Aircraft construction and radar in the work of Soviet research institutes in the late 1930s-1940s: study and use of western experience. Part 1

The formation and development of Soviet research institutes in the field of aircraft construction and radar are quite widely represented in historiography. The topic of the transfer of Western technologies to the industry of the USSR in the 1920-1930s is also not new. However, a study of the scientific literature revealed a lack of special studies devoted to the period of the late 1930-1940s. The article, based on unpublished archival documents, is devoted to the analysis of the work of four research organizations involved in developments in the field of aviation industry and radar: Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI), All-Russian Institute of Aviation Materials (VIAM), Research Institute-20 (NII-20), Central Research Institute-108 (TsNII-108). All of them were involved in the study of Western technologies, in which the Soviet Union lagged behind the USA, Great Britain, and Germany.