View source for SSSR-V6 OSOAVIAKhIM

{{Short description|Soviet airship}}
{{Infobox aircraft
  |name = V6 Osoaviakhim
  |logo = <!--ONLY for an individual logo of the aircraft model, (NOT the main manufacturer logo)-->
  |image = W-6 Ossoaviachim wiki.jpg
  |caption = V6 ''Osoaviakhim''
  |type = Passenger/commercial airship
  |manufacturer = [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] airship program
  |designer = [[Umberto Nobile]]
  |first_flight = 5 November 1934<ref>Belokrys (2011), p. 153.</ref>
  |introduction = <!--date the aircraft entered or will enter military or revenue service-->
  |status = Destroyed in crash on 6 February 1938<ref>Belokrys (2017), p. 6.</ref>
  |primary_user = <!--please list only one user – for military aircraft, the user is a nation or a service arm. 
                  Do NOT add those tiny flags as they limit horizontal space.-->
  |more_users = <!--limited to three "more users" total; please separate with <br/>-->
  |produced = <!--years in production, e.g. 1970-1999, if still in active use but no longer built-->
  |number_built = 1
  |program cost= <!-- total program cost. -->
  |unit cost = <!-- incremental or flyaway cost for military aircraft or retail price for commercial aircraft. -->
  |developed_from = <!-- the aircraft which formed the basis for the topic type -->
  |variants = <!-- variants OF the topic type -->
}}

'''SSSR-V6 ''OSOAVIAKhIM''''' ({{langx|ru|СССР-В6 Осоавиахим}}) was a [[semi-rigid airship]] designed by Italian engineer and airship designer [[Umberto Nobile]] and constructed as a part of the [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] airship program. The airship was named after the Soviet organisation [[DOSAAF|OSOAVIAKhIM]].  V6 was the largest airship built in the Soviet Union and one of the most successful. In October 1937, V6 broke the world record for airship endurance previously held by the ''[[LZ 127|Graf Zeppelin]]''; under the command of Ivan Pankow, the airship remained aloft for 130 hours 27 minutes.

==Crash==
In February 1938, a Soviet Arctic [[North Pole-1|expedition]] led by [[Ivan Papanin]] became stranded on [[drifting ice|pack ice]]. V6 was sent on a rescue mission from Moscow with a short intermediate landing in [[Murmansk]].

At approximately 19:30 on 6 February 1938, V6 crashed into a hillside near [[Kandalaksha]], 220&nbsp;km south of Murmansk. the airship caught fire and was totally destroyed. Of the 19 passengers 
and crew on board, 13 perished. Their remains were laid to rest at the [[Novodevichy Cemetery]] in [[Moscow]]. In 1972, a memorial was erected at the crash site by local authorities and the citizens of Kandalaksha. There is also a memorial sign in [[Dolgoprudny]] at the former Soviet airship base.

Official reports by [[TASS]] stated that the crash was due to poor visibility and insufficient altitude. The details and conclusions of the Soviet investigation into the loss of airship were never made public. Among the circumstances assumed to have resulted in the crash were outdated charts and human error; some rumors indicated sabotage, but no evidence was ever presented.

Recent research<ref>Belokrys (2017).</ref> revealed that the V6 flew off her route after the crew became disoriented in an unfamiliar area due to darkness and snowfall. Possibly contributing to the disorientation was ineffective use of radio navigation equipment ([[Telefunken]]'s and [[Fairchild Camera and Instrument|Fairchild]]'s RC-3 [[radio direction finder]]s), lack of general navigational experience and human fatigue. [[Altimeter|Barometric altimeters]] could have accumulated error while the crew was unable to maintain constant visual control of the altitude.

The accident was a severe loss to the Soviet airship program which was eventually terminated in 1940.

==Specifications==
{{Aircraft specs
|ref=''Belokrys (2017)''<ref>Belokrys (2017), pp. 237, 299, 422, 427, 430, 433.</ref>
|prime units? = met
|crew=15
|length m=104.5
|length ft=342
|length in=10
|width m=<!-- if applicable -->18.4
|width ft=<!-- if applicable -->60
|width in=<!-- if applicable -->4
|height m=25.5
|height ft=83
|height in=8
|volume m3=<!-- lighter-than-air -->19,400
|volume ft3=<!-- lighter-than-air -->685,105
|empty weight kg=11,700
|empty weight lb=25,794
|lift kg=<!-- lighter-than-air -->9,640
|lift lb=<!-- lighter-than-air -->21,253
|eng1 number=3
|eng1 name=Maybach Mb.IVa engines<!-- What type?? -->
|eng1 kw=<!-- prop engines -->194
|eng1 hp=<!-- prop engines -->260
|max speed kmh=111
|max speed mph=67
|cruise speed kmh=<!-- if max speed unknown -->104
|cruise speed mph= <!-- if max speed unknown -->64
|range km=4800
|range miles=2980
|range note=<ref>Maximum distance actually covered.</ref>
|endurance=103 hours 27 minutes
|ceiling m=3300
|ceiling ft=10,827
|ceiling note=Maximum height actually reached.
}}

==See also==
*[[List of airship accidents]]

==References==

===Notes===
{{Reflist}}

===Bibliography===
{{Refbegin}}
* Belokrys, Aleksei. ''Deviat'sot chasov neba. Neizvestnaia istotriia dirizhablia "SSSR-V6"'' [Nine Hundred Hours in the Sky. The Unknown History of the Airship "SSSR-V6"]. Moscow, Russia: Paulsen, 2017. {{ISBN|978-5-98797-174-1}} (in Russian).
* Belokrys, Aleksei. ''Dirizhablestroi na Dolgoprudnoi: 1934-i, odin god iz zhizni'' [Dirizhablestroi in Dolgoprudnaya: 1934, one year of life]. Moscow, Russia: Paulsen, 2011. {{ISBN|978-5-98797-060-7}} (in Russian).
{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|SSSR-V6 OSOAVIAKhIM}}
* [http://www.moninoaviation.com/g7a.html Air Force Museum - Monino, Russia] Grave for Crew of Soviet Airship SSSR-B6 at the Novodevichy Cemetery, Moscow
* [http://info.dolgopa.org/album/06_09.htm Images of the V6] (Russian)
* [http://wikimapia.org/9225538/ru/%D0%9D%D0%B5%D0%B1%D0%BB%D0%BE-%D0%B3%D0%BE%D1%80%D0%B0-445-%D0%BC Map and photo of the monument at the crash site (comments in Russian)]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110811045533/http://aerocrat.livejournal.com/84287.html Photos and bluprint of the V6] (Russian)
* [http://dolgoprud.org/library/15_16.htm] Umberto Nobile. V6 wins the World's Duration Record (Russian)
* [http://dolgoprud.org/library/15_17.htm] Umberto Nobile. The Tragic End of V-6 (Russian)

{{Aviation accidents and incidents in 1938}}
{{Aviation accidents and incidents in the Soviet Union before 1950}}
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[[Category:1930s Soviet aircraft]]
[[Category:Airships of Russia]]
[[Category:1938 in the Soviet Union]]
[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in the Soviet Union]]
[[Category:Accidents and incidents involving balloons and airships]]
[[Category:Burials at Novodevichy Cemetery]]
[[Category:Aviation accidents and incidents in 1938]]