Matus Ruvimovich Bisnovat (, 23 October 1905, Nikopol – 8 November 1977) was a Soviet aircraft and missile designer. Bisnovat attended the Moscow Aviation Institute (MAI), graduating in 1931. In 1938, he headed a research team in Central Aero-Hydrodynamics Institute TsAGI, Zhukovsky, where several high-speed experimental airplanes were developed, the SK-1, SK-2 and SK-3. From 1942 - 1944 Bisnovat oversaw the development of the "302" rocket/ramjet fighter in NII-3, supervised by Andrey Kostikov. In 1946 he became head of Plant no. 293 and a team of engineers formerly in the OKB-293 of Viktor Bolkhovitinov. There Bisnovat managed some later work on the Bereznyak-Isaev BI-1 Rocket-powered aircraft. In 1948, with engine designer Aleksei Isaev he worked on the supersonic aircraft "Bisnovat 5". In 1952 he developed the infrared homing air-to-air missile SNARS-250. Bisnovat fell prey to a 1953 antisemitic campaign against "cosmopolitanism" instigated by rivals of Lavrentiy Beria. As a result he was ousted as head of Plant 293. In 1954 Bisnovat became head of design bureau KB Molniya, where he oversaw the development of air-to-air missiles R-40, R-60 (missile) and R-73 (missile). Bisnovat was awarded a doctorate in science in 1965. He died in 1977 from complications due to diabetes.

Honours and awards