Antonov

Antonov State Company (Ukrainian: Державне підприємство "Антонов"), formerly the Antonov Aeronautical Scientific-Technical Complex (Antonov ASTC) (Ukrainian: Авіаційний науково-технічний комплекс імені Антонова, АНТК ім. Антонова), and earlier the Antonov Design Bureau, is a Ukrainian aircraft manufacturing and services company. Antonov's particular expertise is in the fields of very large aeroplanes and aeroplanes using unprepared runways. Antonov (model prefix An-) has built a total of approximately 22,000 aircraft, and thousands of planes are currently operating in the former Soviet Union and in developing countries.

Antonov StC is a state-owned commercial company. Its headquarters and main industrial ground are located in and adjacent to Kiev. On 12 May 2015 it was transferred from the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade to the Ukroboronprom (Ukrainian Defense Industry).

History

Soviet era

Foundation and relocation

The company was established in 1946 in Novosibirsk as a top-secret Soviet Research and Design Bureau No. 153, headed by Oleg Antonov and specialised in turboprop military transport aircraft. The An-2 biplane is a major achievement of this period with hundreds of aircraft still operated as of 2013. In 1952, the Bureau was relocated to Kiev, a city with rich aviation history where aircraft-manufacturing infrastructure was being restored after the World War II destruction.

NPO Novator

NPO Novator (Novator Design Bureau, OKB Novator, OKB Lyulev) is a Russian company that designs long-range anti-aircraft missiles. It was established in 1947 as OKB-8 in Sverdlovsk (Yekaterinburg), became independent in 1991, and then became part of the Almaz-Antey conglomerate. It is perhaps best known for designing the 9M82 and 9M83 missiles of the S-300V (SA-12 'Gladiator') SAM system.

History

The Kalinin Machine-Building Plant (now JSC MZiK) was a major part of the Soviet war effort in World War II, producing 20,000 anti-aircraft guns. After the war ended, Lev Lyulyev was promoted to Chief Designer of Factory No. 8 and he started work on heavy guns such as the KS-19 and KS-30. In 1947 he formed the Chief Designer Bureau (OGK) - later Experimental Design Bureau (OKB)-8 - of the Ministry of Aviation Industry, for the development of heavy anti-aircraft guns. As was the Soviet tradition, the OKB was often referred to by his name. In 1957 he switched to surface-to-air missiles (SAMs).

List of characters in the Metal Gear series

The Metal Gear franchise features a large number of characters created by Hideo Kojima and designed by Yoji Shinkawa. Its setting features several soldiers with supernatural powers provided by the new advancements of science.

The series follows mercenary Solid Snake given government missions of finding the Metal Gear weapon, resulting in encounters with Gray Fox and Big Boss in Outer Heaven (Metal Gear) and Zanzibar Land (Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake). Later, Solid Snake meets Otacon and opposes Liquid Snake's FOXHOUND in Metal Gear Solid then assists Raiden in fighting both Solidus Snake and the Patriots in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. Additionally, there are several prequel games that follows Big Boss's past and legend development as well as the origins of FOXHOUND, Outer Heaven and the Patriots.

While the original Metal Gear games had their characters designs modeled after Hollywood actors, the Metal Gear Solid games established a series of consistent designs based on Shinkawa's ideas of what would appeal to gamers. Additionally, several of the characters he designs follow Kojima and the other staff's ideas. Critical reception of the game's cast has been positive as publications praised their personalities and roles within the series.

Chemical Automatics Design Bureau

Chemical Automatics Design Bureau (CADB), also KB Khimavtomatika (Russian: Конструкторское бюро химавтоматики, КБХА, KBKhA) is a Russian Design Bureau founded by the NKAP (People’s Commissariat of the Aircraft Industry) in 1941 and led by Semyon Kosberg until his death in 1965. Its origin dates back to a 1940 Moscow carburetor factory, evacuated to Berdsk in 1941, and then relocated to Voronezh city in 1945, where it now operates. Originally designated OKB-296 and tasked to develop fuel equipment for aviation engines, it was redesignated OKB-154 in 1946.

In 1965 A.D. Konopatov took over leadership. He was succeeded by V.S. Rachuk in 1993. During this time the company designed a wide range of high technology products, including liquid propellant rocket engines, a nuclear reactor for space use, the first Soviet gas laser with an output of 1 MW and the USSR's only operational nuclear rocket engine. The company has designed more than 60 liquid propellant engines with some 30 having entered production.