60 years on the front lines of aviation and space medical support

Abstract

The main historical aspects of the research work of the Department of Aviation and Space Medicine of the S.M. Kirov Military Medical Academy are presented for a 60-year period of its activity with a characteristic of the contribution of the department’s staff at different periods. One of the priority tasks of the department was not only training medical specialists for the Air Force but also carrying out scientific research aimed at solving both applied and fundamental problems of aviation and space medicine. The directions of these studies were laid by the founder of aeronautical physiology academician Leon A. Orbeli and are related both to the development and improvement of science and technology, and to the development of aviation and cosmonautics. Today, the main scientific areas of the Department of Aviation and Space Medicine are: improving the medical support system for flights on modern and promising aviation and space technology; development of methods and techniques for increasing the stability of the body of pilots and cosmonauts to flight factors; assessment and forecasting of the functional state and professional reliability of the flight crew, astronauts and operators for the management of space vehicles, as well as the development of tools and methods for correcting adverse changes in the functional state and improving the professional performance of pilots and astronauts. The Department continues research on one of the most important problems of flight safety - the loss of spatial orientation, new types of illusions are being studied. To ensure the work of the department at the present stage, the educational and material base is represented by the most modern medical and special equipment grouped into adjacent and complementary areas.