History of the University

Ukraine is one of the few countries in the world where aviation and space technology is developed and produced, and qualified specialists for this industry are trained. The National Aerospace University "Kharkiv Aviation Institute" is the leading educational institution in the state education system of Ukraine, producing specialists in this field.

Kharkiv Aviation Institute was founded in 1930 and initially had two faculties – Aircraft Construction and Engine Building. At the time of its founding, KhAI had only 12 lecturers and 69 students. The institute developed extremely rapidly. By 1932, the first passenger aircraft in Europe with retractable landing gear, the KhAI-1, designed by lecturers and graduating students of KhAI, took off. Aircraft and gliders created within the institute set world records.

In 1930, at the origins of KhAI, stood the famous scientist, student of Zhukovsky, professor (later academician) Heorhiy Fedorovych Proskura, who during his life was awarded not only for his contribution to aviation development but also, for example, for creating a unique hydraulic system.
A street in Kharkiv is named after him (the street where the current National Aerospace University “KhAI” is located).

1920s: Proskura with students of the aviation department of the Kharkiv Technological Institute (now KhPI), from which KhAI emerged in 1930.

The second director of KhAI, Andriy Omelyanovych Medveder (1903–1935), was indeed a unique case in the history of USSR higher education institutions – from 1931 to 1932 he was the director of KhAI and simultaneously a third-year student of the Aircraft Construction Faculty. In 1935, he tragically died during the testing of the MTB-1 flying boat.

In 1932, under the guidance of the professor of the Aircraft Construction Department, Yosyp Hryhorovych Neman, an initiative group of KhAI staff and students created the project of a high-speed aircraft named KhAI-1. It was the first passenger aircraft in Europe with retractable landing gear, which provided the aircraft with a speed record. Powered by the domestic M-22 engine with 480 hp, it achieved a speed of 322 km/h, ranking first in Europe and second in the world. From 1934 to 1937, over 40 such aircraft were built at the Kyiv Aviation Plant, and before the war, KhAI-1 became the most mass-produced passenger aircraft in the country. Achievements in this area led to the creation of the KhAI Design Bureau.

From 1936 to 1938, based on the KhAI-1 aircraft, the KhAI-5 was created, a modification whose bomber variant KhAI-5-R10 was actively used during World War II as a reconnaissance and light bomber until 1943. A total of 490 such aircraft were built.

In 1934, the glider “Osaviakhimovets of Ukraine” or KhAI-4 first took to the air, led by Pavlo Heorhiyovych Benning, who proposed a unique hydraulic linkage system between the front and rear landing gears, allowing three wheels to be retracted and extended simultaneously in flight. At the same time, development of the Osaviakhimovets KhAI glider took place, which made history in world aviation. On it, pilot Ryzhkov performed 26 loops – the first in the world to complete such maneuvers on a glider.

In the summer of 1934, KhAI created a two-seat tail-less glider, KhAI-2, named after Pavlo Postyshev. Two months later, at the 10th All-Union Glider Competition in Koktebel, KhAI-2 set a record among gliders of its class, staying in the air for 58 minutes. On the way back to Kharkiv, piloted by Leonid Rozhkov, the glider flew for 4.5 hours on tow from Crimea to Kharkiv without a single landing.

In 1935, KhAI engineer and future chief designer Arkhip Mykhailovych Liulka developed and designed the first domestic turbojet engine, RTD-1.

In 1935, KhAI students Fishchuk, Stasyuk, and Kosukhin created the “flying wings” project, allowing a person jumping from an aircraft to glide through the air. Today, this project is realized as the “jet backpack.”

In 1935, professor A.M. Liulka designed the first domestic turbojet engine.

From November 1937, a jet group worked at KhAI, designing the first rockets. By the early 1940s, the institute had more than 1000 students, a design bureau, and active scientific research.

The institute's development was interrupted by the Nazi Germany invasion of the USSR. Over 500 KhAI lecturers and students fought on the front, with bombers developed at the institute participating in combat. Due to the occupation of Kharkiv, the institute was evacuated to Kazan and continued to train specialists for the aviation industry. Senior students were sent to engineering positions at defense enterprises, many of whom were awarded orders and medals for success in organizing military equipment production.

On November 10, 1937, under Academician H.F. Proskura, a group of scientists, engineers, and students was formed to study rocket propulsion, design, and launch the first rockets. On September 19, 1940, enthusiasts of the jet group launched Gunpowder Rocket No. 2 near the village of Cherkaska Lozova, near Kharkiv. A memorial plaque on the KhAI Aircraft Building commemorates this historical event.

In 1939, the Kharkiv Aviation Institute team participated in international correspondence shooting competitions organized by the English Association of Rifle Clubs. 45 teams represented the USSR. The KhAI team took 1st place in Ukraine, 10th place in the USSR, and 12th place in the world. Among them was graduate Borys Oleksiyovych Khokhlov, class of 1941, future KhAI lecturer, chief engineer, and general director of Kharkiv Aviation Production Association (KhAZ). Under his leadership, world-famous liners TU-104, TU-124, and TU-134 were produced, and work began to prepare the new generation of AN aircraft: AN-72 and AN-74.

On August 16, 1943, soldiers of the 285th Guards Regiment were among the first to enter occupied Kharkiv, expelling Germans from the KhAI area. The regiment was commanded by 29-year-old Major Hryhoriy Rudyk, who died in action. A street in Lisopark is named after him.

In 1944, after the liberation of the city, the institute returned to Kharkiv.

Restoration of damaged KhAI buildings took almost eight years. The educational process was improved, new departments were created, and the research program expanded. In the late 1940s, the first explosive stamping experiments were conducted. In 1953, work began on the creation of jet burners for drilling hard rock, and a wind tunnel was built. With the development of rocket technology, training specialists in its design and production began, and the Radio Engineering Faculty was opened.

In the 1960s, laboratories were created at KhAI to study the use of pulse energy sources in industry and long-term strength of aviation structures. The student design bureau began operating, creating over thirty aircraft models during its existence. In 1966, KhAI was included among 26 core higher education institutions in the USSR.

The institute’s specialization expanded. By 1980, new faculties were opened for Aircraft Control Systems and Rocket-Space Technology. The material base developed: aerodynamic tube complexes, new academic buildings, dormitories, sports complexes, and a recreation base in Crimea. In 1978, for outstanding achievements in training highly qualified specialists and scientific research, the institute was named after M.Ye. Zhukovsky, and in 1980, KhAI was awarded the Order of Lenin. In the 1980s, faculties for advanced training of aviation and space industry employees and pre-university preparation were opened.

In June 1967, KhAI students built and successfully tested a unique aircraft KhAI-20, awarded VDNH USSR prizes. Two years later, the KhAI-21 gyrocopter was created, a prototype of modern motorized hang gliders. KhAI-21 was successfully demonstrated at exhibitions in the USA and Canada.

In 1977, outstanding chief designer Oleg Kostiantynovych Antonov became the head of the Aircraft Construction Department (Department 103).

On March 31, 1978, KhAI was awarded the name of the aeronautics theorist, the “father of domestic aviation” M.Ye. Zhukovsky for enormous contribution to training aviation specialists.

On April 14, 1990, the legendary KhAI KVN team played its first game and won its first victory. By the mid-1990s, it won the KVN championship title and the Champions Cup and became the only team in KVN to be named “Best KVN Team of the Decade.”

With the formation of independent Ukraine in 1991, KhAI became the only institute in the country to provide comprehensive training for specialists in the aviation and space industry. In 1992, foreign students were admitted for the first time. The Faculty of Economics and Management was established, and integrated software complexes CAD/CAM/CAE: UNIGRAFICS, ADEM, EUCLID, etc., were included in the curriculum.

In August 1998, the State Aerospace University named after M.Ye. Zhukovsky KhAI was established. Over the years, the university trained more than 53,000 engineers. Among specialists in aviation and space in Ukraine, 80% are KhAI graduates. The university is proud of its scientists’ achievements in supersonic aerodynamics, aircraft structural strength, design of aviation and rocket engines, aircraft control systems, and more. Inventions by KhAI scientists are patented in over 20 countries. KhAI regularly participates in international exhibitions.

Currently, the university has over 7,000 students and 160 postgraduate students, 700 lecturers (including 95 professors and doctors of science, over 400 associate professors and candidates of science), and more than 2,000 employees. Among its lecturers: 1 Lenin Prize laureate (USSR), 3 State Prize laureates (USSR), 25 State Prize laureates (Ukraine), and 11 Council of Ministers Prize laureates (USSR).

A distinctive feature of KhAI is close ties with production. Chief designers and heads of major aviation and space enterprises lectured here: Ya.E. Aizenberg, P.V. Balabuev, V.O. Bohuslaiev, I.V. Dranovsky, S.M. Koniukhov, F.M. Muravchenko, A.K. Myalytsia.

The university occupies a separate area of the city in the forest park zone (approx. 25 ha), including 8 academic buildings, 2 research institutes, laboratories, a library with 920,000 volumes, student campus, sports complex, sanatorium, and dining facilities.

KhAI participates in the international space program “ALPHA” and scientific projects with companies from the USA, Japan, Germany, Mexico, Netherlands, and China.

On September 11, 2000, the university received National status. Its new name: National Aerospace University named after M.Ye. Zhukovsky “Kharkiv Aviation Institute” (KhAI).

The 21st century promises even faster development in aviation and space. KhAI scientists and lecturers look to the future with confidence and optimism, ready to solve any challenges.