Representatives of the Soviet air force made a huge contribution to the defeat of the Nazi invaders. Many pilots gave their lives for the freedom and independence of our Motherland, many became Heroes of the Soviet Union. Some of them forever entered the elite of the Russian Air Force, the famous cohort of Soviet aces - the thunderstorm of the Luftwaffe. Today we recall the 10 most productive Soviet fighter pilots, who chalked up the most enemy aircraft shot down in air battles.
On February 4, 1944, the outstanding Soviet fighter pilot Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub was awarded the first star of the Hero of the Soviet Union. By the end of the Great Patriotic War, he was already three times Hero of the Soviet Union. During the war years, only one more Soviet pilot was able to repeat this achievement - it was Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin. But the war does not end with these two most famous aces of the Soviet fighter aviation. During the war, another 25 pilots were twice presented with the title of Heroes of the Soviet Union, not to mention those who were once awarded this highest military award of the country of those years.
Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub
During the war years, Ivan Kozhedub made 330 sorties, conducted 120 air battles and personally shot down 64 enemy aircraft. He flew on La-5, La-5FN and La-7 aircraft.
The official Soviet historiography featured 62 downed enemy aircraft, but archival research showed that Kozhedub shot down 64 aircraft (for some reason, two air victories were missing - April 11, 1944 - PZL P.24 and June 8, 1944 - Me 109) . Among the trophies of the Soviet ace pilot were 39 fighters (21 Fw-190, 17 Me-109 and 1 PZL P.24), 17 dive bombers (Ju-87), 4 bombers (2 Ju-88 and 2 He-111), 3 attack aircraft (Hs-129) and one Me-262 jet fighter. In addition, in his autobiography, he indicated that in 1945 he shot down two American P-51 Mustang fighters, which attacked him from a long distance, mistaking him for a German aircraft.
In all likelihood, had Ivan Kozhedub (1920-1991) started the war in 1941, his account of downed aircraft could have been even higher. However, his debut came only in 1943, and the future ace shot down his first plane in the battle of Kursk. On July 6, during a sortie, he shot down a German Ju-87 dive bomber. Thus, the performance of the pilot is really amazing, in just two war years he managed to bring the score of his victories to a record in the Soviet Air Force.
At the same time, Kozhedub was never shot down during the entire war, although he returned to the airfield several times in a badly damaged fighter. But the last could have been his first air battle, which took place on March 26, 1943. His La-5 was damaged by a German fighter burst, the armored back saved the pilot from an incendiary projectile. And upon returning home, his own air defense fired at his plane, the car received two hits. Despite this, Kozhedub managed to land the plane, which was no longer subject to full restoration.
The future best Soviet ace made his first steps in aviation while studying at the Shotkinsky flying club. At the beginning of 1940, he was drafted into the Red Army and in the fall of the same year he graduated from the Chuguev Military Aviation Pilot School, after which he continued to serve at this school as an instructor. With the outbreak of war, the school was evacuated to Kazakhstan. The war itself began for him in November 1942, when Kozhedub was seconded to the 240th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the 302nd Fighter Aviation Division. The formation of the division was completed only in March 1943, after which it flew to the front. As mentioned above, he won his first victory only on July 6, 1943, but a start was made.
Already on February 4, 1944, Senior Lieutenant Ivan Kozhedub was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, at that time he managed to make 146 sorties and shoot down 20 enemy aircraft in air battles. He received his second star in the same year. He was presented for the award on August 19, 1944, already for 256 combat missions and 48 enemy aircraft shot down. At that time, as a captain, he served as deputy commander of the 176th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment.
In air battles, Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub was distinguished by fearlessness, composure and automatism of piloting, which he brought to perfection. Perhaps the fact that before being sent to the front he spent several years as an instructor played a very large role in his future success in the sky. Kozhedub could easily conduct aimed fire at the enemy at any position of the aircraft in the air, and also easily performed complex aerobatic maneuvers. Being an excellent sniper, he preferred to conduct air combat at a distance of 200-300 meters.
Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub won his last victory in the Great Patriotic War on April 17, 1945 in the sky over Berlin, in this battle he shot down two German FW-190 fighters. Three times Hero of the Soviet Union, the future air marshal (the title was awarded on May 6, 1985), Major Kozhedub became on August 18, 1945. After the war, he continued to serve in the country's Air Force and went through a very serious career path, bringing more benefits to the country. The legendary pilot died on August 8, 1991, and was buried at the Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow.
Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin
Alexander Ivanovich Tires fought from the very first day of the war to the last. During this time, he made 650 sorties, in which he conducted 156 air battles and officially personally shot down 59 enemy aircraft and 6 aircraft in the group. He is the second most successful ace of the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition after Ivan Kozhedub. During the war he flew MiG-3, Yak-1 and American P-39 Airacobra.
The number of downed aircraft is very conditional. Quite often, Alexander Pokryshkin made deep raids behind enemy lines, where he also managed to win victories. However, only those of them were counted that could be confirmed by ground services, that is, if possible, over their own territory. He could have had 8 such unrecorded victories only in 1941. At the same time, they accumulated throughout the war. Also, Alexander Pokryshkin often gave the planes he shot down to the account of his subordinates (mostly followers), stimulating them in this way. In those days it was quite common.
Already during the first weeks of the war, Pokryshkin was able to understand that the tactics of the Soviet Air Force were outdated. Then he began to enter his notes on this account in a notebook. He kept an accurate record of the air battles in which he and his friends took part, after which he made a detailed analysis of what was written. At the same time, at that time he had to fight in very difficult conditions of the constant retreat of the Soviet troops. He later said: "Those who did not fight in 1941-1942 do not know the real war."
After the collapse of the Soviet Union and massive criticism of everything that was connected with that period, some authors began to "cut down" the number of Pokryshkin's victories. This was also due to the fact that at the end of 1944, official Soviet propaganda finally made the pilot "a bright image of a hero, the main fighter of the war." In order not to lose the hero in a random battle, it was ordered to limit the flights of Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin, who by that time had already commanded the regiment. On August 19, 1944, after 550 sorties and 53 officially won victories, he became three times Hero of the Soviet Union, the first in history.
The wave of "revelations" that swept over him after the 1990s also went through him because after the war he managed to take the post of Commander-in-Chief of the country's air defense forces, that is, he became a "major Soviet official." If we talk about the low ratio of victories to completed sorties, then it can be noted that for a long time at the beginning of the war, Pokryshkin on his MiG-3, and then the Yak-1, flew to attack enemy ground forces or perform reconnaissance flights. For example, by mid-November 1941, the pilot had already completed 190 sorties, but the vast majority of them - 144 were to attack enemy ground forces.
Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin was not only a cold-blooded, courageous and virtuoso Soviet pilot, but also a thinking pilot. He was not afraid to criticize the existing tactics of using fighter aircraft and advocated its replacement. Discussions on this issue with the regiment commander in 1942 led to the fact that the ace pilot was even expelled from the party and sent the case to the tribunal. The pilot was saved by the intercession of the regimental commissar and the higher command. The case against him was dropped and reinstated in the party. After the war, Pokryshkin was in conflict with Vasily Stalin for a long time, which adversely affected his career. Everything changed only in 1953 after the death of Joseph Stalin. Subsequently, he managed to rise to the rank of air marshal, which was awarded to him in 1972. The famous ace pilot died on November 13, 1985 at the age of 72 in Moscow.
Grigory Andreevich Rechkalov
Grigory Andreevich Rechkalov fought from the very first day of the Great Patriotic War. Twice Hero of the Soviet Union. During the war years, he completed more than 450 sorties, shooting down 56 enemy aircraft in person and 6 in a group in 122 air battles. According to other sources, the number of his personal air victories could exceed 60. During the war years, he flew the I-153 Chaika, I-16, Yak-1, P-39 Airacobra aircraft.
Probably no other Soviet fighter pilot had such a variety of downed enemy vehicles as Grigory Rechkalov. Among his trophies were Me-110, Me-109, Fw-190 fighters, Ju-88, He-111 bombers, Ju-87 dive bomber, Hs-129 attack aircraft, Fw-189 and Hs-126 reconnaissance aircraft, as well as such a rare car as the Italian "Savoy" and the Polish PZL-24 fighter, which was used by the Romanian Air Force.
Surprisingly, the day before the start of the Great Patriotic War, Rechkalov was suspended from flying by decision of the medical flight commission, he was diagnosed with color blindness. But upon returning to his unit with this diagnosis, he was still allowed to fly. The beginning of the war forced the authorities to simply turn a blind eye to this diagnosis, simply ignoring it. At the same time, he served in the 55th Fighter Aviation Regiment since 1939, together with Pokryshkin.
This brilliant military pilot was distinguished by a very contradictory and uneven character. Showing a model of determination, courage and discipline within the framework of one sortie, in another, he could be distracted from the main task and just as resolutely start pursuing a random enemy, trying to increase the score of his victories. His combat fate in the war was closely intertwined with the fate of Alexander Pokryshkin. He flew with him in the same group, replaced him as a squadron commander and regiment commander. Pokryshkin himself considered frankness and directness to be the best qualities of Grigory Rechkalov.
Rechkalov, like Pokryshkin, fought from June 22, 1941, but with a forced break for almost two years. In the first month of fighting, he managed to shoot down three enemy aircraft on his outdated I-153 biplane fighter. He also managed to fly on the I-16 fighter. On July 26, 1941, during a sortie near Dubossary, he was wounded in the head and leg by fire from the ground, but managed to bring his plane to the airfield. After this injury, he spent 9 months in the hospital, during which time the pilot underwent three operations. And once again, the medical commission tried to put an insurmountable obstacle in the way of the future illustrious ace. Grigory Rechkalov was sent to serve in a reserve regiment, which was equipped with U-2 aircraft. The future twice Hero of the Soviet Union took this direction as a personal insult. At the headquarters of the district air force, he managed to ensure that he was returned to his regiment, which at that time was called the 17th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment. But very soon the regiment was withdrawn from the front for re-equipment with the new American Airacobra fighters, which went to the USSR as part of the Lend-Lease program. For these reasons, Rechkalov began to beat the enemy again only in April 1943.
Grigory Rechkalov, being one of the domestic stars of fighter aviation, could perfectly interact with other pilots, guessing their intentions and working together as a group. Even during the war years, a conflict arose between him and Pokryshkin, but he never sought to throw out some kind of negativity about this or blame his opponent. On the contrary, in his memoirs he spoke well of Pokryshkin, noting that they managed to unravel the tactics of the German pilots, after which they began to apply new techniques: they began to fly in pairs, not in flights, it is better to use radio for guidance and communication, to separate their cars in the so-called " whatnot."
Grigory Rechkalov won 44 victories on the Aerocobra, more than other Soviet pilots. Already after the end of the war, someone asked the famous pilot what he most appreciated in the Airacobra fighter, on which so many victories were won: the power of a fire salvo, speed, visibility, engine reliability? To this question, the ace pilot replied that all of the above, of course, mattered, these were the obvious advantages of the aircraft. But the main thing, he said, was in the radio. The Airacobra had excellent, rare radio communications in those years. Thanks to this connection, the pilots in battle could communicate with each other, as if by telephone. Someone saw something - immediately all the members of the group are aware of it. Therefore, in combat missions, we did not have any surprises.
After the end of the war, Grigory Rechkalov continued his service in the Air Force. True, not as long as other Soviet aces. Already in 1959, he retired with the rank of major general. After that he lived and worked in Moscow. He died in Moscow on December 20, 1990 at the age of 70.
Nikolai Dmitrievich Gulaev
Nikolai Dmitrievich Gulaev ended up on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War in August 1942. In total, during the war years, he made 250 sorties, conducted 49 air battles, in which he personally destroyed 55 enemy aircraft and 5 more aircraft in the group. Such statistics make Gulaev the most effective Soviet ace. For every 4 sorties, he had a downed aircraft, or an average of more than one aircraft for each dogfight. During the war, he flew the I-16, Yak-1, P-39 Airacobra fighters, most of his victories, like Pokryshkin and Rechkalov, he won on the Airacobra.
Twice Hero of the Soviet Union Nikolai Dmitrievich Gulaev shot down not much less aircraft than Alexander Pokryshkin. But in terms of the effectiveness of the battles, he far surpassed both him and Kozhedub. At the same time, he fought for less than two years. At first, in the deep Soviet rear, as part of the air defense forces, he was engaged in the protection of important industrial facilities, protecting them from enemy air raids. And in September 1944, he was almost forcibly sent to study at the Air Force Academy.
The Soviet pilot made his most productive battle on May 30, 1944. In one air battle over Skuleni, he managed to shoot down 5 enemy aircraft at once: two Me-109s, Hs-129s, Ju-87s and Ju-88s. During the battle, he himself was seriously wounded in the right hand, but having concentrated all his strength and will, he was able to bring his fighter to the airfield, bleeding, landed and, having already taxied to the parking lot, lost consciousness. The pilot came to his senses only in the hospital after the operation, here he learned about the award of the second title of Hero of the Soviet Union to him.
All the time while Gulaev was at the front, he fought desperately. During this time, he managed to make two successful rams, after which he managed to land his damaged aircraft. Several times during this time he was wounded, but after being wounded he invariably returned back to duty. In early September 1944, the ace pilot was forcibly sent to study. At that moment, the outcome of the war was already clear to everyone, and they tried to protect the famous Soviet aces by sending them to the Air Force Academy by order. Thus, the war ended unexpectedly for our hero.
Nikolai Gulaev was called the brightest representative of the "romantic school" of air combat. Often the pilot dared to commit "irrational actions" that shocked the German pilots, but helped him win victories. Even among other far from ordinary Soviet fighter pilots, the figure of Nikolai Gulaev stood out for his colorfulness. Only such a person, possessing unparalleled courage, would be able to carry out 10 super-successful air battles, recording two of his victories for a successful ramming of enemy aircraft. Gulaev’s modesty in public and in his self-esteem was discordant with his exceptionally aggressive and persistent manner of air combat, and he managed to carry openness and honesty with boyish spontaneity throughout his life, retaining some youthful prejudices until the end of his life, which did not prevent him from rising to the rank of rank of Colonel General of Aviation. The famous pilot died on September 27, 1985 in Moscow.
Kirill Alekseevich Evstigneev
Kirill Alekseevich Evstigneev twice Hero of the Soviet Union. Like Kozhedub, he began his military career relatively late, only in 1943. During the war years, he made 296 sorties, conducted 120 air battles, personally shooting down 53 enemy aircraft and 3 in a group. He flew La-5 and La-5FN fighters.
The almost two-year "delay" with the appearance at the front was due to the fact that the fighter pilot suffered from stomach ulcers, and they were not allowed to go to the front with this disease. From the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, he worked as an instructor at a flight school, and after that he overtook Lend-Lease Aerocobras. Work as an instructor gave him a lot, like another Soviet ace Kozhedub. At the same time, Evstigneev did not stop writing reports to the command with a request to send him to the front, as a result, they were nevertheless satisfied. Kirill Evstigneev received his baptism of fire in March 1943. Like Kozhedub, he fought as part of the 240th Fighter Aviation Regiment, flew a La-5 fighter. On his first sortie on March 28, 1943, he scored two victories.
For the entire duration of the war, the enemy never managed to bring down Kirill Evstigneev. But from his own he got twice. For the first time, the Yak-1 pilot, who was carried away by air combat, crashed into his plane from above. The Yak-1 pilot immediately jumped out of the plane, which lost one wing, with a parachute. But Evstigneev's La-5 suffered less, and he managed to reach the positions of his troops by landing the fighter next to the trenches. The second case, more mysterious and dramatic, occurred over its territory in the absence of enemy aircraft in the air. The fuselage of his plane was burst through, damaging Evstigneev's legs, the car caught fire and went into a dive, and the pilot had to jump out of the plane with a parachute. At the hospital, doctors were inclined to amputate the pilot's foot, but he overtook them with such fear that they abandoned their idea. And after 9 days, the pilot escaped from the hospital and with crutches got to the location of his native part of 35 kilometers.
Kirill Evstigneev constantly increased the number of his air victories. Until 1945, the pilot was ahead of Kozhedub. At the same time, the doctor of the unit periodically sent him to the hospital to treat an ulcer and a wounded leg, which the ace pilot terribly opposed. Kirill Alekseevich was seriously ill from the pre-war times, in his life he underwent 13 surgical operations. Very often, the famous Soviet pilot flew, overcoming physical pain. Evstigneev, as they say, was obsessed with flying. In his spare time, he tried to train young fighter pilots. He was the initiator of training air battles. For the most part, Kozhedub turned out to be his opponent in them. At the same time, Evstigneev was completely devoid of a sense of fear, even at the very end of the war he calmly went into a frontal attack on the six-gun Fokkers, winning victories over them. Kozhedub spoke of his comrade-in-arms like this: "Flint pilot."
Captain Kirill Evstigneev finished the war of the Guards as a navigator of the 178th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment. The pilot spent his last battle in the sky of Hungary on March 26, 1945, on his fifth La-5 fighter during the war. After the war, he continued to serve in the USSR Air Force, in 1972 he retired with the rank of Major General, and lived in Moscow. He died on August 29, 1996 at the age of 79, was buried at the Kuntsevsky cemetery of the capital.
Sources of information:
http://svpressa.ru
http://airaces.narod.ru
http://www.warheroes.ru
Vladimir Terletsky became a Hero of the Soviet Union at the age of 25. The title was awarded posthumously. The legendary name is Vladimir Nikolaevich Terletsky. In memory of the feat of a young soldier during the breakthrough of the Blue Line, the square of the city of Temryuk was named after him. Today, a business and trade center has developed here. The name of the Hero has become a household name. Unfortunately, the market was easily called Terletsky. A wave of indignation among the inhabitants of the city was caused by the name of the outlet "Terlik" on Terletsky Square, which forced the entrepreneur to change the sign. It's good that the memorial plaque is on the school building. This is a reminder to children about the war, about its Heroes. Recall how a 25-year-old guy from the Vinnitsa region of Ukraine became a Hero during the Great Patriotic War. The young Katyusha driver Vladimir Terletsky did not know that May 28, 1943 would be his last battle. A young soldier, a senior sergeant of the 273rd Guards mortar division, that day received an order to bring the car to a firing position and strike at the infantry and tanks of the Nazis. The fighting took place in the area of the village of Krymskaya. Today this place is called the Hill of Heroes. According to the memoirs of the battery commander of the 50th Temryuk Guards Mortar Regiment, Guard Captain N. Ya. Korneichuk, the operation took place early in the morning. The signal for the artillery offensive was to be a shot of "Katyushas". But suddenly the shelling of our firing positions began. At that moment, Volodya Terletsky was seriously wounded in the stomach. Captain Korneichuk gave the command: "By cars!". But no one dared to cross the open area between the forest and the Katyushas. And only Volodya Terletsky, overcoming pain and bleeding, with the last of his strength clamped his hand over the wound and ran to the car to the firing position. “He fired a volley and went with a howl of shells from his Katyusha. The Germans immediately ceased fire. The commanders of the remaining guns immediately took advantage of this. The salvo was fired on time. At this time, about a hundred German aircraft turned in our direction. The command followed: “Cars for cover!”. Volodya turned the car around and took it to the shelter, ”from the memoirs of N. Ya. Korneichuk. The wounded soldier was pulled out of the car unconscious. When I woke up, I asked: “Is the car intact?” Volodya was immediately sent to the hospital, but it was too late. He was buried at the hospital parking lot. On October 25, 1943, he was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. “At the cost of his life, Terletsky helped to carry out an important combat mission. Later it turned out that if the volley had been fired a few minutes later, they would have covered their own tanks that went on the attack. Volodya did not live to see a peaceful life. But he gave for the world the most precious thing - his young life. He was only 25 years old. And, of course, he wanted to live. Fellow soldiers often came to Temryuk. Vladimir's sister visited the grave. The pioneer squad of school No. 2 bore the name of Terletsky. The square on which Vladimir was buried was named after him,” N. Ya. Korneichuk wrote in his memoirs. Therefore, it was decided to rebury Vladimir Terletsky on the square in Temryuk. A monument was erected. During the construction of the new school building No. 2, the soldier's grave was moved to the city's war memorial on the street. Buvin. The name of Vladimir Terletsky is a street in his native village of Pogrebishche in the Vinnitsa region. A square in Temryuk is named after him. A memorial plaque was installed on the facade of the building of school No. 2 in Temryuk.
Pilot Amet-Khan-Sultan. How he fought, what he did after the war, how he died.
The name of Amet-Khan-Sultan is known to few today. And this is twice Hero of the Soviet Union. The fighter pilot comes from the Crimean Tatars on his mother and from the Laks of Dagestan on his father. Fought bravely. Once rammed a German Yu-88D-1 over Yaroslavl, escaped by parachute. He flew the Hurricane then. Fought in the skies of Stalingrad. He was shot down, but survived. He fought on many types of aircraft from the I-15 to the Airacobra. In sorties for free hunting, he searched in the sky for fascist aces along with fellow pilots. In 1944, he captured the Fieseler-Storch, forcing him to land on a Soviet airfield. Over Berlin, Amet-Khan-Sultan was already flying on the La-7, then the latest fighter. There he shot down his last Foke-Wulf-190 aircraft. This happened on April 29, 1945. The next day, Germany's chief Fuhrer committed suicide. At the age of 25, he became twice a Hero of the Soviet Union. Since 1947, he began to work as a test pilot, and soon received the 3rd class. Four years later, already a first-class test pilot began to master supersonic flights. They launched test cruise missiles from a Tu-95K strategic bomber. Amet-Khan-Sultan also took part in testing ejection seats. Once there was an explosion in the air of a squib, it pierced the fuel tank, kerosene poured into the cockpit, they flew on the UTI MiG-15. Amet Khan managed to land on the airfield. He saved the parachutist Golovin and his own life. Ejection to that was impossible due to damage to the chair rail. Composure helped the former military fighter to act skillfully and prudently in the most difficult moment.
It is very unfortunate that Amet-Khan, a fifty-year-old pilot, died while testing a new jet engine, which probably exploded at the time of release from the fuselage and launch. His Tu-16 fell into the swamp along with the crew.
Today in Alupka there is a La-5 aircraft as a monument to the famous ace. 25 stars are painted on the board with white paint. This is according to the number of opponents destroyed by Amet-Khan. In fact, he personally shot down only 30 aircraft, not counting group victories. Spent 150 fights in the air.
As a child, the future pilot watched the flight of eagles soaring over the mountains. He studied in the "craft", began working as a mechanic, and then as an assistant to the boiler house in the depot, at the same time he was engaged in the flying club of the city of Simferopol. He entered the Kachin Pilot School in 1939, immediately deciding on a fighter aircraft. Good reaction and excellent vision contributed to this. And the troublesome character of a fighter pilot is not a hindrance, but help. I met the beginning of the war in the Odessa military district. Then he piloted the I-153 biplane (the plane's nickname was "Swallow"). He defeated a column of fascist troops on it near Chisinau during an attack. In the autumn of 1941, he retrained for an English Hurricane model aircraft. After ramming over Yaroslavl, the Junkers jumped out with a parachute and landed near the village of Dymokurtsy. Broke his head in a ram. The Germans also jumped out of their bomber with parachutes, landed in the Volga, but were caught by Soviet soldiers. For the air ramming, Amet-Khan-Sultan was awarded a nominal watch and an order. Fighting on the Yak-7A near Stalingrad, the pilot shot down several enemy aircraft, among them was the Me-109. In his spare time, in between fights, Amet-Khan played chess enthusiastically. In the sky, this man beat the German aces, the background of the barons in aerobatics, since he himself was the Sultan. In the victory over Germany, he made his contribution, very tangible.
On February 1, 1971, during a test flight of the Tu-16 LL flying laboratory, a test pilot, twice Hero of the Soviet Union, Colonel Amet-Khan Sultan, died.
In the life of any person there are enough secrets, oddities and coincidences, both happy and unfortunate. But if for a “simple” person all these “strange things” remain with him, far from always turning even into stories to friends and relatives, then for “famous” people, whose life becomes the property of the “general public”, such facts turn into whole legends, often used for "political" and sometimes completely speculative purposes. Enough of such facts and "oddities" in the life of the hero of this article. It is even more strange when, with a huge number of papers accompanying a person throughout his life, from its first minute to the last, various legends appear, which then begin to lead their “life”, wandering from one literary source to another. It is sometimes very difficult to get to the true documents. This is how various interpretations of events and their “options” appear, which are also lacking in the biography of Amet-Khan. I cannot claim that all the facts given in the article are true. But the main thing is the person himself and what he really did in life ...
Amet-Khan Sultan (Sultan Amet-khan) (20 (25) 10.1920 - 02.01.1971).
The famous fighter pilot of the Great Patriotic War, at the age of 25 twice Hero of the Soviet Union (08/24/1943, 07/29/1945). He completed 603 sorties, participated in 150 air battles, shot down 30 aircraft personally and 19 as part of a group.
Honored Test Pilot of the USSR, laureate of the Stalin Prize for testing a manned model of a cruise missile (1953).
He was awarded three Orders of Lenin, five Red Banners.
Awarded with ordersAlexander Nevsky, Patriotic War 1st degree, Red Star and "Badge of Honor", many medals. During the flight test work, he mastered about 100 types of aircraft (according to some reports - over 170), and the total flight time on them amounted to 4237 hours. Honorary citizen of the city of Yaroslavl, lieutenant colonel. Honorary Crimean, honorary pilot of France, honorary citizen of Melitopol.
Born in the Crimea (Alupka), his father is a Lak by nationality, his mother is a Crimean Tatar. The house where he spent his childhood was located on the slope of Mount Ai-Petri.
And immediately, the first oddity. A number of sources mention the date of birth - October 20. In others, with the same certainty, - October 25th.
He received his primary education at a seven-year school. After graduating from the Simferopol Railway School, he worked at the depot. It was difficult, but at the same time he was engaged in the city flying club (founded in 1931). He entered the Kachin Red Banner Aviation School named after A.F. Myasnikov (Sevastopol), and having successfully completed the training course (1939-1940), he was sent to serve in Moldova, where he flew the I-15 and I-153 fighters.
Kacha. 1939 Somewhere here is a cadet Amet-Khan Sultan.
The fighter regiment of Amet-Khan, equipped with I-15 and I-153 aircraft, met the war in Moldova. The young pilot entered the battles with the Nazis from the first day of the war. In the autumn of 1941, his regiment fought the Germans near Rostov-on-Don. After heavy losses, the regiment was transferred to reorganization and retraining. Now Amet Khan had to fight on the British "Hurricane".
In March 1942, the regiment of Amet-Khan Sultan became part of the air defense of Yaroslavl. The Nazi troops did not reach the city, but enemy aircraft bombed it.
The pilot fought actively. He participated in battles, bombed enemy troops, vehicles and tanks, military bases located on the ground. But the guy felt awkward in front of his comrades, and they, at every opportunity, teased him. Since the beginning of the war, he took to the air 170 times on a combat mission, but never shot down a single enemy aircraft. But experience comes with time. Success came too.
On May 31, 1942, a pair of fighters, controlled by Amet-Khan and his wingman Strukov, was raised to intercept a Yu-88 bomber, apparently on a reconnaissance flight. Immediately after takeoff, Strukov had an engine malfunction and Amet-Khan went into battle alone. At an altitude of 7300 m, the Junkers was attacked by him, but in the heat of battle, the fighter fired all the ammunition past. Not wanting to miss the enemy, Amet-Khan rammed the enemy Junkers-88 bomber, hitting him with the left plane from below.From an uncontrolled plane, Amet-Khan jumped out by parachute. In the distance, he noticed two people who managed to jump out of a German plane.
Often there is also a description that the Hurricane got stuck with the wing plane in a bomber.
The wreckage of an enemy aircraft was placed on the central square of the city of Yaroslavl. Amet-Khan, for the courage shown in the sky over Yaroslavl, was awarded the Order of Lenin and elected an honorary citizen of the city. On the engraved watch presented to the pilot by the city defense committee, the following words appeared: “To Lieutenant of the Red Army Comrade Ametkhan Sultan, who heroically shot down a Nazi plane, on behalf of the Defense Committee of the city of Yaroslavl. 1942, May 31.
From that moment on, the pilot's account began to grow.
The military publicist N. Kostin wrote the following about Amet-Khan (the spelling of the surname is in the presentation of the source): “Somehow Ametkhan Sultan was summoned by the commander of the regiment Shestakov and instructed to cover the defense of the crossing, which is of great strategic importance. On the second day of the guard, Captain Amethan Sultan flies into place with a group of aircraft. The weather was clear and visibility was excellent. They reach a height of four thousand five hundred meters. At eleven o'clock three groups of enemy planes were seen flying from the Sea of Azov towards the crossing. Twenty Heinkel-111s were ahead, followed by twenty Yu-88s and twenty more Heinkel-111s. As soon as the fascist bombers began to approach the crossing, the Amethan team launched an attack. Four "Heinkel" were destroyed immediately. When the enemy began to evade the attack, the commander of the third pair, pilot Safonov, reported a malfunction of his aircraft. "Return to the airfield!" Amethan commanded. At that moment, another group of enemy planes appeared. Amethan and Pavel Golovachev, attacking either from above or from below, shot down two more Junkers. Another "Junker" was fired upon by Senior Lieutenant Borisov. Thus, Ametkhan and his five glorious falcons - Borisov, Golovachev, Malkov, Safonov, Light destroyed part of the enemy aircraft, ten times superior in number to ours. None of the sixty German bombers hit the target - the crossing, and the surviving German planes were forced to hide. In this battle, only one Soviet fighter was injured, but he returned to the airfield.
In the evening, the commander of the air force, General Khryukin, in the guards regiment, personally thanked Ametkhan:
You are worthy of the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. I'm sure the government will honor you with this high honor. Thanks hero!
A month later, on August 24, 1943, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR issued a Decree on awarding Ametkhan Sultan the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
On April 23, 1943, the commander of the 8th Air Army, Lieutenant General of Aviation T. T. Khryukin, introduced him to the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. The view says:
"Comrade Amet-Khan Sultan made 359 sorties, conducted 79 air battles, personally shot down 11 enemy aircraft and 19 aircraft in group battles.
Has one ram of enemy aircraft. In total, he made 110 sorties on the Stalingrad front, personally shot down 6 enemy aircraft and 7 enemy aircraft in a group.
For the exemplary performance of the combat missions of the command, courage, courage and heroism shown in the fight against the Nazi invaders, by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of August 24, 1943, Amet-Khan Sultan was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal. ".
In August 1943, based in Kotelnikovo recaptured from the enemy, the regiment received new R-39 Airacobra fighters. But during the very first flights, the insidiousness of the overseas gift was discovered: the plane easily fell into a tailspin, from which Lieutenant Klimov and Senior Lieutenant Ershov could not get out ... ace Anatoly Morozov was appointed to his place, to him, an old comrade in military work in the summer of 1941, and Amet-Khan approached him with a request: "Let me try the Aerocobra for a spin, I will conquer - I will teach others" ...
The entire regiment, frozen, followed the dangerous rotation of the aircraft, falling from a height of 7000 meters. Only hundreds of meters from the ground, the car went into a steep dive and soon rolled down the runway. And then the happy Amet-Khan explained to everyone how to get the capricious car out of a deadly rotation.
In January 1944, Amet Khan and his comrade, Hero of the Soviet Union Ivan Borisov , managed to capture an enemy aircraft Fi-156 "Storch" with a pilot and a security officer with documents, forcing the Nazi pilot to land on a Soviet airfield. It is interesting that Amet-Khan mastered the captured German communications aircraft almost immediately, having made an independent flight on it. Here, too, there are discrepancies in the memoirs, according to another version, Amet-Khan commanded a squadron that “worked” from the jump airfield and did not fly to intercept it himself, but sent two fighters. But he had already brought the “trophy” personally to the main airfield, accompanied by two fighters. With the control of an unfamiliar aircraft, he figured out in an hour.
One of the sources describes another "non-trivial" event in the life of a pilot.
In March 1944, a German Me-109 fighter flew over their airfield and dropped a pennant with a note. The enemy pilot challenged our best ace to a duel, promising not to engage in battle until the Soviet pilot gained an altitude of 3000 meters. Such impudence in the 9th Guards IAP was not expected from the enemy. By this time, the pilots of the regiment had already proved to the Germans that they were not born with a bast. They reported to the commander of the 8th Air Army, Timofey Khryukin. He, without hesitation, ordered Amet-Khan's Aerocobra to be prepared for departure.
We must pay tribute to the German - he fulfilled the conditions of the duel. Everyone who was at the airfield remembered this battle forever, although it lasted no more than 15 minutes. "Messerschmitt" and "Aerocobra" staged a frantic carousel in the sky. Performing unthinkable pirouettes, the planes chased each other without firing a shot. And then there was a short burst. "Messer" began to smoke and collapsed in a dive. Later it became known that Amet-Khan brought down a German ace who shot down 50 of our planes.
Legend or reality? In the list of victories of Amet-Khan, 03/10/44 there is a "Messer". The place of victory is indicated "northeast of Ochakov" ...
Amet-Khan Sultan ended the war flying on a La-7 fighter. "The American Aerocobras are good, but still our Lavochkin horse is better!" - summed up Amet-Khan, having mastered the new aircraft. On this machine, he fought in the skies of Latvia and East Prussia, where he shot down 6 more enemy aircraft.
La-7 Amet-Khan, spring 1945
From the end of April, the pilots of the 9th Guards IAP, looking for the enemy, were already flying over Berlin. German planes, having seen our La-7s from afar, turned back, and one of their groups behaved quite strangely: they gave signals, it seems, that they want to surrender. Lavrinenkov and Amet-Khan were surprised, but also pleased, and led the group to the airfield. The German pilots made a good landing. Apparently, they had to be based here. After getting off the runway, they turned off the engines and raised their hands. They explained: they do not want to continue the senseless war...
He won his last victory on April 25, 1945 over the Tempelhof airfield. Amet-Khan led six La-7s to intercept enemy aircraft. Expecting the appearance of the enemy, Amet-Khan patrolled for a long time over the section of the city indicated to him. His time in flight was already running out, fuel was at the limit, when the Fokkers jumped out from behind the clouds. Amet-Khan set fire to the leader of the group with the first burst of cannon. The pilot (group leader, holder of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves) jumped out with a parachute, and the wingmen left the battlefield.
Regiment Commander twice Hero of the Soviet Union Guard Major V.D. Lavrinenkov in April 1945, presenting Amet-Khan to the highest award - the title of twice Hero of the Soviet Union, wrote the following report: “Comrade Ametkhan Sultan showed an example of courage and heroism at the fronts. This high-class fighter pilot, who fully mastered the art of air combat, earned the title of one of the best aces of the regiment by his deeds. Amethan Sultan, who masterfully controls the aircraft, using its tactical superiority, knowing well the weaknesses of the Nazi pilots and all the advantages of enemy equipment, won 30 air battles. Comrade Amethan Sultan, who showed courage and heroism in the fight against the German invaders, successfully conducted 603 sorties and won them, personally shot down 30 enemy planes and 19 in group air battles, deserves to be awarded the title twice Hero of the Soviet Union.
So, taking into account all these merits, on June 29, 1945, Amet-Khan Sultan was awarded the title twice Hero of the Soviet Union.
The statistics of the victories of Amet-Khan, who flew on different types of aircraft, are interesting.
- Hurricane, victories won between 05/31/42 and 07/23/42. Bombers - 2 (Yu-88 by ramming, the first victory, Yu-87 in the group), fighters (Me-109) - 1 personally and 10 in the group, Xe-113 - 1 (in the group).
- Yak-7, victories were won from 08/23/42 to 09/15/42. Bombers - 3 (Yu-88, in a group), reconnaissance - 1 (FV-189, in pairs), fighters (Me-109) - 5 in person and 3 in a group.
- Yak-1, victories were won from 12/13/42 to 07/24/43. Bombers - 4 (3 Xe-111, 1 Yu-87), fighters - 2 Me-109.
4. Aerocobra, victories were won from 08/20/43 to 04/24/44. Bombers - 7 (3 Yu-87, 3 Yu-88, 1 Xe-111), transport - 1 Yu-52, fighters - 3 (2 Me-109, 1 FV-190).
5. La-7, victories were won from 01/14/45 to 04/29/45. Fighters - 6 (1 Me-109, 5 FV-190).
Many copies have been broken and many opposing opinions have been expressed in connection with the nationality of Amet-Khan. The problem of the Crimean Tatars itself is not the subject of this material, but this issue cannot be ignored either.
The family of Amet-Khan was directly affected by the tragedy that happened to the Crimean Tatars during the war. The pilot's parents remained in the occupation, and in 1943 the command ordered the partisans to take them to the mainland. However, the parents refused, and the partisans themselves were surrounded by policemen. The group had to break through with a fight. I think it’s not worth reminding that it was not Ethiopians who “went” in the policemen in the Crimea ...
According to one version, set out in the memoirs of one of the participants in the partisan movement in the Crimea, Amet-Khan's mother categorically refused to be evacuated, calling her son a "guitar" when she was shown a photo of her son in uniform. At the same time, there are memories of Amet-Khan's fellow pilot Anatoly Plotnikov, who describes the meeting of Amet-Khan and his friends with his parents in 1944 and mentions their cordiality and hospitality. The truth is somewhere near?
Nevertheless, the hero's parents were not touched after the war, but Amet-Khan's brother, Imran, was arrested by the NKVD as a person who collaborated with the invaders. Imran Sultan served in the so-called Auxiliary Police...
“I had a famous friend, twice Hero of the Soviet Union Ahmed Khan Sultan. His father is a Dagestani, and his mother is a Tatar... The Dagestanis consider him their hero, and the Tatars consider him theirs.
— Whose are you? I asked him once.
“I am not a Tatar or Lak hero,” Akhmet Khan replied. — I am a Hero of the Soviet Union. Whose son? Father with mother. Is it possible to separate them from each other?” recalled the Avar poet and public figure Rasul Gamzatov.
In 1956, together with a number of former party and Soviet workers of the Crimean ASSR, Amet-Khan Sultan signed a letter with a request for the rehabilitation of the Crimean Tatars, sent to the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine.
It is often mentioned that the nationality of Amet Khan seriously complicated his life after the war. And there are grounds for such assertions.
After the end of the war, by order of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, all aces pilots were sent to study at the academy. Since August 1945, Amet-Khan has been a student at the Air Force Academy in Monino. The study was very difficult, the lack of education made itself felt. And at the beginning of 1946, the pilot submits a report in which he writes: “Soberly weighing the level of my knowledge, I do not see the possibility of further study. Therefore, I ask you to expel me, because I am not sure that I can withstand five years of study at the academy. His report was satisfied, and in April 1946, Lieutenant Colonel Amet-Khan Sultan was transferred to the reserve.
After several months of study at the academy, Lieutenant Colonel Amet-Khan Sultan filed a report on expulsion and dismissal from service.
It was not about politics and not about the "fifth point" - the combat pilot bitterly admitted that he simply lacked education to study at the academy.
In a large number of sources, his expulsion from the academy, his dismissal from the army and for a long time “without heaven” are explained precisely by his nationality. It is more logical to assume that the dismissal is connected with expulsion from the academy. Well, do not appoint a Hero twice, a lieutenant colonel as an ordinary pilot, or even a commander? But the position of the regiment commander after the war already began to require an academic education. If you can't grow, go "retire". According to some reports, Amet-Khan did not want to work as a "linear pilot" in the Civil Air Fleet. Get a leadership job "on the ground"? There is no experience, and the “fifth point” could actually play here. A quite “usual” reaction of the personnel officer of that time when reading the personal file and getting acquainted with the nationality of the “defendant” is the slowly sweating seat of the chair. The author does not insist on this point of view, but he PERSONALLY saw similar phenomena in more “prosperous” years ...
But it is not for nothing that they say that a friend is known in trouble. Thanks to the help of combat comrades-in-arms - twice Hero of the Soviet Union Vladimir Dmitrievich Lavrinenkov, Alexei Alelyukhin, former commander Timofey Timofeevich Khryukin, Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin, aircraft mechanic of the regiment where Amethan served, Inna Pasportnikova, with great difficulty, Amethan Sultan gets a job as a test pilot at the aircraft testing institute. A new life begins.
Apart from the probationary period, on May 17, 1948, Amethan was officially accepted for a new job.
Four months of going to high authorities with a request to be allowed to work as a tester ended positively.
In a short time, he moved into the ranks of the best testers. In 1949, he was assigned the third class of a test pilot, in January 1950 - the second class, and already in September 1952, Amet-Khan Sultan became a test pilot of the 1st class. He successfully performs a variety of tests.
At first he works on gliders, then he tests new ejection systems on jet and fighter aircraft Yak-15, Yak-25, MiG-15, MiG-17, MiG-19, MiG-21 and SM-1, La-15, soon moves to heavy aircraft Tu-4, Tu-16, Il-28, Yak-28, An-10a. These and dozens of other planes Amethan is the first to take to the sky, test and give a start in life.
The most modern aircraft of the third and fourth generation MiG-23, MiG-25, MiG-29, MiG-31. Su-24, Su-27, Su-29 were also tested by Amethan Sultan. They entered mass production after the tragic death of Amethan. Even aces pilots were amazed at how skillfully he tested rockets.
Another "story" with an uncertain degree of certainty is connected with the work of Amet-Khan as a tester.The command of the Air Force decided that the test pilots receive too high salaries compared to other testers. And so that the pilots would not grumble, they “asked” them to write about their agreement on a significant reduction in rates. Amet-Khan wrote, like his comrades, about his consent, but made a postscript: “But the wife is categorically against it.”
I.V. Stalin showed constant interest in how the creation of the latest types of fighters was going. When he saw the receipt of the famous test pilot, he imposed his resolution: "Totally agree with Amet Khan's wife."
... The salaries for test pilots were left the same.
In June 1949, together with I. Shelest, on a Tu-2 aircraft, he conducted the country's first fully automatic refueling in the air.
In the early 1950s, he was entrusted with testing ... an air-to-ship cruise missile. The product (LL-1, LL-2, flying laboratories of the Design Bureau of P.V. Tsybin) was hung under a Tu-4 bomber and dropped from a height of about 3000 meters. In free fall mode, the automation started the engine, and the pilot, taking control, landed the rocket. “... The planning angle is like that of a brick; landing speed, like a meteorite; the fuel supply on landing is for one refueling of a pocket lighter, ”one of the test pilots described the flight on a similar cruise missile. These people were even called "suicide bombers" by professionals.
During one of the tests, the drop of the projectile aircraft occurred ahead of schedule, and the engine was not started. The new machine was in free fall, and the command ordered Amet-Khan Sultan to immediately jump. However, the pilot fought to the end, started the engine near the ground and managed to land the car.
In the late 1950s, Amet-Khan Sultan made dozens, if not hundreds, of test flights as part of a program to develop ejection seats for pilots and astronauts. His constant partner was the tester Valery Golovin, who performed the ejection.
On November 12, 1958, on the MiG-15UTI aircraft, in which Sultan and Golovin were located, an unauthorized triggering of a catapult powder cartridge occurred. As a result, the tank was pierced at the plane, and Golovin was squeezed by the ejection seat. The depressurized cabin was flooded with aviation kerosene, whipping so that the dashboard was not visible. A fire could break out at any second, and the flight director gave the command to Amet-Khan to leave the plane.
However, the pilot could not leave his comrade. In absolutely unthinkable conditions, with the threat of fire and explosion every second, Amet-Khan Sultan landed the plane, managing to save both Valery Golovin and the car.
September 23, 1961 Amet-Khan Sultan was awarded the title of "Honored Test Pilot of the USSR" (sign number - 38).
When the idea of flying into space was finally concretized, about twenty pilots were selected. Since then, their composition has changed constantly. Finally, 5-6 people were approved, and intensive preparations began. Along with training on the most complex simulators, centrifuges, pressure chambers, special attention was paid to flights close to weightlessness conditions. It was at this time that Amet-Khan began to conduct training in preparation for the flight of astronauts. He raised the plane to a great height and created conditions of weightlessness for the astronauts. Thus, Amet-Khan conducted classes with Yuri Gagarin, Andrian Nikolaev, Pavel Popovich, German Titov, Anatoly Kartashov, paving the way into space.
In recent years, Amet-Khan often heard from friends: “Ametka! You will soon be fifty, isn’t it difficult to fly, maybe you can rest? Such thoughts sometimes visited Amet-Khan himself. But for a man whose entire conscious life was spent in the sky, it was painfully difficult to give up flying.
October 23. 1970 solemnly celebrated the 50th anniversary of Amet Khan. Prominent aircraft designers of the country took part in the anniversary celebrations. Congratulatory speeches in honor of the legendary ace were made by: on behalf of the Tupolev Design Bureau team - Honored Test Pilot of the USSR Ivan Moiseevich Sukhomlin and First Class Test Pilot Eduard Vaganovich Yelyan, on behalf of the Ilyushin Design Bureau team - Honored Test Pilot of the USSR Yakov Ilyich Bernikov, from Kerim Bekirovich Bekirbaev, Deputy Chief Designer Yakovlev, from the staff of the Mikoyan Design Bureau - Honored Test Pilot of the USSR Major General of Aviation Grigory Alexandrovich Sedov, from the Sukhoi Design Bureau - Honored Test Pilot of the USSR Hero of the Soviet Union Vladimir Sergeevich Ilyushin, from the firm of Academician S.P. Korolev - Honored Test Pilot of the USSR Hero of the Soviet Union Sergei Nikolaevich Anokhin, comrades of Amet-Khan Alexei Ryazanov, Pavel Golovachev, comrades in joint test flights V. Vasin, A. Bogorodsky, V. Podkhalyuzin and other.
The solemn anniversary became one of the most exciting days in the life of Amet-Khan Sultan.Embarrassed by such honors, the pilot thanked everyone for the kind words. And when one of his friends noticed that, they say, it’s time to pass on the experience to the young, Amet-Khan answered with a mountain parable: “When an old eagle anticipates the approach of death, he rushes up with his last strength, rises as high as possible. And then he folds his wings and flies like a stone to the ground. Therefore, mountain eagles die in the sky - they fall to the ground already dead ... "
None of the friends paid much attention to these words that joyful evening. And Amet-Khan Sultan himself could hardly have imagined that this parable would turn out to be a prophecy.
After the holidays, workdays come again. one February 1971 Amet-Khan starts another test flight.
The bus delivered the crew to the plane with a nacelle sagging under its “belly”, in which an experimental engine was hidden. To test it at the limit modes, special care was required.
Yevgeny Beschetnov, who several years ago wrote a wonderful story about Amet-Khan Sultan and directly studied the causes of the tragedy, described that terrible picture on the basis of documents:
“According to the recollections of the son of Sergei Anokhin, Sergei, who worked there, they met with Amethan in the parking lot and, while the preparation of the car for departure was being completed, they stood aside and talked.
“I've never been in such a lousy mood,” Amethan complained. Why, I don't understand.
“And you cancel the flight,” Anokhin Jr. advised him. - It's within your rights. Or trade with someone.
- I don't want to make a fuss. I'm flying, then I'll go home, I'll lie down. This helps me.
Having accepted the plane, Ametkhan Sultan, Evgeny Venediktov, navigator, flight radio operator and lead engineer took their jobs and took off. Everything was as usual...
The tragic death of Amethan horrified everyone. Nobody wanted to believe it, because Amethan was a pilot who could use the slightest opportunity to save the plane and land it safely on the ground. So there was no chance. The flying laboratory was blown into small pieces - they lay out on the snow in a wide strip several hundred meters long. Only the tail unit and the rear cockpit, although heavily mangled, retained their outlines.
Leading engineer Radiy Lensky, who was in the rear cockpit, was dead. He was found soon. But the front cockpit with the rest of the crew, in general, the nose compartment of the aircraft could not be found anywhere.
In the evening, as soon as dusk approached, thick snow fell, and the search had to be stopped.
On the fourth day the snow stopped. Nikolai Ilyich Filizon, one of the oldest employees of the institute, the engineer of the detachment, Nikolai Ilyich Filizon, who headed the group of technical staff, decided to look into a young spruce forest two or three hundred meters away from the Tu-16 crash site. Filison overcame another ten meters and noticed in the distance, behind the trunks of Christmas trees, the white frosted metal of the sheathing and dark glazing. Pilot cabin! Almost half buried in the snow! The engineer got out into the open, called the rest of the search engines. And now people cleared the snow near the cab, got inside.
They presented a grim picture. Amethan remained in the commander's chair, apparently without making a single movement to save himself. From the blow, his headset was torn off his head and moved forward, the “horns” of the steering wheel lifted the pilot under his stomach, the brand new jacket that he put on on that fateful day burst on his back in several places, as if someone had cut it with a razor blade. Benediktov, who was in the right seat, was slightly crushed by a pine trunk. Mikhailovsky was cut in half in the lower part of the spine. And Lyokha Sparrow, inopportunely asking for this flight, was intact, only burned ... "
On February 8, 1971, Amet-Khan Sultan was buried with honors at the Novodevichy cemetery in Moscow. A bust is carved in granite above the grave, next to the stele is the inscription: “Twice Hero of the Soviet Union, laureate of the State Prize, Honored Test Pilot of the USSR Ametkhan Sultan.”
Together with Akhmet Khan, the following died: Lensky Radiy Georgievich - Lead Engineer for Testing Aircraft Engines; Mikhailovsky William Alexandrovich - test navigator; Venediktov Evgeny Nikolaevich - test pilot; Vorobyov Alexey Vasilievich - flight radio operator-test. Vyacheslav Mokrousov, assistant chief engineer, was supposed to be in the crew, but he was delayed, and the commander decided to fly without him.
The mystery of the death of the aircraft remained unsolved. According to one version, an experimental engine exploded, according to another, the aircraft flaps turned out to be faulty and uncontrolled divergent vibrations began, which led to the destruction of the aircraft in the air.
Streets in Alupka, Volgograd, Zhukovsky, Makhachkala, a square and an flying club in Simferopol, a mountain peak in Dagestan are named after Amet-Khan Sultan.
Bust in Alupka on Amet-Khan Boulevard
Monument on the Alley of Heroes in Kiev
Also in the city of Zhukovsky, on the street named after him, a monument was erected - a pilot standing on a wing.
A bronze bust of the famous pilot was installed in his hometown of Alupka, as well as in Makhachkala.
Museum in Alupka
Makhachkala Airport named after Amet Khan Sultan
The Amet-Khan Sultan platform is located on the 34th kilometer of the Ostryakovo-Evpatoria line
Lyceum-School No. 8 of the city of Kaspiysk, Republic of Dagestan, bears his name.
In 2010, with the support of local entrepreneurs and businessmen of Dagestan, a monument to Amet-Khan Sultan was erected in the city of Yaroslavl. The monument was erected not far from the place over which in 1942 a courageous pilot rammed the fascist Junkers, saving the city from the enemy.
Monument in Yaroslavl
AMET-KHAN SULTAN IN THE MEMORIES OF CONTEMPORARIES
A.E. GOLOVANOV— Air Marshal:
— Twice Hero of the Soviet Union Ametkhan Sultan tested the engine suspended under the Tu-116. The engine exploded in flight. The legendary fighter pilot of the war, a Crimean Tatar, died. At home, in Alupka, him during his lifetime there was a monument.
The first Hero was given to him with difficulty, the second too... For the trials that he carried out, for each one separately, such as Gallay received a Hero.
But they didn’t give him ... I think that there was no second such pilot in our country. Of course, neither Pokryshkin, with all due respect to him, nor anyone else can compare with him.
FRANCOIS DE JOFFRE — French pilot of the Normandie Volunteer Air Regiment— Neman":
— I met my old friend Amethan— twice Hero of the Soviet Union, the famous "King of the Ram". Do you know what a ram is? This is the highest form of Russian self-sacrifice pilot, which, having completely used up ammunition, rushes at an enemy aircraft and hits it with its machine. In ninety cases out of a hundred, this is inevitable death. Amethan was lucky and survived...
E.V. ELYAN— Hero of the Soviet Union, Honored Test Pilot of the USSR, commander of the first Tu-144 supersonic passenger aircraft:
— Amethan The Sultan was a pilot who succeeded in everything, no matter what he undertook. Neither I nor anyone else knows a second such tester.
S.N. ANOKHIN— Heroes of the Soviet Union, Honored Test Pilot of the USSR:
— In all my flying life, I have never met a person so generously endowed with talent. Amethan was not afraid of any new cars. The work carried out by the Sultan was of exceptionally great scientific value.
A.V. VOROZHEIKIN— twice Hero of the Soviet Union, Major General of Aviation:
— When the Germans heard the warning: “Achtung! Achtung! Amethan Sultan is in the sky!”— were lost and, if possible, tried to avoid meeting with him.
Much has been written about Amethan Sultan and much more will be written about him, because his bright life, boundless heroism made his name a legend.
V.D. LAVRINENKOV — twice Hero of the Soviet Union, Colonel-General of Aviation, commander of the 9th Guards Aviation Regiment, where Ametkhan Sultan served:
— Ametkhan was never shy in front of the enemy, even if he outnumbered the detachment of his aircraft by several times. He defeated the enemy with ingenuity, cunning, fearlessness...
Amethan knew how to make every flight with the maximum benefit for the cause. And it is no coincidence that the pilots liked to go on missions with him, they knew that he would definitely find an enemy.
P. GOLOVACHEV— twice Hero of the Soviet Union, major general of aviation, comrade Ametkhan:
— Amethan was fearless in battle, infinitely brave and courageous. At the same time, this prudent fighter had a sober mind and could instantly find the most correct solution for the successful completion of the battle.
Yu.A. GARNAEV—
— Amethan was assigned to be one of the first in the country to test an ejection seat to save a pilot in an emergency in the air. At a certain height, a strong explosion suddenly sounded, the body of the aircraft shuddered. The next moment, jets of kerosene poured into the cockpit from a punctured tank.— the powder cartridge of the firing mechanism of the ejection device prematurely exploded. The slightest spark was enough to set the car on fire. But Amethan managed to safely land the plane on the ground and save his comrade from death.
V.P. VASIN— Hero of the Soviet Union, Honored Test Pilot of the USSR:
— Amethan— pilot by the grace of God. His biography is unique. They say everything is relative. He is not suitable for comparison with anyone. Everything was his own in it: both the style of work and the flight acumen.
G.M. SHIYANOV— Hero of the Soviet Union, Honored Test Pilot of the USSR:
— This is a pilot of the rarest, great talent. I have been with him for 23 years. What Amethan did would be enough for several people. He told me that after fifty he would retire. Didn't leave, couldn't. Love for work— the only thing that was stronger than his own will.
May 9 Let's remember those who brought the Victory closer, gave their lives for it. The legendary name is Vladimir Nikolaevich Terletsky. In memory of the feat of a young soldier during the breakthrough of the Blue Line, the square of the city of Temryuk was named after him. Today, a business and shopping center has developed here. The name of the Hero has become a household name. Unfortunately, the market was easily called Terletsky. A wave of indignation among the inhabitants of the city was caused by the name of the outlet "Terlik" on Terletsky Square, which forced the entrepreneur to change the sign. It's good that the memorial plaque is on the school building. This is a reminder to children about the war, about its Heroes. Let's remember how a 25-year-old guy from the Vinnitsa region of Ukraine became a Hero during the Great Patriotic War.
The young driver of the Katyusha, Vladimir Terletsky, did not know that May 28, 1943 would be his last battle. A young soldier, senior sergeant of the 273rd guards mortar division that day received an order to bring the car to a firing position and strike at the infantry and tanks of the Nazis. The fighting took place in the area of the village of Krymskaya. Today this place is called the Hill of Heroes. Ya. Korneichuk, the operation took place early in the morning.
The artillery attack was supposed to be a Katyusha shot. But suddenly the shelling of our firing positions began. At that moment, Volodya Terletsky was seriously wounded in the stomach. Captain Korneichuk gave the command: "By cars!". But no one dared to cross the open area between the forest and the Katyushas. And only Volodya Terletsky, overcoming pain and bleeding, with his last strength clamped his hand on the wound and ran to the car to the firing position. “He fired a volley and went with a howl of shells from his Katyusha. The Germans immediately ceased fire. The commanders of the remaining guns immediately took advantage of this. The salvo was fired on time. At this time, about a hundred German aircraft turned in our direction. The command followed: “Cars for cover!”. Volodya turned the car around and took it to the shelter, ”- from the memoirs of N. Ya. Korneichuk.
The wounded soldier was dragged out of the car unconscious. When I woke up, I asked: “Is the car intact?”
Volodya was immediately sent to the hospital, but it was too late. He was buried at the hospital parking lot. On October 25, 1943, he was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
“At the cost of his life, Terletsky helped to carry out an important combat mission. Later it turned out that if the volley had been fired a few minutes later, they would have covered their own tanks that went on the attack. Volodya did not live to see a peaceful life. But he gave for the world the most precious thing - his young life. He was only 25 years old. And, of course, he wanted to live. Fellow soldiers often came to Temryuk. Vladimir's sister visited the grave. The pioneer squad of school No. 2 bore the name of Terletsky. The square on which Vladimir was buried was named after him,” N. Ya. Korneichuk wrote in his memoirs.
After the liberation of Temryuk in the fall of 1943, the 50th Guards Mortar Regiment was given the title "Temryuk". Therefore, it was decided to rebury Vladimir Terletsky on the square in Temryuk. A monument was erected. During the construction of the new school building No. 2, the soldier's grave was moved to the city's war memorial on the street. Buvin. The name of Vladimir Terletsky is a street in his native village of Pogrebishche in the Vinnitsa region. A square in Temryuk is named after him. A memorial plaque was installed on the facade of the building of school No. 2 in Temryuk. Not a single photograph of the Hero has been preserved, but the memory of his feat is alive.
At school number 2 the day before
On May 9, a meeting with veterans was held. Remember those who fought for the Victory. A minute of silence was observed in memory of the dead, Hero of the Soviet Union Vladimir Nikolaevich Terletsky.
The destinies of fraternal peoples are intertwined. Son of Vinnitsa Hero of the Soviet Union Vladimir Terletsky is buried in Temryuk. And Temryuchan Hero of the Soviet Union Ivan Bevz was buried in Vinnitsa, where he led the Soviet underground during the war years, was captured and shot by the Nazis. Our newspaper told about his fate.
They fought for their country.
We thank the staff of the Temryuk Historical and Archaeological Museum for providing materials about V. N. Terletsky.
Pupils of 9 "a" class of school No. 2 at the memorial plaque. Photo by Nelly Tyutyunik, TAMAN
Monument to V.N. Terletsky (right) on the square in Temryuk. Photo from the archives of the Temryuk Historical and Archaeological Museum.
Monument to the Hero at the Memorial of Military Glory in Temryuk. Photo "TAMAN"