contract is set at over EUR 443,000. A detailed description of the subject of the contract and the conditions of equivalence were specified in the Specification of Essential Terms of the Contract (ToR), which were provided to the contractors invited to submit offers. The bids were submitted until March 6, 2018. On July 5, 2018, the Armament Inspectorate of the Ministry of National Defense signed an agreement for the supply of PZ-AM gunpowder loads to the K-36 DM catapult seats. The supplier was Polit-Elektronik from Warsaw. The contract value is PLN 8,106,128 gross. The expected delivery date is November 30, 2018.
In September 2018, the General Command of the Armed Forces Type officially announced that the catapulting system failure was one of the reasons for the catastrophe (the one on July 6, 2018).
Officially, it is not known what is wrong with the K-36 DM seats. Those installed in the Polish MiG-29 and Su-22 have been servicing and renovating the WZL-2 plant in Bydgoszcz for many years. Among other things, they are thoroughly tested and worn or expired parts are replaced.
As a result, the Polish Air Force has only 48 F-16 Jastrząb machines at its disposal. Certainly, the situation is very difficult for the Polish Air Force, but also for the present Government of the Republic of Poland, the more so as Freemasonry launched an attack in the form of the slogan – "It has never been so bad before". We, on the other hand, say – "Never before has the safety of pilots been approached in such detail." Years of neglect by previous governments in Poland have led to a situation that the post-Soviet equipment must still be used in our combat units. The years of admiration for the Su-22, MiG-29, K-36 armchair and R-33 engines are long gone. Russia is throwing trouble for Rzeczpospolita by breaking signed contracts for the supply of spare parts. They are often bought by intermediaries, or to the left of the Russians themselves. This is a good time to hand over the Su-22 and MiG-29 planes to museums and fill this gap with Western equipment.
Representatives of the General Command of the Armed Forces assure that "there is no such possibility" that the problems could not be solved and the MiG-29 and Su-22 would not be returned to service.
The replacement of the MiG-29 aircraft by the F-16 Jastrząb in the Baltic Air Policing mission at the beginning of 2019 proves that the aircraft may not be allowed to fly for the next months. Or maybe there is already an attempt to remove them from the line.
On September 25, 2018, the Su-22 aircraft returned to service. The first flights were carried out in the form of ferrying from the Mirosławiec Airport to the Świdwin Airport. The RWY was undergoing renovation in Świdwin. Before the Su-22 aircraft received permission to fly, after two months of grounding, tests of the K-36 seats were carried out on the training ground. The tests were positive. MiG-29 planes still remained on the ground.
Written by Karol Placha Hetman