State enterprise Kharkiv Machinery Plant "FED"

State enterprise Kharkiv Machinery Plant "FED" is a Ukrainian state-owned company based in Kharkiv, specializing in the production of hydraulic and pneumatic systems for the aerospace industry. It is part of the Ukroboronprom state defense conglomerate and supplies components to major Ukrainian aerospace enterprises such as Antonov and Ivchenko-Progress. The plant was originally founded in 1927 as a small mechanical workshop within an orphanage named after Feliks Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky in Kharkiv, then the capital of Soviet Ukraine. After industrialization in the early 1930s, it became the first factory in the USSR to produce 35mm cameras, starting large-scale production in 1934 with a copy of the Leica II rangefinder. Camera production continued until 1941, when the factory was destroyed by German forces; it resumed in 1946. In the post-war period, the factory also began producing aviation components, such as fuel management systems for the Tupolev Tu-104 in the 1950s. Camera production ceased entirely in the 1990s, after a total of over 8 million units, surpassing the number of original Leica cameras produced. Today, the company is fully integrated into Ukraine's defense industry, providing components to Antonov and Ivchenko-Progress, among others.

The State enterprise Kharkiv Machinery Plant "FED" was founded in 1927 as a small mechanical workshop within an orphanage named after Feliks Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky in Kharkiv, then the capital of Soviet Ukraine. During the early 1930s, the workshop underwent industrialization and became the first factory in the USSR to produce 35mm cameras. Large-scale production began in 1934 with a copy of the Leica II rangefinder camera, known as the FED 1 (Fèd'ka). Camera production continued until 1941, when the factory was destroyed by German forces during World War II. Production resumed in 1946. In the post-war period, the factory expanded into aviation components, supplying fuel management systems for the Tupolev Tu-104 in the 1950s. Over the decades, FED produced numerous camera models, including the FED 2, FED 3, FED 4, FED 5, and various specialized models such as stereo cameras and the FED Micron series. Camera production ceased entirely in the 1990s, after a total output of over 8 million units, which surpassed the number of original Leica cameras produced. Following Ukraine's independence, the plant continued as a state enterprise and became part of the Ukroboronprom defense conglomerate. Today, it specializes in hydraulic and pneumatic systems for the aerospace industry, supplying components to Antonov and Ivchenko-Progress.

• 1990

  Camera production ceased entirely after over 8 million units produced.

• 1950

  Began producing aviation components, including fuel management systems for the Tupolev Tu-104.

• 1946

  Production resumed after World War II.

• 1941

  Factory destroyed by German forces; camera production halted.

• 1934

  Began large-scale production of 35mm cameras, the first in the USSR, with the FED 1 (copy of Leica II).

• 1927

  Founded as a small mechanical workshop within an orphanage in Kharkiv.

State-owned aerospace and defense component manufacturer, historically significant as the USSR's first 35mm camera producer.

• FED 1 (Fèd'ka)

  First Soviet 35mm camera, a copy of the Leica II.

• FED S

  Improved model with a faster lens.

• FED V

  Model with a different shutter design.

• TSVVS

  Limited production model.

• FED 2

  Popular rangefinder camera with improved features.

• ZARYA

  Budget model with simplified controls.

• FED 3

  Updated model with a brighter viewfinder.

• FED 4

  Model with a built-in light meter.

• FED 5

  Later model with improved ergonomics.

• FED 6TTL

  Model with through-the-lens metering.

• FED 7 prototype

  Prototype model, not mass-produced.

• FED-10

  Fixed-lens rangefinder camera.

• FED-Atlas (FED-11)

  Fixed-lens rangefinder camera.

• FED-35

  Fixed-lens rangefinder camera.

• FED-35A

  Fixed-lens rangefinder camera.

• FED Mikron

  Compact camera with fixed lens.

• FED Mikron-2

  Compact camera with fixed lens.

• FED Stereo

  Stereo camera model.

• FED Stereo M

  Stereo camera model.

• FED BOY Stereo

  Stereo camera model.

• FED 50

  Fixed-lens camera.

1. 1State enterprise Kharkiv Machinery Plant "FED" - Wikidatawikidata.org
2. 2FED (azienda) - Wikipediait.wikipedia.org