The Specialized Experimental Design Bureau of Spacecraft Technology (SOKB KT) is the leading organization in the field of design, implementation, and support of the following crucial components of spacecraft technology:

• systems and devices for information display and manual control of spacecraft ("cosmonauts' control panels"); and
• simulators and training stands for crew training and preparation for space flights.

The history of SOKB KT NIIAO begins in 1957, when Laboratory 47 with the staff of 30 was formed within a branch of the Flight Research Institute (LII) of the USSR Ministry of Aviation Industry. This laboratory was headed by Sergei Grigor'evich Darevskii, Ph.D. in engineering, an energetic and competent specialist. In this branch of industry, this laboratory was one of the leading organizations in the field of aviation ergonomics. This laboratory designed instrument boards for various types of aircraft, put forward proposals for representing flight parameters on multi-function CRT indicators, and developed the concept of a unified instrument panel for an interceptor.

Engineers of Laboratory 47 were particularly interested in the design of the piloted spacecraft Vostok developed under the guidance of Sergei Pavlovich Korolev. One of the most complex problems facing the designers of the spacecraft was the creation of a control system. Among the most important components of this system was a complex of devices for manual control and means of displaying information about the condition of all onboard systems that was necessary for making control decisions.

In early 1960 Korolev asked Darevskii's laboratory to design this complex, since they had already had some experience with this type of systems. Less than a year remained before the first manned flight. Despite facing this tight deadline, laboratory specialists took on this project with great enthusiasm. The young engineers E.N. Nosov, S.T. Marchenko, G.S. Makarov, and D.N. Lavrov played a leading role in this project.

A decision was made to design a unified indicator complex that would include a set of multi-arrow indicators, a re-entry regime control device (combined with a clock), an indicator of the current location and the projected landing location (the Globe), and so on.

The instrument board consisted of a single unit connected to the control system and to the telemetry system. The control panel was designed in a similar way. The control panel and the board with temperature and pressure indicators were connected to each other and comprised a system called "the Cosmonaut's panel," or SIS-1-3KA.

Control panel and instrument board on the Vostok spacecraft: Compare to the Mercury instrument panel

The construction of a unified instrument board and control panel complex facilitated a rational layout of various onboard systems. This approach was upheld in subsequent designs and is still used today. The SIS-1-3KA passed all tests and operated flawlessly during Yurii Gagarin's flight.

The group that worked on the design of the cosmonaut's panel included V.N. Maksimova, V.N. El'ksnin, G.N. Otreshko, Yu.T. Dragun, A.A. Kirillov, E.A. Vaskevich (the customer's representative), the designers V.I. Averin, E.S. Salfetkin, L.P. Simonenkova, and E.E. Tsypin, the manufacturing specialists N.Ya. Tsivlin, A.A. Kokorev, V.F. Isaev, V.A. Meleshkin, V.A. Filippov, N.I. Lizakov, N.V. Kruglikov, V.A. Mosiagin, I.A. Kisliakov, and others. Space design projects had significant support of the leadership of the the Flight Research Institute - its director N.S. Stroev, the chief engineer S.I. Znamenskii, the LII branch chief engineer V.N. Suchkov. This project became the foundation of SOKB KT and opened prospects for expansion of its activity and personnel growth.

Information display system for the Soyuz-7K and the Soyuz-A8 (the Soyuz-Apollo program)

On August 21, 1967, the Specialized Experimental Design Bureau of Spacecraft Technology was formed within the Flight Research Institute by a joint decree of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and the USSR Council of Ministers. The Bureau was assigned the role of the lead organization for the design of information display systems for piloted spacecraft.

In 1971 the Bureau split off from the Institute and became an separate organization. At that time the Bureau was also assigned the role of the lead organization for the design of complex simulators for cosmonaut training. The Bureau was located in the town of Zhukovskii near Moscow on a territory adjacent to the Institute. In that period major Bureau facilities were constructed, such as engineering and production buildings, a vibration testing pavilion, a microelectronics equipment production facility, and an entrance checkpoint.

In 1983 the Bureau merged with the Scientific Research Institute of Aviation Equipment (NIIAO). In 1997 the Bureau was reestablished again as a division within NIIAO. The new Specialized Experimental Design Bureau of Spacecraft Technology was formed on the basis of the Institute's Departments 1, 2, and 11, and groups from the experimental production facility and from the department of Chief Technician of the Aerospace Division.

The high quality of design and manufacturing, the timely completion of projects, and the good technical support of its products (including service on the Baikonur cosmodrome) ensured the leading role of SOKB KT in the construction of onboard control panels for all Russian piloted spacecraft. From 1960 to 1999, SOKB KT has developed five generations of information display systems (IDS) and manual control systems - over 50 types and modifications of panels in total: