I.S. Unshlikht, Head of the Main Directorate of the USSR Civil Air Fleet

Evgeniy Vorob'ev

UDC 94 CSCSTI 03.23

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I.S. UNSHLIKHT, HEAD OF THE MAIN DIRECTORATE OF THE USSR CIVIL AIR FLEET I.S. Unshlikht, Head of the Main Directorate of the USSR Civil Air Fleet

АА Аа

Published in Zhurnal istoricheskih issledovaniy · Volume 11, Issue 3, 2026 · Pages 59–65 · Rubric: National history

Received: 04.08.2026 Accepted: 24.09.2026 Published: 19.10.2026 Language of publication: ru-RU

Authors

Evgeniy Vorob'ev

Moscow State Technical University of Civil Aviation Associate Professor · Department of Humanities and Socio-Political Sciences · Moscow

ABSTRACT

At the stage of the formation of the civil aviation of the Soviet Union, the industry was plagued by personnel confusion, and all major issues were resolved by the head of the department. The death in a plane crash of A.Z. Goltsman, the head of the Civil Air Fleet, forced the government to appoint an experienced manager — Iosif Stanislavovich Unshlikht — to this position. He had already been involved in developing aviation, having headed the Osoaviakhim and the country’s military industry. The new head of Aeroflot actively performed representative functions, participating in public events, including those of an international nature. However, the main tasks facing civil aviation were not accomplished due to the insufficient material and technical base of the Civil Air Fleet. The blame for the failures was placed on Unshlikht, who was removed from his position and later repressed on false charges. The results of Unshlikht’s work as head of the Main Directorate of the Civil Air Fleet included the expansion of the network of air routes, the creation of an effective territorial structure for the industry, the shift to using domestic aircraft, and their active use to meet the needs of the country’s national economy.

KEYWORDS

civil aviation, Civil Air Fleet, Aeroflot, Osoaviakhim, I.S. Unshlikht

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29. Prodolzhim raboty velikogo uchenogo // Pravda. – 1935. – 20 sent. – S. 4.

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I.S. UNSHLIKHT, HEAD OF THE MAIN DIRECTORATE OF THE USSR CIVIL AIR FLEET I.S. Unshlikht, Head of the Main Directorate of the USSR Civil Air Fleet

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