Vladimir Bulanov

Vladimir Bulanov (3rd of April 1959, Komi ASSR, Russian SFSR) – a civil aviation pilot, a veteran of aeromodelling in Latvia, a prize-winner laureate of aeromodelling contests.

Vladimir Bulanov was born in the settlement of Pervomaysky (Komi ASSR). His love of aviation began in childhood. His first step into aviation was aeromodelling. Aeromodelling encompasses all types of aircraft and is the first stage in learning about aviation technology. Thanks to its simplicity and accessibility, a flying model attracts enthusiasts from an early age and can sometimes become a lifelong passion, as it did for Bulanov. Aeromodelling provided a direct path to flying clubs, educational institutions offering training in various aviation specialties, and professional training programs.

There was also an aeromodelling club in Volodya’s home settlement. When he was not admitted because he was too young, he began making simple models at home from postcards, wooden slats, and plasticine. A significant stimulus on his path into aviation was the book Fly the Model, which his parents gave him for his tenth birthday.

In 1970, the Bulanov family moved to Riga. At one of the district Houses of Pioneers, Bulanov began actively practicing aeromodelling under the guidance of V. Pugachev, a Master of Sport of the USSR. He built rubber-powered and control-line aircraft models and participated in all Latvian republican aeromodelling competitions, held in winter at the Daugava Sports Complex and in summer in the city of Bauska.

In the early 1970s, Bulanov achieved top places in control-line semi-scale models, as well as with a scale model of the Yak-18PM. After graduating from Riga Secondary School No. 14, he was working at Spilve Airport in Riga and at the Alksnis Higher Military Aviation Engineering School.

After completing his military service, he entered the Krasnokutsk Civil Aviation Flight School, where he continued his involvement in aeromodelling. After graduating from flight school, he flew in the skies of Yakutia, in the Arctic regions of the USSR. The areas in which he flew were extremely challenging and required special training, skills, and knowledge. In 1991, he retrained to fly the Mi-8 helicopter in Kremenchuk, Ukraine. He worked in aerial agricultural operations in Kazakhstan, near the city of Uralsk, and in Ukraine.

In the early 1990s, Vladimir Bulanov returned to Latvia. He worked as a pilot at Spilve Airport. However, in 1993 the squadron was disbanded. Difficult times began for Latvian aviation. On the foundations of one of the best territorial civil aviation administrations in the USSR, various airlines of different levels and statuses emerged and disappeared. V. Bulanov worked for several of them. At the same time, he continued to pursue aeromodelling actively.

An opportunity arose to develop radio-controlled unmanned aircraft models, one of whose pioneers in Latvia was Oleg Bykov. Bulanov participated in Latvian republican competitions in the S-4A (FAI) class of rocket-powered model aircraft. All flights took place at Spilve and Rumbula airfields. He also took up competitive aircraft models such as the H-600. At Latvian republican H-600 competitions, he achieved leading results: 2nd place in 2000; 1st place in 2005; 2nd place in 2007; and 3rd place in 2013.

From 2008 to 2015, Vladimir Bulanov had been working at the Institute of Aeronautics of Riga Technical University on a program for the development of unmanned aerial vehicles. The team led by Professor A. Urbahs achieved significant success in their research and development work. Vladimir Bulanov was one of the developers.

As of 2017, Vladimir Bulanov was retired, but he had not abandoned his lifelong passion. He worked with young people and participated in aeromodelling competitions. On 1 and 8 April 2017, in Riga and Kuldīga respectively, he took 2nd place in the new F-1N class of aircraft models in Latvia, according to the FAI classification.

Vladimir Schestakov

See also:

www.RUSSKIE.lv «Самолёты, сконструированные в Латвии в XX веке». Авиамодельный музейный проект. - Рига, 2017 or (www.russkije.lv/files/images/text/.../Shestakov_Samoleti_XX_veka.pdf)