Aerowagon
| Аэроваго́н | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Valerian Ivanovich Abakovsky |
| Built at | Russia |
| Constructed | 1917 |
| Scrapped | 1921 |
| Number built | 1 |
| Specifications | |
| Prime mover(s) | aircraft engine |
The Aerowagon or aeromotowagon (Russian: Аэроваго́н, аэродрези́на) was an experimental high-speed railcar fitted with an aircraft engine and propeller traction invented by Valerian Abakovsky, a Russian engineer from Latvia. It produced speeds of up to 140 km/h. The aerowagon was originally intended to carry Soviet officials.
Crash incident
On 24 July 1921, a group of delegates to the First Congress of the Profintern,[1] led by Fyodor Sergeyev, took the Aerowagon from Moscow to the Tula collieries to test it. Abakovsky was also on board. Although they successfully arrived in Tula, on the return route to Moscow the Aerowagon derailed at high speed near Serpukhov,[2] killing 6 of the 22 on board. A seventh man later died of his injuries.[3]
Deaths
The following people died as a result of the accident:
- Constantinov, Bulgarian delegate
- John Freeman, Australian delegate
- Oskar Heilbrich, German delegate
- John William Hewlett, British delegate
- Fyodor Sergeyev (Artyom)
- Otto Strupat, German delegate
- Abakovsky himself, at the age of 25.
The six men killed at the time of the crash were buried in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis, after lying in state at the House of the Unions.[4]
Legacy
The Aerowagon may be regarded as a precursor to the German Schienenzeppelin railcar, the American M-497 Black Beetle railcar and the later Soviet turbojet train, all three of them being experimental vehicles featuring the combination of railcar and aircraft engine.
References
- ↑ The Communist International, organ of the Executive Committee of the Communist International, no.19, [1921]
- ↑ The Communist International, organ of the Executive Committee of the Communist International, no.19, [1921]
- ↑ Letters from Tom Mann to Elsie Mann, Moscow, 26 and 30 July 1921; archives of Tom Mann, Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick, document references: MSS.334/3/6/5-6.
- ↑ Letters from Tom Mann to Elsie Mann, Moscow, 26 and 30 July 1921; archives of Tom Mann, Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick, document references: MSS.334/3/6/5-6.
Alexey Abramov / Алексей Абрамов, By the Kremlin Wall / У кремлёвской стены, Moscow / Москва́, Politizdat / Политиздат, 1978, pp./стр. 399 (Russian)