On a problem of Gaschütz. (Q2376705)

Let \(G\) be a finite group. Let \(\text{form}(G)\) be the smallest formation containing \(G\). The so-called Gaschütz problem asked whether it is true that \(\text{form}(G)\) contains only finitely many subformations. If \(G\) satisfies certain conditions, affirmative answers have been given by \textit{A. N. Skiba} [Izv. Akad. Nauk BSSR, Ser. Fiz.-Mat. Nauk 1981, No. 3, 33-38 (1981; Zbl 0489.20015)], \textit{V. A. Vedernikov} [D.Sci. diss., Brjansk (1992)], \textit{R. M. Bryant} and \textit{P. D. Foy} [Rend. Semin. Mat. Univ. Padova 94, 215-225 (1995; Zbl 0852.20007)], the author [Sib. Mat. Zh. 49, No. 6, 1238-1249 (2008); translation in Sib. Math. J. 49, No. 6, 988-996 (2008; Zbl 1205.20015)]. The earliest result was an affirmative answer, provided by \textit{R. M. Bryant}, \textit{R. A. Bryce} and \textit{B. Hartley} [Bull. Am. Math. Soc. 76, 347-357 (1970; Zbl 0191.02201)], for the case when \(G\) is soluble. The author shows that the answer to the Gaschütz problem is, however, negative in general. The counterexamples given in this paper are groups of type \(2S_5\), i.e. groups \(G\) such that \(Z(G)\cong C_2\), \(G/Z(G)\cong S_5\) and \(G\) is not isomorphic to \(S_5\times C_2\) or to a subdirect product of \(S_5\) and \(C_4\). The proof contains some category-theoretical methods.