Three senior executives of Russian nuclear designer Gidropress, and two other significant figures in the Russian nuclear industry, died in an aeroplane crash with 40 other passengers on 21 June.
Among those killed were: Sergey Ryzhov, director and general designer of OKB Gidropress; Gennady Banyuk, deputy director and chief designer of OKB Gidropress; Nikolai Trunov, head of department and chief designer of OKB Gidropress; Andrei Trofimov, chief technology officer of nuclear component manufacturer OKBM Afrikantov; and Valery Lyalin, head of technology department at nuclear component manufacturer Atomenergomash.
The RusAir Tu-134 passenger jet from Moscow crashed as it neared its destination of Petrozavodsk airport in Russia's northwestern republic of Karelia on 21 June.
The men were travelling to the ZAO Petrozavodskmash metal fabrication business, acquired by Atomenergoprom in February 2010, to attend a meeting about nuclear power plant component manufacture.
Short biographies follow (no information about Valery Lyalin was available by press date).
As head of the VVER reactor design division from 1998-2007, Sergey Ryzhov, 51, oversaw detailed design of VVER reactor plants V-428, V-446, and V-412 for NPPs in China (Tianwan), Iran (Bushehr), and India (Kundankulam). He also oversaw work to update first-generation V-440 RP that led to life extension licences for Novovoronezh 3&4 and Kola 1&2. He became director general of OKB Gidropress in 2007.
Some of the most significant contributions of materials engineer Gennady Banuyk, 65, were investigations of primary- and secondary-side corrosion mechanisms, including corrosion-induced cracking of the cold collectors in PGV-1000 steam generators and pitting-corrosion in the VVER-440 cladding-free vessels. His material science research served to extend the service life of equipment and piping of VVER-440 and VVER-1000 reactor plants. He was awarded a PhD in 2002.
Nikolay Trunov, 52, was one of Russia's leading experts on nuclear power plant steam generators. Under his leadership as head of the Gidropress steam generator division, detailed designs were developed for the extended service life PGV-1000MK steam generators, PGV-1500 steam generator for VVER-1500, PGV-1000MK steam generator for AES-2006, H-272 steam generator for the BN-800 reactor, and manufacturing, installation and commissioning of Russian and foreign steam generators, including Bushehr in Iran. He earned a PhD in 2004 based on his research on new steam generator designs, calculations, reliability improvements and justification for a life extension from 30 to 50 years.
In his role as chief technology officer at reactor component, steam generator and valve supplier OKB Afrikantov, Andrei Petrovich Trofimov, 35, carried out the technological preparation of production, including ensuring manufacturability of product design companies in all phases of design and all stages of their life cycle. He joined the company in 2000, and was made deputy chief in 2006, and chief in 2010. "We have lost a young, talented leader," the company said. "During his time in the company, Andrei Petrovitch has proved to be a competent expert and leader who can solve the most complex technical and organizational problems."
