Lobas, Leonid Dmitrievich

Service in the Armed Forces of the USSR

In the Air Force since 1967. In 1971 he graduated from the Yeisk VVAUL . He was left at school and since 1971 served as an instructor pilot, flight commander, deputy squadron commander of the 959 training aviation regiment of combat aircraft. In 1980, he retired to the rank of lieutenant colonel of aviation. ^[one]

Work in the aviation industry

In 1981 he graduated from the School of test pilots . In 1981-1983 - test pilot at the Kuibyshev Design Bureau of Automatic Systems , conducted tests of aircraft devices. ^[one]

Since April 1983 - test pilot at the LII them. M.M. Gromova . In 1993-1995 - Deputy Head of the Flight Testing Center (PLC) - Head of the flight complex. In 1995-1998, he was the deputy head of the LII, since 1998 he was the head of the LIC, and the deputy chief of the LII for flight tests. In 1999 he graduated from the Russian Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Russian Federation. He took part in the preparation and conduct of a number of MAKS air shows . ^[one]

He mastered more than 70 types of aircraft, a total flying time of 4,000 hours. The main direction of flight activity is aerodynamic and strength tests, studies of the stability and controllability of aircraft. He conducted a series of flight tests of the Yak-38 aircraft and its modifications, including the use of "hopping" vertical take-off with a special restraint device, and the execution of interrupted take-offs in short take-off modes. He carried out flight tests of the Su-27 and MiG-29 for a corkscrew , researching the characteristics of these aircraft at large supercritical angles of attack (which made it possible to work out the Cobra aerobatics element in the future). ^[one]

Among other works ^{[1] [2]} :

• Studies of the directional stability of the MiG-31 interceptor aircraft on the maximum Mach numbers ;
• Flight tests of the Su-25 for a corkscrew and to determine the maneuverability when firing cannons and missile launches;
• Flight strength tests of MiG-31 , Su-25 and Su-27 aircraft ;
• Joint flight design tests of the Chinese K-8 aircraft, including stall, corkscrew and determination of methods of withdrawal from a corkscrew;
• Tests of experimental ejection seats at the flying laboratories MiG-25 and Su-7 ;
• He performed the first flight and conducted flight design tests of the MAI-89, MAI-90 and Acrobat aircraft developed by the OKB MAI .

On September 19, 1995 he was awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation for the courage and heroism shown during the testing of new aviation equipment in conditions involving a risk to life. ^[2]

Community Activities

Member of the International Society of Experimental Test Pilots. ^[one]

In 2015, a book of memoirs was published: L. D. Lobas. Earth truth about flight myths . - Moscow: BukiVedi, 2015 .-- 195 p. - 1000 copies. - ISBN 978-5-4465-0625-5 .