Ivan Mikoyan, Russian aircraft designer, Died at 89

  Artists

Vano “Ivan” Anastasovich Mikoyan was born on September 1, 1927, and died on November 24, 2016

He was a Soviet Armenian aircraft designer, nephew of designer Artem Mikoyan.

During 1944-1945, Ivan studied at the Aviation Technical School in Stalinabad, then graduated from the Zhukovsky Air Force Engineering Academy.

From 1953, Mikoyan worked in OKB Mikoyan as assistant chief engineer, chief engineer for flight tests, and as the leading designer for MiG-21 family of fighter aircraft.

During 1965, Mikoyan was appointed as the lead designer on the MiG-23 fighter aircraft, and the technical director of joint state tests after 1968.

Since 1973, Ivan was deputy chief designer for the MiG-29 fighter aircraft. Later, he was an adviser for Russian Aircraft Corporation MiG.

He was placed in charge of two OKB Mikoyan projects studying STOL fighter designs.

One group studied of the swing-wing design (like the MiG-23) and the other delta wings (like the MiG-21) and lift jets instead of the swing wing.

Whilst he was a teenager, he was connected to a high profile murder-suicide case.

Ivan’s Walther pistol was borrowed and used by Volodia Shakhurin, son of the Aviation Minister, to kill himself and Nina Umanskaia, daughter of the Soviet ambassador to Mexico, when Nina refused Volodia’s request that she stay in Moscow.

That event took place on Moscow’s Stone Bridge.

Ivan Mikoyan passed away at 89 years old.