P. V. Rychagov

The decision, showing masochistic sophistication, was enforced on February 23, 1942. Major military leaders were killed in cold blood on the day of the Red Army, the formation and development of which they dedicated their lives.

KLENOV Petr Semyonovich

Born in 1892, former member of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union / b / since 1931, staff captain of the tsarist army.

Prior to his arrest, he was chief of staff of PRIBOVO, Lieutenant General.

Caught up in the testimony of DYBENKO, KOCHERGIN and EGOROV, as a member of the Trotskyite organization, he is accused of sabotage activities by the testimony of witnesses RUBTSOV, DEREVIANKO, KASHIRSKY and KORENOVSKY.

He confessed to displaying inactivity in the leadership of the district troops.

SELIVANOV Ivan Vasilievich

Born in 1886, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1920, from peasants.

Before his arrest, he was the commander of the 83rd Cavalry Division, Lieutenant General.

Arrested on 23 / XI-1941

Clues into the testimony of witnesses KASHINA, CHEKUSHINA, SESSIONAL, KULAKOV, IVANOV, MAKAROV, TABUKHOVA in conducting anti-Soviet defeatist propaganda.

He confessed that he conducted anti-Soviet defeatist agitation among those around him, praised the German army, and spoke slanderous about the leaders of the party and government

PTUKHIN Evgeny Savvich

Born in 1900, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1918, from peasants.

Before his arrest, he was the commander of the KOVO Air Force, lieutenant general of aviation.

Arrested on 24 / VI-1941.

Clues into the testimony of SMUSHKEVICH, CHERNOBROVKIN, YUSUPOV, IVANOV and a confrontation with him, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

He testified that since 1935 he was a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, where he was recruited by UBOREVICH, but he refused this testimony, admitting that he had criminally led the troops entrusted to him.

PUMPUR Petr Ivanovich

Born in 1900, former member of the CPSU / b / since 1919, from peasants.

Before his arrest - commander of the Air Force of the Moscow Military District, lieutenant general of aviation.

Arrested on 31 / V-1941.

He is caught by the testimony of Bergolts, Rychagov, Alekseev, Ionov and confrontations with the latter two, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

In sabotage activities, he is exposed by the act of surrendering the PUMPUR of the Air Force of the Moscow Military District to another commander and by order of the NKO No. 0031 dated 31 / V-41.

He testified that he was a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, was recruited by SMUSHKEVICH, but refused this testimony.

ALEXEEV Pavel Alexandrovich

Born in 1888, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1920, lieutenant in the tsarist army.

Prior to his arrest - Deputy Commander of the PRIVO Air Force, Lieutenant General of Aviation.

Arrested on 19 / VI-1941.

Clues into the testimony of SHEVCHENKO and SAKRIER as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy. He is convicted of sabotage by the testimony of YUSUPOV.

He confessed that since 1939 he had been a member of an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, recruited by LOCTIONOV. According to the conspiracy, he was associated with SMUSHKEVICH, SAKRIER, FILIN, named the participants in the conspiracy - PUMPUR, GUSEVA. He carried out sabotage in the armament of the Air Force, accepted inferior and incomplete aircraft from the industry, delayed the rearmament of air units with new materiel.

6. GUSEV Konstantin Mikhailovich

Born in 1906, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1930.

Before his arrest, he was the commander of the Air Force of the Far Eastern Front, lieutenant general of aviation.

Arrested on 17 / VI-1941

Credits by the testimony of SMUSHKEVICH and ALEKSEEV, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, carried out sabotage.

I didn’t confess.

TRUBETSKOY Nikolay Iustinovich

Born in 1890, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1919, from the nobility.

Before his arrest, he was the head of the All-Union Organization for Social Protection of the Cross Army, lieutenant general of the technical troops.

Arrested on 11 / VI-1941.

Clues into the testimony of LANDO, LINOV, MALYARCHUK, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, carried out sabotage.

He confessed that since 1935 he had been a member of an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, into which he was recruited by LATSIS. In terms of anti-Soviet activities, he was associated with SMORODINOV, IVANOV, MALANDIN, Kascheev-Semin, APPOGA, CIFER and others. He carried out sabotage work in the system of military communications of the Red Army.

DE-LAZARI Alexander Nikolaevich

Born in 1900, non-partisan, from the nobility, lieutenant colonel of the General Staff of the tsarist army. Arrested 5 times by the Cheka authorities on charges of anti-Soviet activities. He kept in touch with his niece, the wife of the White Guard SABLIN, who lives in England. My brother emigrated to Poland.

Before his arrest, he was a senior lecturer at the Military Academy of Chemical Protection of the Red Army, Major General.

Arrested on 26 / VI-1941.

Concealed by the testimony of MAKOVSKY and POPOV as a Polish spy. By the testimony of ZATONSKY and KOSOGOV, he is exposed as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

He confessed that in 1925 he joined the officer group CANDLE, since 1935 he was a member of an anti-Soviet military conspiracy. Recruited by VERB. He personally recruited Karpov, Rozhdestvensky, Vlesky into the conspiracy, passed on espionage information to the Italian agent BATENIN about higher military educational institutions.

9. PETROV Makariy Ivanovich

Born in 1897, former member of the VKP / b / since 1925, expelled from the party in 1936. From 1917 to 1919 he was a member of the party of the Left Social Revolutionaries, a non-commissioned officer of the tsarist army.

Prior to his arrest, he was a teacher at the Art Academy, major general.

Arrested on 30 / VI-1941.

It is revealed that he was a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy with the testimony of PROKOFIEV, MEKHOV, GRIBOV, KRASNENKO-NILOV, KHLYNOVSKY, LENKHOV, MAKEENKO and KINAKH / they all refused to testify /. Harmful activity is confirmed by expert examination certificates. Undercover materials characterize PETROV as anti-Soviet.

I didn’t confess.

10. GOLTSEV Nikolay Dmitrievich

Born in 1897, former member of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union / b / since 1919, from among the workers.

Before his arrest, he was the chief of the armored forces of the 18th Army, Major General.

Arrested on 14 / X-1941.

Surrendered to the Germans without resistance.

I confessed.

FILIN Alexander Ivanovich

Born in 1905, former member of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union / b / since 1924.

Before his arrest, he was the head of the Research Institute of the Air Force of the Red Army, major general.

Arrested on 23 / V-1941.

Credits with the testimony of SHEVCHENKO, YUSUPOV and ALEXEEV, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

He is exposed in sabotage activities by the testimony of SAKRIEER, SHTERN, SMUSHKEVICH, and as a spy - by the testimony of STRELNIKOV.

I didn’t confess.

12. YUSUPOV Pavel Pavlovich

Born in 1894, non-partisan, officer of the tsarist army.

Before his arrest - Deputy Chief of Staff of the Red Army Air Force, Major General.

Arrested on 4 / VI-1941.

Credits with the testimony of IONOV, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, carried out sabotage.

He confessed that since 1939 he had been a member of an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, recruited by SMUSHKEVICH, was conspired with ARZHENUKHIN, IONOV, RYCHAGOV, VOLODIN.

LEVIN Alexander Alekseevich

Born in 1896, a former member of the VKP / b / since 1932, left the VKP / b / in 1921 due to disagreement with the NEP. In 1918, the Cheka was arrested on suspicion of anti-Soviet activities. In 1924, while on a business trip in Berlin, he was detained by the police presidium.

Prior to his arrest, he was Deputy Commander of the Air Force of the LVO, Major General of Aviation.

Arrested on 7 / VI-1941.

He is caught by the testimony of KOCHKOV, YAROSHEVICH, OPARIN, PISMANIK, NIKITENKO, KHRIPIN, SULIN, IONOV and RYCHAGOV, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

V.N. Chernyshev, P.G. Yarchevsky), and among the major generals of the arms of the troops and special services of the Red Army - five people.

So, the generals in 1940 were commanders who showed themselves from the best side both in military affairs and in terms of loyalty to the Soviet regime. And in 1941 these best of the best, dozens of times tested in various purges, loyal to the marrow of the bones of the Soviet power, began to suspect, overt or indirect complicity with the enemy. In short, the accusations were the most absurd, which, it would seem, could be easily refuted. But the security organs did not then arrest people in order to release them just like that later, thereby undersigning their unprofessionalism. And honored generals and admirals, veterans of the army and navy were kept for years in pre-trial prisons and isolation wards, fearing to refer their cases to court (the Military Collegium or the military tribunal of the district) - the accusatory materials were too flimsy. True, the investigators always had a lifesaver at hand in the form of a Special Meeting under the NKVD (NKGB) of the USSR, which endured any punishment in absentia, up to execution (during the Great Patriotic War).

The repressions against the elite of the Red Army in 1941 can be conditionally divided into two large parts: before the war and during it. The second part, in turn, is also advisable to divide into two halves: arrests in the active army and outside it. It is on these sections that the material of this chapter will be submitted.

From the top commanding staff of the Red Army in the first half of 1941, that is, before the start of the war, they were arrested, including here and commanders in old ranks (divisional commander, brigade commander), as well as some generals from the former Baltic countries (Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia), - two dozen people. Of these, more than half (Bees) were representatives of the Air Force. With some stretch, Colonel-General A.D. Loktionov, who held major positions in military aviation for about ten years, up to the chief of the Red Army Air Force. Then the number of arrested aviators rises to twelve. The rest of the top commanders, who were arrested from January to June 21, 1941, were representatives of the main and central directorates of the NCO, as well as the Military Academy named after M.V. Frunze. None of those arrested in this "set" had a chance to stay alive and contribute to the cause of ensuring victory over the enemy who treacherously attacked their homeland. Let us name them in the order in which the arrests proceeded.

1. Major General MISHCHENKO Sila Moiseevich - teacher of the Military Academy named after M.V. Frunze (arrested on April 21).

2. Divinzhener SAKRIER Ivan Filimonovich - Head of the Armaments Directorate of the Red Army Air Force (arrested on April 21).

5. Major General of Aviation Mines Ernst Genrikhovich - Assistant Commander of the Air Force of the Oryol Military District for universities, Hero of the Soviet Union (arrested on May 30).

6. Lieutenant General of Aviation PUMPUR Petr Ivanovich - Commander of the Air Force of the Moscow Military District. Hero of the Soviet Union (arrested on May 31).

7. Major General Georgy Ilyich SOKOLOV - lecturer at the Military Academy named after M.V. Frunze (arrested in May 1941).

8. Divisional Commander Nikolai Nikolayevich VASILCHENKO - Assistant Inspector General of the Red Army Air Force (arrested on June 2).

9. Brigade Commander CHERNIY Ivan Iosifovich - Head of the Advanced Training Courses for the Air Force Command Personnel at the Military Academy for the Command and Navigation Personnel of the Red Army Air Force (formerly the Air Force Attaché in England) - arrested on June 7.

10. Colonel-General SHTERN Grigory Mikhailovich - Head of the Air Defense Directorate of the Red Army, Hero of the Soviet Union (arrested on June 7).

11. Major General Andrey Nikolaevich Krustinsh - commander of the 183rd Infantry Division (arrested on June 8).

12. Aviation Lieutenant General SMUSHKEVICH Yakov Vladimirovich - Inspector General of the Red Army Air Force, twice Hero of the Soviet Union (arrested on June 8).

13. Major General of Aviation Alexander Alekseevich LEVIN - Deputy Commander of the Air Force of the Leningrad Military District (arrested on June 9).

14. Brigade Commander ORLOVSKY Afanasy Illarionovich - Commander of an aviation division of the Leningrad Military District (arrested on June 12).

15. Major General of Aviation Pavel Pavlovich YUSUPOV - Deputy Chief of Staff of the Red Army Air Force (arrested on June 17).

16. Rear Admiral Konstantin Ivanovich SAMOILOV - Head of the Directorate of Naval Educational Institutions of the People's Commissariat of the Navy (arrested on June 18).

17. Aviation Lieutenant General ALEKSEEV Pavel Alexandrovich - Assistant Commander of the Air Force of the Volga Military District (arrested on June 18).

18. Colonel-General Alexander Dmitrievich LOKTIONOV - Commander of the Baltic Special Military District (arrested on June 19).

19. Major General of Artillery SAVCHENKO Georgy Kosmich - Deputy Chief of the Main Artillery Directorate of the Red Army.

As already noted, there were many aviators among the top commanders of the Red Army arrested in 1941. In general, this year, Stalin noticeably lost interest in his former favorites, and first of all to the pilots, whom he and Voroshilov raised to unprecedented heights after returning from Spain. This cooling primarily affected the leadership of the Red Army Air Force - the thirty-year-old head of the Red Army Air Force Directorate (he is also the Deputy People's Commissar of Defense for Aviation), Hero of the Soviet Union, Lieutenant General of Aviation P.V. Rychagov, his assistant in long-range bomber aviation, Hero of the Soviet Union, Lieutenant General of Aviation I.I. Proskurov, Inspector General of the Red Army Air Force, twice Hero of the Soviet Union Ya.V. Smushkevich, Air Force commanders of the leading military districts: Moscow - Hero of the Soviet Union, Lieutenant General of Aviation P.I. Pumpur, Kiev Special Hero of the Soviet Union, Lieutenant General of Aviation E.S. Ptukhin, the Far Eastern Front - Hero of the Soviet Union, Lieutenant General of Aviation K.M. Gusev, the former head of the Main Directorate of Aviation Supply of the Red Army, Lieutenant General of Aviation P.A. Alekseev and other aviation commanders named in the above list.

Some of them were arrested before the war (see list), the rest - soon after it started. One of the first to fall out of favor on the eve of the war was the head of the Red Army Air Force, Pavel Vasilyevich Rychagov. His "sins" became the subject of proceedings at the very "top", which can be seen from the content of the document below - an extract from the minutes of the meeting of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks on April 9, 1941.

"NS. 125. About accidents and catastrophes in the aviation of the Red Army (Resolution of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks and the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR).

The Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) and the Council of People's Commissars establish that accidents and disasters in the aviation of the Red Army not only do not decrease, but more and more

increase due to the laxity of the flight and command personnel, leading to violations of the elementary rules of flight service.

(1898 --- 1942.09.) The Red Army soldier died in Vel.Otech. war

Levin Alexander Ivanovich

(1901, RSFSR district, Chkalov -, 1939) Russian, education: primary, worked as a machinist., Resident: Zhambyl region. (Dzhambulskaya), city, Dzhambul Arrest: October 1939 Arrest., ODTO NKVD Art. Dzhambul. Condemnation. March 1941 Linear court Trans-Sib railway. Obv. 58-10 of the Criminal Code of the RSFSR Sentence: 7 years in labor camp Reab. August 1991 Prosecutor's Office of the USSR, founded: Decree of the President of the USSR dated 1990.08.13 [Information of the DKNB RK for the Zhambyl region.]

Levin Alexander Ivanovich

(1909-1946, † Moscow, Vvedensk.kl-shche) Hero of the Sov. Union, lieutenant regiment.

Levin Alexander Ivanovich

(1909.05.07 in the village of Rtishchevo, now the city of Saratov region - 1948.07.08) b. in the family of an employee. Russian. Member of the CPSU since 1940. Graduated from the railway. technical school in Ashgabat. In the Sov. Army from 1932. He graduated in 1933 teams, courses, in 1942 - accelerated. officer, courses at the Military. acad. them. M. V. Frunze. Participant Conducted. Otech. war from Aug 1942. Com-r of the 990th brigade regiment (230th brigade, 5th detachment army, 1st Belorussian front) Lieutenant Colonel L. skillfully organized the 24.4.45 crossing of the r. Spree in the region of the lake. Rummelsburger See, capture, etc. holding the bridgehead. 29-30.4.45 regiment under his command captured Berlin, state. typography. Title of Hero of Owls. Union assigned 31.5.45. After the war he continued to serve in the army. Load ord. Lenin, Red Banner, Fatherland War 1 tbsp., Red Star, medals, foreign order. Died 1948.07.08. Buried in a cemetery in Moscow.

Levin Alexander Ivanovich

(1910, D.-Konstantinovsky district, village Krutaya -, 1932) Russian 1932.10.08 troika. Obv. 58-7, in 1957 re-qualified to article 162 Sentence: to 10 concentration camps. In 1957, a measure of the angle of punishment was appointed 5 years superfluous [Book of memory of the Nizhny Novgorod region.] - 11 -

OWNTRUTH

“My dear boy, - look how many are still unknown to man, how many unsolved secrets. Do not waste time in vain, work, study, live your life so that you can put something into the common treasury of knowledge and experience. Do not turn out to be an empty flower, vegetating and living ONLY for the sake of feeling life, for the sake of some of its external, primitive pleasures. In a word, the worst thing for you and shameful for me is if you prepare yourself and live - tradesman.

I believe that this will not happen. For this, in addition to everything else, I give you this book.

Your Folder

12.1.37 g. "

This dedication was made by the father of a 14-year-old teenager on a book by prof. SP Glazenapa "To friends and amateurs of astronomy". He gave it to his son at the very beginning of the inexplicably tragic "ominous 37th".

- 12 -

The man to whom the above lines belong was neither a writer, nor a scientist, nor a journalist, nor a politician ... He was a cool military pilot and a high-ranking commander of the Red Army.

This man devoted his whole life to virtually one and only goal - to ensure the protection and independence of his Fatherland. And he managed, as we shall see, to do a lot for this. And his very conscious life fell on those very turbulent and contradictory years of our modern history, about which historians and the whole of society will argue for a long time.

It will be about one of the first Soviet aviation commanders, Major General of Aviation Alexander Alekseevich Levin.

In the years mentioned, he personally participated in the adoption of many difficult and responsible decisions, experienced a number of direct and veiled dangers, psychological "mistakes", the joys of success and the severity of irreparable losses. As much as at another time, perhaps, would be enough for several lives.

But for us today it is important that, on the one hand, a lot of what our society lived in those years, what it was proud of and what it suffered from, was reflected in its fate,

- 13 -

and on the other hand, the fact that the life story of this particular person can be recreated quite fully and truthfully.

Why? Because it will rely on an already impartial database of facts and data that have become the property of the archives.

There are essentially no memoirs in this story. Everything that is quoted is taken from documents stored in state archives. They are the main source. Only very modestly are the testimonies relating to the memory of still living contemporaries and relatives used.

All of them have been for many years, they are far from politics, that is, they are truly free from all worldly obligations, except for obligations to their own conscience. The TRUTH about this man, who made a specific, but indisputable contribution to the preparation of victory in the Great Patriotic War, will delight many of his still living students and colleagues, and will help new generations to understand something very important from our recent past. And maybe even from the near future.

He was born in the city of Saratov on August 20, 1896 and was baptized by Alexander. In August 1918, 22-year-old Alexander Levin, one of the first Russian pilots "from the people",

- 14 -

took an oath of loyalty to this people and carried it through all the trials that this unprecedentedly turbulent era has prepared for him.

The end of his military service turned out to be mysterious and incomprehensible not only for a wide circle of aviators, but even for the leading workers of the Air Force of the Red Army. A typical example.

In 1947, his son, who went through the entire war at the front, entered the Air Force Engineering Academy. prof. N.E. Zhukovsky. The credentials committee refused to accept him. However, the Air Force Personnel Directorate supported the officer who successfully passed the entrance exams. The head of this department, Lieutenant-General Orekhov, sent a corresponding submission to a member of the Air Force Military Council, who had the right to decide the issue of admission. But his resolution on the specified paper was very characteristic of its time and extremely eloquent: “What's the matter with my father? - inscribed a blue pencil, - but it is better to abstain from the reception. " But that was the "question" of this question, that no one in the leadership of the Soviet Army Air Force knew what the "Case" of the former Major General of Aviation AA Levin was about. Moreover, thousands of pilots and technical specialists who studied in the pre-war years in 52 aircraft did not know anything.

- 15 -

aviation and aviation technical schools, who personally knew him or heard about him as an experienced, fair, active, authoritative chief who flew skillfully and was a recognized legislator in teaching the flying profession. The recollections of some eyewitnesses about his, at least, outward calmness in risky moments of professional activity are somewhat legendary. Perhaps, in the shortest of all he wrote about this (in his characteristic sympathetic and ironic manner) in his newspaper essay, the well-known journalist M. Koltsov in those years.

In 1928, M. Koltsov on behalf of the Pravda newspaper was present at the preparations for the start of the most complicated air flight from Moscow to Beijing at that time on one of the first planes of domestic design. For those years, this was a very important event. The management of the preparation of the flight and its start was entrusted to A. Levin, and the departure was planned from the airfield near the city of Serpukhov.

Preparatory work went on around the clock, but the start time was repeatedly delayed due to numerous organizational and technical inconsistencies. Everyone was nervous. When, finally, everything was settled down, those who had gathered for the farewell learned that due to unfavorable

- 16 -

If the weather is pleasant on the highway, take-off is again postponed for 12 hours. Here is what M. Koltsov wrote about this in a newspaper essay: "Having announced to us the postponement of departure, as always unperturbed, Levin flew to Moscow on his plane ... to shave."

It must be admitted that neither the origin of Alexander Alekseevich, nor his childhood years could in any way foreshadow to him the fate of one of the first military pilots of the Red Army, the future aviation general. The family in which he was born consisted of his father, a working carpenter with a one-year parish education - Alexei Alekseevich Levin and a young, 18-year-old mother Natalia Ivanovna (nee Artamonova), who never went to school at all.

Before marriage, the young people lived in the same yard in the city of Saratov. Their fathers only had similar fates: each of them served as a soldier for 25 years and married after graduation, when they were already well over 40. Following the firstborn, seven more children were born in the young family. But three died in early childhood due to illness. Life was not easy with one worker.

In search of work, the family moved to Vyatka, where the head of the family got a job as a carpenter in car repair shops.

- 17 -

It should be recalled that the city of Vyatka of those times was a place of exile for many politicians (among them were A.I. Herzen, A.L. Vitberg, M.E.Saltykov-Shchedrin, etc.), and they, in turn, noticeably influenced the moral level of the advanced part of the population, especially the intelligentsia. Essentially, illiterate parents sent their eldest Alexander to elementary school, where the boy's good abilities, hard work and curiosity, as well as the unusually rare heart climate in his family, were especially noted by two school teachers - educators in spirit.

Before meeting them, Natalia Ivanovna read mainly the Gospel, the Lives of the Saints and the Bible. An old soldier, her father, taught her the basics of literacy at home.

The young teachers made friends with her, took up her education and in every possible way contributed to the continuation of the education of her eldest son. It was on their advice that, after successfully completing primary school, the father took his son to the gymnasium. The headmaster of the gymnasium greeted the modestly dressed newcomers with an unexpected question to their father: "What are you doing?" And when he answered that he was a carpenter, the director ended the meeting with the words: “Well, you see, you are a carpenter, and the apple from the apple tree should not fall far. Why does your son need

- 18 -

gymnasium? " (It is characteristic that Alexander Alekseevich did not like this common proverb all his life, apparently, as a memory of a humiliating meeting). Nevertheless, the further efforts of the teachers turned out to be decisive for the admission of a boy from a poor family to a substantially more democratic than a gymnasium, but a full-fledged urban Real School. The study was successful, the teenager knew well the value of the opportunity to continue his education. Along with the main subjects, there was time left for participation in the school orchestra (playing the violin), and for the hobby for gymnastics, and for playing chess. These activities "for the soul" later turned out to be far from waste in life. Playing the violin in the cinema before the screenings and giving private lessons made it possible to survive for 2 student years in the capital, and gymnastics contributed to the physical development necessary for mastering the flying profession. Chess in his life served as the best leisure activity in those short and rare periods of time that were not occupied by work. The level of his chess game was relatively high. In 1918, in Vyatka, at a session of a simultaneous game with the future world champion A.A.Alyokhin, our hero drew the game, which he was deservedly proud of. They turned out to be very chained, as we will see from further

- 19 -

general, and the foundations laid in the field of studying foreign languages, primarily French, in which, after school, Alexander Alekseevich could practically express himself.

In the year that World War I began, AA Levin, after graduating from Realnoe, went to Petrograd, where he entered the Forestry Institute. It was extremely difficult to study, and most importantly, to live in the capital without the material assistance of their parents, which they were unable to provide. The war was gaining momentum more and more. In 1916 it became known that junior students would be drafted into the army. Without waiting for this, Alexander Alekseevich left the institute and volunteered for the army.

Education and youthful romanticism led yesterday's student to the Petrograd theoretical courses, after which he began practical training in flying, but already in the Crimea at the Sevastopol (Kachin) aviation school of pilots. It was the oldest Russian educational institution of a similar profile. A few months later, when the main course of study was completed, by order of A.F. Kerensky, the graduates were awarded the rank of ensign.

Apparently, the ability of Alexander Alekseevich to transfer knowledge and find contact with students, and most importantly, of course,

- 20 -

good to fly, were already noticed by his mentors and superiors. Levin was left at the school as an assistant flight instructor.

At the same time, he began to perfect himself in the then rare art of so-called aerobatics with the famous ace of those times, K. K. Artseulov (the first pilot in Russia who deliberately introduced the aircraft to the evolution, later called aerobatics - "corkscrew").

He did not shy away from public life. In the turbulent events after February 1917, he was elected Chairman of the company committee, a member of the Committee of the Sevastopol Military Aviation School of Pilots.

He met the October Revolution in Sevastopol, and in December, having received an indefinite leave, went home to Vyatka, where he was demobilized. Until August 1918 he lived with his parents' family, worked as a hydraulic engineer-meliorator, a chemist on a geological expedition, and in August 1918 he joined the Red Army and was sent to the First Moscow School of Red Military Pilots as an aerobatics instructor. However, in 1919, the school's educational work was suddenly interrupted by the situation at the fronts. The general's cavalry rushed to Moscow

- 21 -

K. K. Mamontov. This was one of the poignant moments of the civil war.

A special detachment was formed from the personnel of the aviation school, designed, first of all, to conduct reconnaissance of the rapidly moving masses of Mamontov's cavalry. A.L. Levin was appointed assistant commander of the detachment, and the head of the flight school led the detachment.

However, events soon took an unexpected turn. This is how Aleksandr Alekseevich himself described it in his autobiography: “After the commander of the detachment went to prison with the Whites (and was then shot by them), he took command of the detachment. Upon returning from the front, he was awarded a gold watch and was appointed head of the school. "

And before that, there was another characteristic episode. While flying for reconnaissance near Tula, one of the detachment's planes was shot down and forced to land behind the front line. The loss of even one aircraft was a heavy blow for the school, since only a few aircraft were in good working order. Alexander Alekseevich with two volunteer mechanics, crossing the front line at night, found a wrecked plane and took it out to the location of the red troops on three carts in half-disassembled form. After repair

- 22 -

This extraordinary aircraft served for the training of pilots for a long time. And its uniqueness consisted in the fact that it was a unique brainchild of the engineering thought of that time - the so-called "triplane", that is, an airplane with a peculiar stack of three wings located one above the other. This amazing "import" can still be seen in the Aviation Museum near Moscow (Monino).

As in Sevastopol, the training of pilots at the Moscow school was carried out using the materiel of British and French firms. There were practically no serial aircraft and their industrial production in Russia.

In 1920, during a flight with a student, Aleksandr Alekseevich suffered the only aviation accident in his life. Then they flew thousands of hours, but that time, due to confusion and ridiculous actions of the "accounting" when performing aerobatics, the plane crashed. Here is how sparingly it is said about this episode in his autobiography: “In February 1920, while flying with a student in a Farman-20, he had an accident. He received multiple bruises on the head and body, cracks in the spine. " The Moscow Aviation School was then located on the present Leningradsky Prospekt, and the airfield was

- 23 -

historical Khodynskoe field. Surgeons (now at the Botkin Hospital) regularly returned the victims to the system, and if they could not do anything, then at the Vagankovskoye cemetery, graves were kept for many years, marked, according to the then tradition, with wooden propellers from crashed aircraft. There was a whole alley with similar specific tombstones. The well-known Moscow professor V.N.Rozanov headed the surgeons at the Botkin Hospital. During his funeral, in a crowd of thousands that literally blocked the entire passage from Leningradsky Prospekt to the building of the Botkin Hospital, many of those with whom the "aviation era" began in Soviet Russia met: Artseulov, Gromov, Shibanov, Shestakov, Moiseev and many others.

The new, just begun 1921, was marked by one of the key moments in the fate of the 25-year-old commander of the Red Army. The young man joined the RCP (b) in 1919 and fully recognized the policy of his party, including its economic aspects. And this is natural, since during the years of the civil war the practice of surplus appropriation among the majority of party members did not raise doubts about its necessity. However, as soon as the war was over, the views on the surplus appropriation ceased to be unanimous.

- 24 -

Already in December 1920, at the VIII All-Russian Congress of Soviets, some of the speakers raised the issue of canceling it, but the majority of the Congress did not accept these proposals .. However, the course of the discussion and its results, apparently, did not convince the young commander of the correctness of the majority He made a difficult decision, being very sincere by nature, due to his disagreement with the party's policy, Aleksandr Alekseevich applied to quit the RCP (b) of his own free will.

But let us give the floor to him, citing the corresponding lines from a handwritten autobiography (1933), stored in a personal file:

“In 1921 he left the party of his own free will. This act of the intelligentsia was the result of my lack of restraint, fervor and the fact that I considered myself too clever. Unfortunately, I accepted the peasant petty-bourgeois sentiments. I understood the measures of war communism and the surplus appropriation system during the civil war as absolutely necessary, but after the end of the war with Poland, knowing the mood of the peasantry, I believed that the surplus appropriation system and the attitude towards the peasantry

- 25 -

in the spirit of War Communism are politically dangerous. It was especially difficult for me to perceive the fact that I had to speak out, convince and agitate for this and in the correctness of what I myself considered wrong. This discord led me to quit the party. "

It was an ACT. But in passing, we note that the party was also a taxi in those years, that such actions were by no means unambiguously connected with the official organizational conclusions.

In the RCP (b), not only was it allowed, but in fact there was a difference of opinion, even if it contradicted the opinion of the majority. In fact, Alexander Alekseevich was literally 1 - 1.5 months ahead of the events, since, being an ordinary member of the party, of course, he could not yet know that at that very time in the Politburo of the RCP (b), work had already begun to change the political course, and that Soon, a special commission will present to the Plenum of the Central Committee of the RCP (b) a draft resolution on replacing the appropriation system with a tax in kind. As a result, just a couple of dozen days after the above-mentioned decision to withdraw from the RCP (b), at its X Congress, the party actually recognized the correctness of the views of its young, ardent, but now ... former member.

At this congress, with a report on the necessary

- 26 -

As is known, V.I.Lenin made the decision to make this decision. In his speech, he, in particular, said: “We should not try to hide anything, but should speak straight out that the peasantry with the form of relations that we have established with them are unhappy that they do not want this form of relations to continue to exist this way. will not".

We agree that in such a historical situation, leaving the party was, perhaps, not only an act, but also evidence of the presence of political instinct, independence and honesty of views, a good knowledge of real life. It would seem that one could now only rejoice at the development of events and return to the party "to applause", inspired by his personal righteousness and political perspicacity. However, events took a different path.

Let us again give the floor to the hero himself: "After the 10th Congress, I did not return to the party, because I remained the head of the aviation school and false pride did not allow me to go to the cell (consisting entirely of cadets) and admit my instability, a major political mistake."

This is how the situation often encountered in human destinies developed when the right

- 27 -

but thoughts are adjacent to the unpredictable erroneousness of actions.

And the events on the outskirts of the young Soviet state again interrupted the educational routine of the aviation school. In 1921, a Special Aviation Detachment was sent to Central Asia to help in the fight against the Basmachi. We moved to the East by train. This time it did not come to sorties. The train was soon turned back to Moscow. But on the way, one of those extraordinary meetings took place that unexpectedly determine the personal destinies of people, sometimes for many years, or even forever. This happens especially often during periods of historical upheavals in society.

At one of the stations, a military echelon stood next to a train in which residents of its western provinces, evacuated from there at the beginning of the First World War, were returning to central Russia. The family of Mikhalevsky, a minor customs official from Warsaw, also returned in it. Mikhalevsky's daughter, Larisa, met a young pilot. Outwardly very attractive, the girl was from a very pious and dignified family, but, apparently, youth, the years of the turbulent era experienced and still not abated, as well as the tender love of a new acquaintance made the incredible. It was

- 28 -

true love at first sight. Contrary to the will of the bride's parents, young people registered a civil marriage in Tashkent, and. the girl left with a military train, becoming the wife of a gallant pilot and a recognized favorite of the relatively close circle of the then Moscow aviators. Upon arrival in Moscow, the wedding and wedding of a deeply religious bride with an atheist pilot took place in a small church in the village of Vsekhsvyatskoye (this is now in the Sokol metro area). It was love.

Such a small but unusual personal event sometimes clearly characterizes its participants, but not only them. It. to some extent testifies to the breaking of the usual foundations, to the triumph of liberation from dogmas, which is always associated with the era of moral transformations.

Let us remember how many such unexpected meetings, cases and destinies are reflected in the literature about the Great Patriotic War.

However, a short happiness awaited the young family ... and irreparable grief: 13 months after the wedding, in the conditions of the disastrous state of Moscow medicine of those years (see, for example, Herbert Wells' book "Russia in the Dark") in June 1922 a young mother (she turned 19) dies after childbirth from an infection, leaving

- 29 -

hands of a shocked father of a healthy two week old son.

My grandmother, Natalia Ivanovna, helped out. She took her grandson to Vyatka and took upon herself all the worries of raising him (this is after having raised her five children). He lived with his grandmother for the first 8 years.

And in the country after the end of the civil war, a slow but steady, in difficult conditions of foreign policy and economic isolation, the revival and development of the destroyed, and in many ways simply backward, economy began.

It came to the decision of the question of the ways of creating domestic aviation. The dynamic civil war (in comparison with the experience of positional confrontation in the First World War) clearly demonstrated the future importance of aviation in the Russian expanses.

In order to begin development in this area, at least samples of world-class aircraft were needed. And for the formation of combat units - at least small batches of military vehicles. They could only be purchased abroad. Let us recall, for example, that the first aircraft of the domestic design of the famous in the future A.N. Tupolev took off only on October 21, 1923.

- 30 -

Through the apparatus of the so-called Office of External Procurements, created at that time, negotiations began with British, French, Dutch and other firms on the purchase of samples and small batches of aircraft. Although in those years they still did not know about the possibility of creating such bodies as the notorious KOKOM, nevertheless, Russia's former allies did not go to sell a batch of military vehicles with weapons ... To make it (70-80 pieces) at a relatively high technical level only in factories in Holland the Fokker company, half-ruined by the war.

For the selection of technology, its testing in the air and acceptance, a qualified customer representative (Air Force) was needed - a pilot capable of testing aircraft of different designs and at the same time, primarily due to even skill, he had to earn credibility with the sales firms. The choice falls on the head of the Moscow Pilot School. Professionalism, extensive practical experience in piloting aircraft of various types, as well as personal scrupulousness, honesty and respect from the school staff, apparently outweighed the "burden of non-partisanship"

In November 1922, A. A. Levin was sent abroad in the official position of a senior technician of the acceptance service. In 1923,

- 31 -

Having returned to Moscow for a short time, he remarried before leaving abroad.

For almost three years in Germany. Holland, France and Great Britain carried out intense work on the selection and acceptance of purchased samples of aircraft of various types, aviation equipment, as well as the ordered batch of military vehicles from the Fokker company.

Practical knowledge of foreign languages was intensively increased. As he himself jokingly said, mastering English took place mainly on the second floor of a London bus. The daytime "lesson" consisted of memorizing at least 10 words "there" and 10 words on the way from work - "back." At the same time, an officer of the British counterintelligence often acted as a sparring partner, almost openly accompanying a foreigner on a business trip from Soviet Russia around the city.

Upon his return to his homeland in 1925, A. A. Levin was appointed head of the foreign department, which coordinated the interaction of the Air Force and the aviation industry with foreign firms. This work continued until May 1926, when it was followed by the appointment to the post of assistant chief of the first created in the country (Moscow) Na-

- 32 -

Scientific and Testing Institute of the Air Force of the Red Army (NII VVS).

Work at the Air Force Research Institute lasted more than three years. At the very end of this period, an event occurred that largely determined the further professional direction of the aviation career.

In 1931, the question arose of appointing a new chief of the spacecraft air force, since the former leader, Pyotr Ionovich Baranov, was transferred to work in industry (in 1933 he died in a ridiculous air crash).

It was decided to appoint one of the former energetic commanders of ground combat units to the post of the new Chief of the Air Force of the Red Army. He was a career soldier, an active participant in the civil war, a Latvian by nationality Yakov Ivanovich Alksnis. In recent years, he served as deputy chief of the Air Force.

Ya. I. Alksnis was not only a very businesslike, demanding and tireless commander, but also had a broad outlook. He understood perfectly well that only a leader who enjoys serious professional prestige in his midst can lead such an arm of troops as military aviation well. Therefore, he put forward the condition of his (Appointment to a new position, training in flight

- 33 -

skill. And in this he was certainly right. (Before aviation, Yakov Ivanovich served, like G.K. Zhukov, in the most disciplined military units of that time - in the cavalry). They agreed with the condition he had set. Stalin gave him one month to study. The question arose as to whom to entrust the solution of the task at a similar time, with all the resulting responsibility. The choice fell on A. A. Levin.

In the summer, in the Crimea, where he himself learned the basics of flight skills almost 10 years ago, and during one month of intensive classes, Alexander Alekseevich was able not only to teach his student the basics of theory and practice of flying, but also to lay the necessary fundamental foundations and decision-making rules in aviation, combining the necessary courage with reasonable care.

Subsequently, Ya. I. Alksnis flew a lot, mastered aerobatics in a fighter, piloted beautifully and did not have a single accident.

During the period of study, not only an official acquaintance was established between these two people, but also a respectful personal friendship. Basically, both of them were brought together by the selfless dedication of all their strengths and abilities to

- 34 -

a tame and very important business for the Motherland.

The appointment of the new chief of the Air Force coincided in time with the beginning of the stage of formation of the domestic aviation industry. The troops began to receive serial aircraft of domestic designs. The era of great flights has begun.

Combat units of military aviation were systematically formed and deployed. The problem of mass training of aviation personnel: pilots, navigators and technicians arose at its full height. For this it was necessary to expand the old and open new military aviation schools.

According to the plans for such a development, one of the largest new aviation schools was to grow in Stalingrad. The presence in this area of a number of airfield sites, a significant number of "flight", that is, bright, dry days a year, made it possible to expand the educational process here on a large scale. The school was both built and increased the production of pilots almost simultaneously with the development of capacities and the production of tractors at the Stalingrad Tractor Plant.

On August 1, 1929, AA Levin was appointed the founder of this new school, its head on the recommendation of Ya. I. Alksnis.

Three times Hero of Socialist Labor (1942, 1949, 1954) Boris Lvovich Vannikov (1897-1962) - Colonel General of the Engineering and Technical Service (1944), twice winner of the Stalin Prize (1951, 1953). In 1918-19. served in the Red Army. In 1921 he was a senior inspector, and since 1924, deputy head of the economic inspection of the People's Commissariat of the Russian Federation for Research and Development of the RSFSR. He headed machine-building plants in Lyubertsy, Perm, Tula Arms Plant. In 1936 - the head of the Main artillery and tank, and since 1937 - the tank department of the NKO of the USSR. From December 1937 - Deputy People's Commissar, from January 1939 - People's Commissar of Armaments of the USSR. Arrested on June 7, 1941. On July 25 of the same year, released from prison "on the basis of instructions from the decision-making bodies." Since August 1941, Deputy People's Commissar of Armaments of the USSR. Since 1942 - People's Commissar of Ammunition of the USSR. Simultaneously in 1945-53. headed the 1st Main Directorate under the Council of People's Commissars (since 1946 - under the Council of Ministers) of the USSR, which was engaged in the creation of the atomic bomb.

2. Hero of the Soviet Union (1940), holder of the highest military order "Victory" Marshal of the Soviet Union Kirill Afanasyevich Meretskov (1897-1968) - in the Red Army from the day of its formation, served in various command and staff positions. In 1935 - Chief of Staff of the Special Red Banner Far Eastern Army (OKDVA). In 1936-37. fought in Spain as an adviser to the Chief of the General Staff of the Republican Army. Upon his return, he was appointed Deputy Chief of the General Staff. In 1938 - Commander of the Volga Military District, in 1939 - of the Leningrad Military District. During the Soviet-Finnish war of 1939-1940, he simultaneously commanded the 7th Army. In 1940 he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, became an army general, deputy people's commissar of defense, and then chief of the General Staff. Since January 1941 - again Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR. Arrested on June 23, 1941. Released from prison in early September 1941. He was appointed representative of the Supreme Command Headquarters on the North-Western and Karelian fronts, and then - the commander of the 7th separate army. On December 17, 1941, he was appointed commander of the Volkhov Front, in 1944 - the commander of the Karelian Front. On October 26, 1944, he was awarded the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union. 1945 - Commander of the 1st Far Eastern Front. After the end of the war with Japan, KA Meretskov commanded the troops of the Primorsky, Moscow, Belomorsky and Northern military districts, directed the "Shot" courses. From 1955 to 1964 he was assistant to the Minister of Defense of the USSR for military educational institutions. Since 1964 - in the group of general inspectors of the USSR Ministry of Defense.

3. Twice Hero of the Soviet Union (1937, 1939) Lieutenant General of Aviation Yakov Vladimirovich Smushkevich (1902-1941) - in 1918 he joined the Red Army. From 1922 he served in the Air Force - squadron commissar, air brigade commander. In 1936-37. fought in Spain under the pseudonym "General Douglas", led the air defense of Madrid. Since 1937 - Deputy Chief of the Red Army Air Force. During the battles with Japanese troops on the Khalkhin-Gol River in 1939, he commanded an air group. Since November 1939, the chief of the Red Army Air Force. In 1940 he was inspector general of the Air Force, and from December 1940 he was assistant chief of the General Staff of the Red Army for aviation. Arrested on June 8, 1941. On October 28, 1941, shot on the basis of L. Beria's orders. In 1954 he was rehabilitated.

4. Hero of the Soviet Union (1936) Lieutenant General of Aviation Pavel Vasilyevich Rychagov (1911-1941) - in the army since 1928. He served in the Air Force - junior pilot, flight commander in the fighter aviation of the Ural Military District. From October 1936 to February 1937 under the pseudonym "Pablo Palencar" he took part in the hostilities in Spain. Personally shot down 6 planes. Since November 1937, in China, he led a group of Soviet fighter pilots who participated in battles with Japanese troops, which on February 23, 1938 defeated an air force base in Taiwan, destroying about 50 aircraft. From April 1938 - Commander of the Air Force of the Primorsky Group of Forces of the Far Eastern Front and the Air Force of the 1st Separate Red Banner Far Eastern Army. In the battles near Lake Khasan, he led the actions of the air group. In the war with Finland, he commanded the Air Force of the 9th Army. From June 1940, deputy chief, from August - head of the Main Directorate of the Red Army Air Force. From February 1941 - Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR. In April of the same year, he was removed from office and enrolled as a student at the Academy of the General Staff. Arrested on June 24, 1941. On October 28, 1941, shot on the basis of L. Beria's orders. He was posthumously rehabilitated on July 23, 1954.

5. Hero of the Soviet Union (1939) Colonel-General Grigory Mikhailovich Stern (1900-1941) - in 1919 he joined the Red Army, fought on the Turkestan front. In 1929-1936. was for especially important assignments under the people's commissar. In 1937-1938. - in Spain under the pseudonym "General Grigorovich", was the main military adviser to the command of the Republican army, led the actions of international brigades and Soviet volunteers. In 1938-1939, chief of staff, in January-March 1941, commander of the Far Eastern Front. He led Soviet troops in a clash with the Japanese at Lake Khasan. He coordinated the actions of the Soviet and Mongolian troops during the battles on the Khalkhin-Gol River, for which he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. In the Finnish war he commanded the 8th Army. In 1940 he was awarded the rank of Colonel General. In April 1941, he was the head of the Main Directorate of Air Defense of the NKO. Arrested on June 7, 1941. On October 28, 1941, he was shot on the basis of L. Beria's orders. Posthumously rehabilitated on August 25, 1954.

6. Hero of the Soviet Union (1937) Lieutenant General of Aviation Ivan Iosifovich Proskurov (1907-1941) - in the Soviet Army from 1931. From September 1936 to May 1938 he fought in Spain, rose from a pilot to a commander of a bomber air group. Since 1938, commander of the 2nd Special Forces Aviation Army, Air Force of the Far Eastern Front, member of the Main Military Council of the Red Army. In April 1939 he was appointed Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR - head of the 5th (intelligence) directorate of the Red Army. In the first days of the war, he was the Air Force Commander of the 7th Army. Arrested on June 27, 1941. On October 28, 1941, shot on the basis of L. Beria's order. In 1954 he was rehabilitated.

7. Hero of the Soviet Union (1937) Lieutenant General of Aviation Pyotr Ivanovich Pumpur (1900-1942) - in the Red Army since 1918, mechanic of the 4th fighter aviation detachment, junior pilot and flight commander in fighter aviation units. In 1934 - commander and commissar of the 403rd Fighter Aviation Brigade. In Spain since October 1936 - advisor and commander of a fighter group, in air battles he shot down 5 enemy aircraft. On July 4, 1937, he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for courage and bravery shown in battles. Upon returning from Spain, he held the posts of commander of the Air Force of the Moscow Military District, Air Force OKDVA, head of the combat training department of the Air Force of the Red Army. Before the war, he again commanded the Air Force of the Moscow Military District. Arrested on May 31, 1941. Shot on March 23, 1942 on the basis of a resolution of the Special Meeting. Rehabilitated on June 25, 1955.

8. Hero of the Soviet Union (1936) Major General of Aviation Ernst Genrikhovich Schacht (1904-1942) - was born in Basel, until 1936 a Swiss citizen, in 1922 he came to the Soviet Union and joined the Red Army. One of the best pilots of the pre-war period. In the thirties, he commanded an air squadron serving the Air Force Directorate of the Red Army, was a permanent pilot of the Chief of the Red Army Air Force Alksnis. In 1936 he volunteered for Spain, where he fought bravely and commanded the 1st Bomber Squadron. Upon his return, he was assistant to the commander of the Air Force of the Oryol Military District for universities. Arrested on May 30, 1941. Shot on the basis of the resolution of the Special Meeting of February 13, 1942. Posthumously rehabilitated.

9. Hero of the Soviet Union (1940) Lieutenant General of Aviation Yevgeny Savvich Ptukhin (1900-1942) - since 1918 in the Red Army. He rose from a private fighter squadron to an air brigade commander. From May 1937 to February 1938 he fought in Spain, where he was wounded and shell-shocked. Upon his return, he was the commander of the Air Force of the Leningrad and then the Kiev military districts, the head of the Main Directorate of the Air Defense of the Red Army. In the initial period of the war, he was the commander of the Air Force of the Southwestern Front. Arrested on June 24 (according to other sources - 26) June 1941. Shot on the basis of the resolution of the Special Meeting of February 13, 1942. Posthumously rehabilitated on October 6, 1954.

Nowadays, hardly anyone will dispute the thesis that the massive repressions on the eve of the war significantly weakened the combat potential of the Red Army. Suffice it to say that about 70% of the commanders of regiments and divisions then held their posts for less than a year. Accordingly, they had neither experience nor authority among their subordinates. Meanwhile, judging by the archival reports of 1941 about the arrests and convictions of military personnel, the war did not become a reason for stopping the work of the well-oiled repressive conveyor. The NKVD and tribunals continued to methodically exterminate command personnel. So, on June 23, General of the Army K. Meretskov was arrested, on June 24, Lieutenant General of Aviation P. Rychagov ...; On July 11, an army commissar of the 2nd rank V. Borisov was arrested, on July 19, a military engineer of the 1st rank A. Gunner ...; On August 13, Major General S. Oborin was sentenced to death by the Military Collegium; on September 17, Major General S. Mishchenko was sentenced to death ... The list is long. Most were reported as lone enemies. But not all.

Even today, few people know that the leaders of the OGPU-NKVD bodies of the pre-war decade planned to fabricate as many as three large-scale political trials over the military, combining, within the framework of each "conspiracy", several dozen, or even hundreds, cases against the highest command of the Red Army. Only one succeeded and received wide publicity. The directors from the Lubyanka called it "a military-fascist conspiracy" led by Marshal M. Tukhachevsky. Much has been written about this trial, which took place in 1937. Two other grandiose productions fell through. The first large-scale case with the code name "Vesna", claiming to be a nationwide scale, collapsed in 1931, since a number of prominent Chekists opposed its fabrication and several hundred arrested military leaders were then tried one by one. The third grandiose trial of the military under the code name "Conspiracy of Heroes", the organization of which the new leadership of the NKVD was actively involved in in the first half of 1941, was prevented by the war.

The core of the conspirators in this case should have been made up of the leaders of the Air Force, most of whom had stars of Heroes and experience of hostilities in Spain, in the region of the Halkin Gol River and Lake Hasan, or in Finland. Therefore, in the conversations of the operatives and investigators of the GUGB NKVD of the USSR, which, of course, were never recorded, the fabricated case began to be referred to as a "conspiracy of heroes." In total, about 30 well-known military aviators or commanders directly related to aviation were arrested. 8 of them were Heroes. Among the "conspirators" - Assistant Chief of the General Staff for Aviation, twice Hero of the Soviet Union, Lieutenant-General Y. Smushkevich, thirty-year-old Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR, Hero of the Soviet Union, Lieutenant General of Aviation P. Rychagov, Commander of the Baltic Special Military District, Colonel General A. Loktionov (all three headed the Air Force of the Red Army at different times), Head of the Air Defense Directorate of the USSR People's Commissariat of Defense, Hero of the Soviet Union, Colonel-General G. Stern, Head of the Air Force Academy, Lieutenant General F. Arzhenukhin, former Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR and Head of the Intelligence Directorate of the Red Army, Hero of the Soviet Union, Lieutenant General of Aviation I. Proskurov, Head of the Air Force Research Institute, Head of the Flight Test Center, Major General of Aviation A. Filin and other military pilots.

Young, hot, open, too quickly ascended to military heights - they did not have time to get used to undercover intrigues, did not know how vindictive Stalin was, did not know that his inner circle had long learned to catch the slightest hints, gestures and veiled wishes of the leader.

It is believed that the official reason for the arrests was a large number of accidents with human casualties. Indeed, in the pre-war years, the Red Army Air Force lost more than 600 aircraft annually. At the beginning of 1941, when new high-speed aircraft began to enter the flight units and personnel retraining began, the number of accidents increased even more. Objectively, all this was caused by the rapid growth of Soviet military aviation with insufficient qualifications of pilots. However, the Kremlin has come to different conclusions. L. Beria and V. Merkulov clearly caught the negative attitude of the leader towards the military aviators. Corresponding orders were given, old compromising evidence from the 37-38 cases was filtered out. After that, first in the operational reports of the NKVD employees, and then in the interrogation protocols, the causes of car accidents began to be linked to the counter-revolutionary activities of a powerful, secret anti-Soviet organization headed by hero pilots.

On April 9, 1941, at a meeting of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks), the Resolution of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) and the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR "On accidents and disasters in the aviation of the Red Army" was adopted, in accordance with which P. Rychagov was removed from his post, "as undisciplined and failed to cope with the duty of the head of the Air Force ", and the head of the operational flights department of the Red Army Air Force headquarters, Colonel V.M. Mironov - was brought to trial "for an obviously criminal order violating the elementary rules of flight service." Arrests followed. They lasted from April to July 1941. One of the first to be arrested was the chiefs of the Red Army Air Forces, the divisional engineer I.F. Sakrier (April 21), military engineers of the 1st rank P. Nikonov (arrested on April 22), G. Mikhno (arrested on April 27), head of the 4th department of the RKKA Air Force Research Institute, brigade commander A. Zalevsky (arrested on May 8, according to other sources - May 18) other.

Then came the turn of the larger caliber figures. On May 10, 1941, in connection with the unsatisfactory combat training of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, it decided on the commanders of the air forces of the Moscow and Oryol military districts, Hero of the Soviet Union, Lieutenant General of Aviation P. Pumpura and Major General of Aviation P. Kotov. The generals were removed from office. On May 27, 1941, after the event, which we will talk about a little later, the Politburo again returned to the question of Pumpur, accusing him of improper selection of personnel and dragging him into the position of his assistant Hero of the Soviet Union, Major General of Aviation E. Shakht, who “ cannot be trusted and is a suspicious person. " Schacht was arrested on May 30, 1941, and Pumpur the next day.

On June 4, 1941, the head of the Air Force personnel department V.P. Belov was stripped of the rank of Major General of Aviation "for violating order in the selection of personnel and dragging in leading positions ... unverified and politically questionable people."

Some historians, for example B. Sokolov in his book about Marshal Zhukov, link the beginning of the "conspiracy" with this event. It seems that Sudoplatov's assertion about the "last straw" is more correct, since the idea of a "conspiracy of heroes", as we have already shown, was hovering in the offices of the Lubyanka long before May 15th. Confirmation of this is not only the aforementioned decisions of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks of April 9 and May 10, 1941 about the former Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR Lieutenant General of Aviation P. Rychagov, the commanders of the Air Forces of the Moscow and Oryol military districts P. Pumpur and P. Kotov. ... Long before the landing of the Ju-52 in Moscow, at the end of December 1940, Marshal S. Timoshenko said at a meeting about the state of the Air Force the following:

- “... our leadership of the Air Force does not have a unanimity of views on such issues as the formation and planning of operations, the assessment of the enemy, the method of conducting an air war and imposing our will on the enemy, the choice of targets, etc. the sooner the better. " The main thing, in my opinion, is that by this time almost every "conspirator" already had harsh statements about the leader, one way or another casting a shadow on his infallibility. The same G. Stern, according to General P. Grigorenko, set forth in his book of memoirs "Only rats can be found underground ..." - due to the lack of qualified military personnel. And who exposed the shots is understandable without comment.

General I. Proskurov, arrested on June 27, 1941, was reminded of his sharp speech at a conference on the improvement of ideological work held a year earlier, where he recklessly declared:

No matter how hard it is, I must say frankly that there is no such looseness and low level of discipline in any army like ours.

The accident rate will be great, because you make us fly on coffins.

Stalin reacted succinctly. Judging by the incorrect construction of the phrase he uttered, he was very annoyed:

You shouldn't have said that….

The war did not slow down much the activity of the NKVD. The idea of a large, large-scale conspiracy was not immediately abandoned. Arrests, as already noted, continued after the invasion of the Nazis. Along with the aforementioned P. Rychagov and I. Proskurov, in the first days and weeks of the war, the head of the Air Force Academy, Lieutenant-General of Aviation F. Arzhenukhin (June 28), Chief of Staff of the Red Army Air Force, Major General of Aviation P.S. Volodin (June 27). On June 26, the commander of the Air Force of the North-Western Front, Major General of Aviation A. Ionov, and the Commander of the Air Force of the South-Western Front, Hero of the Soviet Union, Lieutenant General of Aviation E. Ptukhin were arrested, on July 8, the Commander of the Air Force of the Western Front, Major General of Aviation A. Tayursky July - Chief of Staff of the Air Force of the Southwestern Front, Aviation Major General N. Laskin. The latter also added to the anti-Soviet activity military malfeasance - negligence and inactivity, which led to the destruction of aviation in the first days of the war. They even took the wife of General Rychagov, a well-known military pilot of the deputy commander of the special-purpose air regiment, Major M. Nesterenko. She was arrested right on the airfield on June 24, 1941. The accusation was formulated in a very peculiar way - “being the beloved wife of Rychagov, she could not but know about the treasonous activities of her husband.

According to the screenwriters from the NKVD, in the process of a global "anti-Soviet military conspiracy" it was supposed to involve not only aviators, but also commanders of districts, representatives of the central directorates of the People's Commissariat of Defense, heads of the military industry, including the people's commissars of ammunition I. Sergeev and weapons - B. Vannikov.

The central figure in the conspiracy was to become one of the largest military leaders of that time, Army General Hero of the Soviet Union K. Meretskov. June 22, 1941 - Deputy People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR. June 23 - Permanent Advisor at the Headquarters of the High Command. June 24, 1941 - just a prisoner. No, though. At first he was not considered a simple prisoner, since it was not ordinary performers who beat him, but rather high-ranking bone breakers - Merkulov and Wlodzimirsky. Then the truth was handed over to the executioners of a lower level - Shvartsman, Zimenkov, Sorokin .... Meretskov fit into the secret schemes of the NKVD in all basic parameters. He was an adviser in Spain, led the Vyborg direction during the Finnish campaign. He was also a Hero. And in August 1940 he reached the top - he became chief of the General Staff. And what is typical, even a similar reason for the arrest - "the alarmist of war", spoke at a joint meeting of the Politburo and the Main Military Council at the beginning of the year, stating that war with Germany was inevitable, and therefore it was necessary to strengthen the western borders and transfer the army to martial law.

In June 1941, the former commander of the Baltic Special Military District, Colonel-General A. Loktionov, the head of the naval educational institutions of the People's Commissariat of the Navy, Rear Admiral K. Samoilov, the heads of the Main Artillery Directorate, Generals G. Savchenko, M. Kayukov, military engineer 1st rank I. Gerasimenko and many others.

About how the investigation was conducted, how the testimony of the generals was knocked out, we learned quite recently, when the testimony of their torturers was made public. You experience contradictory feelings when you reread the revelations of the NKVD officers. Pain and resentment. Compassion and bewilderment. But above all admiration - for the courage and steadfastness of the "conspirators". The toughest nut to crack is Loktionov. Nobody was able to split him. "Kursk nightingale" turned out to be unbending. Despite the sophistication of the torture, he did not admit his guilt. The executioners passed the general from hand to hand, but did not achieve success. Rhodes and Shvartsman, in a confrontation with Meretskov, beat Loktionov in turn. The general screamed in pain, rolled on the floor, but did not agree to sign the protocol. They beat him until they got tired. General Loktionov's file contains a statement he wrote on June 16, 1941: “I am undergoing enormous physical and mental tests. From the drawn perspective of the investigation, my blood runs cold. To die knowing that you were not an enemy leads me to despair ... I write the last words - the cry of my soul: let me die an honest death ... ". Not allowed.

And yet the war confused the cards. The public process did not work out. Several "conspirators", including Vannikov and Meretskov, were released from prison in connection with the situation at the front, that is, in connection with an urgent need.

Most of the "participants in the anti-Soviet military conspiracy" were destroyed without trial or investigation. Part was taken to Kuibyshev and secretly shot on October 28, 1941 on the outskirts of the spare capital, near the village of Barbysh. As established, the only basis for the reprisal was the order of L. Beria. Later, for the "legal" registration of repressions, a Special Meeting under the NKVD of the USSR was given the right to impose "appropriate punishments, up to execution" under counter-revolutionary articles. On January 29, 1942, Beria sent to Stalin a list of 46 arrested persons "on the list of the NKVD of the USSR." Among them were 17 generals and a number of prominent workers in the defense industry, whom the authorities "took" in May-July 1941. All of them were accused of sabotage and conspiracy against the state. The leader imposed a laconic resolution: “Shoot all those named on the list. I. Stalin ". On February 13, 1942, a special meeting of the NKVD of the USSR formalized this decision with a resolution on the execution of aviation lieutenants P.A. Alekseeva, K.M. Guseva, E.S. Ptukhin, P.I. Pumpur, Lieutenant General of the Technical Troops N.I. Trubetskoy, Lieutenant General P.S. Klenova, I.V. Selivanov, Major Generals of Aviation A.P. Ionova, N.A. Laskin, A.A. Levin, A.I. Filina, E.G. Mine, P.P. Yusupov, Major General of Tank Forces N.D. Goltsev, Major General A.N. De-Lazari, M.I. Petrov, Assistant Inspector General of the Air Force Divisional Commander N.N. Vasilchenko, as well as leading workers of the defense people's commissariats headed by the people's commissar of ammunition I.P. Sergeev.

KLENOV Petr Semyonovich

Born in 1892, former member of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union / b / since 1931, staff captain of the tsarist army.

Prior to his arrest, he was chief of staff of PRIBOVO, Lieutenant General.

He confessed to displaying inactivity in the leadership of the district troops.

SELIVANOV Ivan Vasilievich

Born in 1886, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1920, from peasants.

Before his arrest, he was the commander of the 83rd Cavalry Division, Lieutenant General.

Arrested on 23 / XI-1941

Clues into the testimony of witnesses KASHINA, CHEKUSHINA, SESSIONAL, KULAKOV, IVANOV, MAKAROV, TABUKHOVA in conducting anti-Soviet defeatist propaganda.

He confessed that he conducted anti-Soviet defeatist agitation among those around him, praised the German army, and spoke slanderous about the leaders of the party and government

PTUKHIN Evgeny Savvich

Born in 1900, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1918, from peasants.

Before his arrest, he was the commander of the KOVO Air Force, lieutenant general of aviation.

Arrested on 24 / VI-1941.

Clues into the testimony of SMUSHKEVICH, CHERNOBROVKIN, YUSUPOV, IVANOV and a confrontation with him, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

PUMPUR Petr Ivanovich

Born in 1900, former member of the CPSU / b / since 1919, from peasants.

Before his arrest - commander of the Air Force of the Moscow Military District, lieutenant general of aviation.

Arrested on 31 / V-1941.

He is caught by the testimony of Bergolts, Rychagov, Alekseev, Ionov and confrontations with the latter two, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

In sabotage activities, he is exposed by the act of surrendering the PUMPUR of the Air Force of the Moscow Military District to another commander and by order of the NKO No. 0031 dated 31 / V-41.

He testified that he was a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, was recruited by SMUSHKEVICH, but refused this testimony.

ALEXEEV Pavel Alexandrovich

Born in 1888, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1920, lieutenant in the tsarist army.

Prior to his arrest - Deputy Commander of the PRIVO Air Force, Lieutenant General of Aviation.

Arrested on 19 / VI-1941.

Clues into the testimony of SHEVCHENKO and SAKRIER as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy. He is convicted of sabotage by the testimony of YUSUPOV.

6. GUSEV Konstantin Mikhailovich

Born in 1906, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1930.

Before his arrest, he was the commander of the Air Force of the Far Eastern Front, lieutenant general of aviation.

Arrested on 17 / VI-1941

Credits by the testimony of SMUSHKEVICH and ALEKSEEV, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, carried out sabotage.

I didn’t confess.

TRUBETSKOY Nikolay Iustinovich

Born in 1890, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1919, from the nobility.

Before his arrest, he was the head of the All-Union Organization for Social Protection of the Cross Army, lieutenant general of the technical troops.

Arrested on 11 / VI-1941.

Clues into the testimony of LANDO, LINOV, MALYARCHUK, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, carried out sabotage.

DE-LAZARI Alexander Nikolaevich

Before his arrest, he was a senior lecturer at the Military Academy of Chemical Protection of the Red Army, Major General.

Arrested on 26 / VI-1941.

Concealed by the testimony of MAKOVSKY and POPOV as a Polish spy. By the testimony of ZATONSKY and KOSOGOV, he is exposed as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

9. PETROV Makariy Ivanovich

Prior to his arrest, he was a teacher at the Art Academy, major general.

Arrested on 30 / VI-1941.

I didn’t confess.

10. GOLTSEV Nikolay Dmitrievich

Born in 1897, former member of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union / b / since 1919, from among the workers.

Before his arrest, he was the chief of the armored forces of the 18th Army, Major General.

Arrested on 14 / X-1941.

Surrendered to the Germans without resistance.

I confessed.

FILIN Alexander Ivanovich

Born in 1905, former member of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union / b / since 1924.

Before his arrest, he was the head of the Research Institute of the Air Force of the Red Army, major general.

Arrested on 23 / V-1941.

Credits with the testimony of SHEVCHENKO, YUSUPOV and ALEXEEV, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

He is exposed in sabotage activities by the testimony of SAKRIEER, SHTERN, SMUSHKEVICH, and as a spy - by the testimony of STRELNIKOV.

I didn’t confess.

12. YUSUPOV Pavel Pavlovich

Born in 1894, non-partisan, officer of the tsarist army.

Before his arrest - Deputy Chief of Staff of the Red Army Air Force, Major General.

Arrested on 4 / VI-1941.

Credits with the testimony of IONOV, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, carried out sabotage.

He confessed that since 1939 he had been a member of an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, recruited by SMUSHKEVICH, was conspired with ARZHENUKHIN, IONOV, RYCHAGOV, VOLODIN.

LEVIN Alexander Alekseevich

Prior to his arrest, he was Deputy Commander of the Air Force of the LVO, Major General of Aviation.

Arrested on 7 / VI-1941.

He is caught by the testimony of KOCHKOV, YAROSHEVICH, OPARIN, PISMANIK, NIKITENKO, KHRIPIN, SULIN, IONOV and RYCHAGOV, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

He is found guilty of sabotage by the testimony of VOROBYEV, KOTOV, LINDE, BAZHANOV, ZINOVIEV / all convicted /. How the spy is caught by the testimony of the MINE.

He confessed that he was a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy and a German spy. Recruited by TROYANKER.

According to the conspiracy, he was associated with Khripin, Bazhanov, Cherny, Mashintzhinov, Pikhorenko, Ignatov, Igushevsky, Ivanov, Oparin and Loktionov.

For espionage with GUITE, SHKLOVSKAYA and MINES / husband and wife /.

I personally recruited ORADOVSKY and STOILOV into the conspiracy.

He carried out sabotage in the training of flight personnel. He passed on espionage information about Soviet aviation to GUITE through the MINES and his wife.

14. MINES Ernst Genrikhovich

Born in 1904, German, Swiss citizen until 1936, parents of German citizens, former member of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union / b / since 1926.

Before his arrest, he was assistant commander of the Air Force of the ARVO, major general of aviation.

Arrested on 30 / U-1941.

As a German spy, he is caught by the testimony of LINDE, VTAND / the testimony was rejected / and LEVINA. By the testimony of YUSUPOV, he is exposed as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

He confessed that he had been a German spy since 1922. Since 1936, a member of the anti-Soviet military conspiracy. Associated with German agents MEYER, VON-VOLIE and MUNDT. He passed on spy information about Soviet aircraft construction to the Germans.

According to the conspiracy, he was associated with LAVROV and GAYDUKEVICH.

15. IONOV Alexey Pavlovich

Born in 1894, former member of the VKP / b / since 1938, from the kulaks.

Prior to his arrest, he was the commander of the Pribovo Air Force, Major General of Aviation.

Arrested on 26 / VI-1941.

Clues into the testimony of SMUSHKEVICH, LEVIN and YUSUPOV as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

He confessed that since 1939 he had been a member of an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, recruited by SMUSHKEVICH.

He was connected through a conspiracy with LEVIN and YUSUPOV.

Conducted sabotage in airfield construction.

16. LASKIN Nikolay Alekseevich

Born in 1894, non-partisan, from the middle class.

Before his arrest - Chief of Staff of the Air Force of the Southwestern Front, Major General of Aviation.

Arrested on 12 / VII-1941.

Clues into the testimony of BELOV and BERGOLTS, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

He is accused of sabotage activities by the testimony of witnesses Zhavoronkov, TAigrebet, POLIKARPOV, GUSHCHIN and SOBOLEV.

I didn’t confess.

17. TAYURSKY Andrey Ivanovich

Born in 1900, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1926. In 1922 he left the VKP / b / because of disagreement with the NEP. In 1919 he served in the Kolchak army.

Before his arrest, he was the commander of the Air Force of the Western Front, Major General of Aviation.

Arrested on 8 / VII-1941.

It is revealed that he was a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy with the testimony of TARNOVSKY-TERLETSKY, ANDRIANOV and ORLOVSKY / they all refused their testimony /.

He confessed that in the leadership of the Air Force of the Western Front he showed inactivity, as a result of which the troops entrusted to him suffered heavy losses in people and material.

18. VASILCHENKO Nikolay Nikolaevich

Born in 1896, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1918

Before his arrest, he was Assistant Inspector General of the Red Army Air Force, Divisional Commander.

Arrested on 1 / VI-1941.

He comes across with the testimony of Uritsky, Berzin, Gekker and ORLOV as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy and a spy for German and French intelligence.

Gave testimony about carrying out sabotage - refused.

19. TALKOVSKY Alexander Alexandrovich

Born in 1894, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b /, from the nobility, captain of the tsarist army.

Before his arrest, he was the head of the course at the Academy. Frunze, division commander.

Arrested on 30 / V-1941.

Clues into the testimony of FUNERAL and KUNITSKY as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy. He is caught in sabotage by the testimony of AUSSEM-ORLOV.

He testified that he was a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy - he refused.

20. SHEVCHENKO Georgy Matveevich

Born in 1894, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1926.

Before his arrest, he was the head of the Scientific and Testing Range of Aviation Armament of the Red Army Air Force, Colonel.

Arrested on 18 / V-1941.

The testimony of SAKRIER, ZANDER, RYCHAGOV, LOKTIONOV, ONISKO is accused as a participant in an anti-Soviet conspiracy who carried out sabotage work aimed at disrupting the weapons of the Red Army Air Force.

He confessed to participating in the conspiracy and carrying out sabotage activities.

DIMANT Semyon Markovich

Born in 1903, former member of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union / b / since 1937, from among the workers.

Before his arrest, he was the head of the course at the Academy of Mechanization and Motorization of the Red Army, colonel.

Arrested on 12 / IX-1941.

Clues testimony of ALMOND, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

I didn’t confess.

22. GERASIMENKO Ivan Abramovich

Born in 1904, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1925.

Before his arrest, he was the head of the 3rd Division of the Ground Artillery Directorate of the GAU of the Red Army, a military engineer of the 1st rank.

Arrested on 23 / VI-1941.

The testimony of MOGILEVKINA, SAVCHENKO, DYMAN and IGNATENKO is accused as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

He confessed that he had been recruited into an anti-Soviet conspiracy in 1937 by MOGILEVKIN and, on his instructions, carried out sabotage work aimed at defeating the Red Army, but later retracted his testimony.

MOGILEVKIN, SAVCHENKO and DYMAN exposed him as a conspirator at a confrontation.

23. MIKHNO Grigory Fedorovich

Born in 1904, former member of the All-Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union / b / since 1931.

Before his arrest, he was the head of a branch of the Experimental Department of the Armament Directorate of the Red Army Air Force, a military engineer of the 1st rank.

Arrested on 27 / IV-1941.

Arrested on 5 / VII-1941.

Clues into the testimony of the conspirators SAKRIER, SHEVCHENKO, TAUBIN, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

He confessed that he was recruited into the conspiracy in 1939 by SAKRIER and, on his instructions, carried out sabotage activities to disrupt the weapons of the Red Army Air Force.

24. LIPIN Vasily Vsevolodovich

Born in 1897, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b /.

Before his arrest, he was the head of the Armament Directorate of the Ground Artillery of the GAU of the Red Army, a military engineer of the 1st rank.

Arrested on 5 / VII-1941.

By the testimony of DROZDOV, SAVCHENKO and ZABOROVSKY, he is accused as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

He confessed that he was recruited into the conspiracy in 1935 by Drozdov - formerly. early department of the material part of the GAU of the Red Army, but then refused to testify.

He carried out sabotage work aimed at disrupting the weapons of the Red Army.

25. NIKONOV Petr Konstantinovich

Born in 1908, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1926.

Before his arrest, he was the head of the 8th Directorate of the Main Directorate of the Red Army Air Force, a military engineer of the 1st rank.

Arrested on 22 / IV-1941.

Credits testimony of SAKRIER, SHEVCHENKO, YUSUPOV, TSILOV, ONISKO and ALEKSEEV, as a member of an anti-Soviet organization.

He is accused of sabotage activities by the testimony of witnesses SERGEEV, BELYAEV and POLYAKOV.

I didn’t confess.

26. ONISKO Sergey Grigorievich

Born in 1903, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1923.

Before his arrest, he was the head of the Department of the Scientific Testing Range of Aviation Armament of the Red Army Air Force, a military engineer of the 1st rank.

Arrested on 6 / VI-1941.

Clues into the testimony of SHEVCHENKO, as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, carried out sabotage.

He confessed that since 1939 he had been a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, recruited by SHEVCHENKO, on the instructions of the latter contacted the conspirator TSILOV, together with him, in order to sabotage, disrupted the production of new weapons for the Red Army Air Force.

27. TSILOV Volko Yakovlevich

Born in 1896, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b / since 1918.

Before his arrest, he was the head of the department of the Experimental Department of the Scientific Testing Range of the Red Army Air Force, a military engineer of the 1st rank.

Arrested on 6 / VI-1941

Clues into the testimony of SHEVCHENKO and SAKRIER as a participant in an anti-Soviet military conspiracy.

He is accused of sabotage activities by the testimony of witnesses MAKARCHEV, BELYAEV and by undercover materials.

He confessed that since 1939 he had been a member of an anti-Soviet military conspiracy, recruited by SHEVCHENKO, was associated with the conspirators NIKONOV and ONISKO, carried out sabotage through disrupting the production of new weapons for the Red Army Air Force.

28.SERGEEV Ivan Pavlovich

Born in 1897, former member of the All-Union Communist Party / b /.

Before his arrest - People's Commissar of Ammunition of the USSR.

Arrested on 30 / V-1941.

Clicks on the testimony of SIDOR, KHODYAKOV, KUPER, GORIN, INYASHKIN, SHIBANOV, EFREMOV, KHRENKOV, TOLSTOV and IRLIN that he was one of the leading members of the anti-Soviet organization, carried out sabotage and espionage work.

Also on the topic

The deputies did not fulfill their pre-election programs Feel free to promise social benefits and reduction of communal services

Fantastic creatures of the Murmansk fisherman conquered the British media

Biography of catherine lyubimova

Online chart and dynamics of the RTS index over the past ten years: what's next?

Orthogonal projection area theorem