On August 30 of this year, a monument to Guy Ilyich Severin, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Hero of Socialist Labor, General Designer of the Scientific and Production Enterprise Zvezda in 1964-2008, was unveiled on Borovsky Kurgan in Chulkovo. He forever entered the history of Russian aviation and cosmonautics as the creator of the unique K-36 ejection seat, which saved more than a thousand pilots' lives, as well as as the developer of the first spacesuits for astronauts and their spacewalks. It is interesting to note that all Soviet and Russian cosmonauts, starting with Yuri Gagarin, have flown and are flying in space suits at the NPP Zvezda.
The unveiling of the monument was attended by test pilots, relatives of the designer, employees of the Scientific and Production Enterprise Zvezda, and ski athletes.
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| The opening of the monument to Guy Severin on Borovsky Kurgan in the Moscow region. |
| Source: Valery Ageev |
The history of Chulkovo as a ski slope began in 1948. It was "discovered" by Guy Severin, a young graduate of MAI, a Moscow champion in alpine skiing and a future academician. At that time, he worked at the Flight Research Institute in Zhukovsky and continued to train on the Vorobyovy Gory Mountains, which were familiar to Moscow skiers, but the journey to them took too much time.
One day, during a test flight on the Tu-2, he noticed a high mountain near Zhukovsky. So Borovsky Kurgan was destined to become a training place for skiers, test pilots and future cosmonauts - and a cult place for thousands of winter outdoor enthusiasts.
According to Hero of Russia Vladimir Severin, the son of a designer, his father managed to win the Soviet Union Alpine Skiing Championship twice (in 1948 and 1950). When he arrived in Moscow, he seriously started skiing and became the champion of Moscow, "Burevestnik", and then won the Union championship twice, and in the very beginning The most dangerous type of ski triathlon is downhill. And for 10 years he was in the USSR national alpine skiing team, where his name was "Professor of downhill skiing" or "Queen".
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| Guy Severin. |
| Source: Valery Ageev |
Guy Severin has repeatedly argued that the handwriting of the chief designer, who makes some serious decisions, is very similar to the handwriting of a champion skier or a strong master in a risky sport. Because making a decision when you are responsible for your life is also a big risk. And in this regard, the sport helped him a lot. And the designer always said:
- I am a professional skier, and aviation is my hobby!
The natural slope in Chulkovo turned out to be surprisingly suitable for skiing. Enthusiasts from the Flight Research and Central Aerohydrodynamic Institutes began to equip it: they expanded the descent, took care of the track, and organized training sessions. This is how skiing was born in Chulkov. And in 1964, at the suggestion of the same Guy Severin, the Council of Ministers of the RSFSR approved Borovsky Kurgan as a preparatory and rehabilitation base for cosmonauts and test pilots.
Unfortunately, it was this center that caused the death of Guy Severin. On February 3, 2008, at the age of 81, while skiing at this ski resort, he fell unsuccessfully and broke his leg. After the operation, a blood clot broke off and he died on February 7. So a tragic accident ended the life of a man who was used to saving others by overcoming extreme circumstances.
But his homeland has not forgotten him. Severin's name was given to the Scientific and Production Enterprise Zvezda, which he headed for a long time. On July 24, 2008, a bronze bust in his honor was unveiled on the territory of the enterprise. On July 24, 2026, a memorial plaque dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the designer's birth was unveiled in Zhukovsky.
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| Memorial plaque dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the birth of designer Guy Severin. |
| Source: Valery Ageev |
Valery Ageev
