Education
He graduated from Yeysk military aviation school in 1970, test-pilot school in 1978 and the MAI (Moscow State Aviation Institute) in 1980.
He graduated from Yeysk military aviation school in 1970, test-pilot school in 1978 and the MAI (Moscow State Aviation Institute) in 1980.
After two years with LII (Flight Research Institute named after MMGromov) joined OKB Sukhoi where he tested the Su-9, Su-15, Su-24, Su-25 and the Su-27. On 1 November 1989 landed an Su-27K on an aircraft carrier for the first time in Soviet history. Pugachev is credited with first ever non-vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) from the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov.
Currently he lives in Zhukovsky and works as the Chief Pilot Designer at Sukhoi Design Bureau.
While working as a test pilot at Sukhoi he broke 13 world records in the Sukhoi P-42:.