Mikhail Simonov

Mikhail Simonov
Born	(1929-10-19)19 October 1929 Rostov-on-Don, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Died	4 March 2011(2011-03-04) (aged 81) Moscow, Russia
Nationality	Russian
Known for	Sukhoi Su-27
Awards	Hero of the Russian Federation
Scientific career
Fields	aircraft designer

Mikhail Petrovich Simonov (Russian: Михаи́л Петро́вич Си́монов; 19 October 1929 – 4 March 2011) was a Russian aircraft designer famed for creating the Sukhoi Su-27 fighter-bomber, the Soviet Union's answer to the American F-15 Eagle. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, Simonov coordinated the Su-27's sale to foreign governments, providing badly needed hard currency to the Russian government. In recognition of his achievements, he was named a Hero of the Russian Federation in 1999.^[1]

Simonov was born in Rostov-on-Don. He became an aviation engineer in the 1950s and joined Sukhoi as a deputy chief designer in 1970. In his time at Sukhoi, he developed the Sukhoi Su-24 bomber and the Sukhoi Su-25 ground-attack airplane, as well as the Su-27. He was the Soviet Union's deputy minister of aircraft industries from 1979 to 1983.^{[citation needed]}