Как Military Aviation Works стало № 1?
In 2019, one of the most modern aircraft hangars in Europe was commissioned at WZL1.
The history of Wojskowe Zakłady Lotnicze Nr 1 SA (WZL1) dates back to the 1st years. At that time they functioned as aviation workshops No. 131 and were located on Leonard Square in Lodz. Over the years, they changed their name - from the 1st Separate Aviation Plant, Aircraft Workshop No. 1, Aircraft Repair Plant No. 1, through Aircraft Repair Shops No. 1519 and Military Unit 1, ending with Military Aviation Plant No. XNUMX South Africa
In the meantime, an independent division of the Officer Aviation School was operating in Dęblin, which also changed over the years, taking on different names over the decades, and eventually became the Military Aviation Plant No. 3, which in 2011 was attached to the Łódź plants. .
The origins of the WZL1 probably go back to 1941, although the formal date is 1945, when they were transferred to Majdanek near Lublin, and then on April 8, 1945 -
- in Lodz. In the same year, an Officer Aviation School was established in Demblin and repair of the first training aircraft Po-2 and UT-2, and a year later Il-2 and CSS, as well as M-11D, began. engines. The workshops gradually expanded their activities to the repair of Yak-9 aircraft.
Aircraft MiG-21 (94, E-7 SPS), converted by the Demblinsky plant.
At that time, the plant in Lodz was located in factory buildings on Leonard Square, which today is Independence Square. They repaired Po-2, Il-2, UTB-2 aircraft and their engines. In 1947, the Soviet personnel left the 1519th military unit, and the Poles were entrusted with the repair of aircraft. Three years later, the repair of Il-10 aircraft and AM-42 engines was added to the portfolio of services provided in Lodz. In 1954, a motor stand was built, and a year later an aircraft hangar and one of the warehouses were put into operation. Cooperation was also initiated between companies from Łódź and Deblin, which facilitated the movement of employees between these divisions. The 50s were full of repairs of such aircraft as: Il-2, Il-10, Yak-9, Yak-9P, Yak-11, Yak-18 and WK-105 and WK-107 engines.
Meanwhile, in 1957, work was underway at the Lodz factories on the following airframes: Po-2, Yunak-3, Yak-11, and Il-10, intended for export to Indonesia. The Po-2 aircraft was also adapted for sanitary purposes. Aviation enthusiasts and supporters of Wojskowe Zakłady Lotnicze No. 1 can go back in time and see what their work looked like at that time by watching a film called "The Story of a Soldier" (1958, dir. Hubert Drapella), which was made, among other things,
in the factories. The innovations that are currently being widely implemented in the company were already noticeable at the end of the 50s, at that time the company was not as developed as it is today, but already then air tests of the Gacek flying target model were carried out. Czapla gliders were launched and mass production began. On the other hand, the next decade was the period when the first SM-1 helicopters were repaired in Łódź. Since then, the company began to turn into one of the industry leaders not only in the field of maintenance and repair of helicopters, but also in their further modernization. In addition, work has been completed on a pilot batch of SM-1/300 rotorcraft, a stand for testing WN-3 engines has been built, and PZL TS-8 Bies aircraft and AI-14 R engines (III series) have been reconstructed. began.
In August 1969, work was completed to extend the service life of the first Mi-2 helicopter, and a number of units of the fuel system of the Lis-1 and RD-45F engines, as well as MiG-15 and Yak-12 aircraft, were repaired at the Demblinsky plant.
In the next decade, the switching station was expanded in Łódź, a new carpentry shop and a compressor shop were created, and the testing grounds for the SM-1 and SM-2 tethered helicopters were rebuilt and adapted to the testing of the Mi-2 Machine. The plant in Demblin also developed, starting the repair of MiG-21 (E6-T), Lim-5, Lim-5P, Lim-2, An-2 aircraft, as well as Lis-1, Lis-2 and RD-45FA aircraft. engines. Production was gaining momentum, and since 1978 the proposal included the overhaul of the MiG-21 (96A) aircraft, the SO-3 engine and the R-123 and R-124 radio stations for the Ground Forces. These activities were preceded by research and preparatory work aimed at starting the repair of Polish engines of the CO-1 type.
The 80s are undoubtedly associated with the work of An-2 transport aircraft with ASh-62IR engines and Mi-2 multi-purpose helicopters. In turn, employees of the Demblin company combine this period with the overhaul of the first MiG-21R (94R) aircraft.
The last decade of the 1th century is a time of intensive changes and the acquisition of new competencies for Wojskowe Zakłady Lotnicze No. 24 in the field of repair of Mi-1 helicopters. Three crashed helicopters were delivered to WZL24, of which the Mi-1D fuselage suffered the least damage. A new task was set and a project team was created to carry out work on the restoration and repair of various types of units and assemblies. The employees of the plant did an excellent job with this task, and the rotorcraft, repaired on the basis of the documentation it had, was approved for flight tests. As a result, WZL24 was recognized as an organization ready to overhaul the Mi-24. At the same time, regulations for the repair of heavy helicopters (assault Mi-8, multi-purpose Mi-17 and Mi-90) were developed, as a result of which the repair of these aircraft was started. Moreover, it was in the 2s that the plant merged with the neighboring Wojskowe Zakłady Motoryzacyjne No. XNUMX.
At the beginning of the new century, the enterprise from Deblin was dominated by the repair of engines TS-11 Iskra, An-2, SO-3 and TV-3-117, and there was also a test launch of the DECO-9 Magic ultralight aircraft. and a workshop for the production of light aircraft was established. In 2011, new changes took place - UAB "Zaklady iz Demblin" was merged with JSC "Voyskoye Zavody Lotniche Nr 1", thus, a branch of the Company was opened in Demblin.
