Georgy Filippovich Baydukov (russian: Гео́ргий Фили́ппович Байдуко́в; – 28 December 1994) was a Soviet test pilot, Hero of the Soviet Union (1936), writer and hunter.

Early years

Baydukov was born at the Taryshta railway station in the

Tomsk Governorate Tomsk Governorate (russian: Томская губерния) was an administrative division (a '' guberniya'') of the Russian Empire, Russian Republic, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic located in Siberia from 1804 to 1925 as part of t ...

of the Russian Empire (now Novosibirsk Oblast, Russia)Байдуков Георгий Филиппович // Большая Российская Энциклопедия / редколл., гл. ред. Ю. С. Осипов. том 2. М., научное издательство "Большая Российская Энциклопедия", 2005. in family of a railway worker.Байдуков Георгий Филиппович // Советская военная энциклопедия / ред. А. А. Гречко. том 1. М., Воениздат, 1976. стр.367Байдуков Георгий Филиппович // Герои Советского Союза: краткий биографический справочник (в 2-х тт.) / редколл., гл. ред. И. Н. Шкадов. том 1. М., Воениздат, 1987. стр.106 He became an orphan at the age of 9 and was homeless for some time. Baydukov was taken to an orphanage and worked in railway construction for some time. In March 1926 he enlisted in the Red Army as a volunteer. In 1926 he graduated from the Leningrad Air Force School. In 1928 he graduated from the Kacha school for military pilotsА. Горохов. Георгий Байдуков: "Хотел бы слетать через полюс" // газета "Правда", № 146 (25133) от 26 мая 1987. стр.6 and served as a fighter pilot from 1928 to 1931.

Test pilot

Georgy Baydukov was transferred to the Air Force's Testing institute and became an aircraft test pilot in 1931. He tested a number of fighter planes from 1931 to 1934 and was instrumental in developing instrument flight rules for the Soviet Air Force.

Ultra-long distance flights

Georgy Baydukov became a student at the Air Force Academy in 1934. During that time, he became involved with a number of ultra-long-distance flights conducted by the Soviet Union. He tried to reach San Francisco flying from Moscow via the North Pole in August 1935 as a member of Levanevsky's crew, flying the ANT-25. The flight was terminated because of technical problems.полковник В. Пинчук. Через полюс - в Америку // газета " Красная звезда" от 26 мая 1986. стр.4 �нтервью с Г. Ф. Байдуковым/ref> Baydukov continued to participate in the testing of the ANT-25 from 1935 to 1936. He was a member of the Communist Party from 1936.Байдуков Георг. Фил. (р. 1907) // Большой энциклопедический словарь (в 2-х тт.). / редколл., гл. ред. А. М. Прохоров. том 1. М., "Советская энциклопедия", 1991. стр.97 Valery Chkalov, Georgy Baydukov and Alexander Belyakov flew an improved ANT-25 via the North Pole to Udd Island, in the

Sea of Okhotsk The Sea of Okhotsk ( rus, Охо́тское мо́ре, Ohótskoye móre ; ja, オホーツク海, Ohōtsuku-kai) is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean. It is located between Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula on the east, the Kuril Islands ...

(distance 9,374 km, flight time 56 h 20 min) from July 20, 1936, to July 22, 1936. Georgy Baydukov was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for this deed on July 24, 1936. The same crew an ANT-25 from Moscow to Vancouver, Washington via the North Pole from June 18, 1937, to June 20, 1937 (distance 8,504 km). Georgy Baydukov resumed his work as a test pilot in 1937. He tested

PE-2 The Petlyakov Pe-2 (russian: Петляков Пе-2) was a Soviet Union, Soviet twin-engine dive bomber used during World War II. One of the outstanding tactical attack aircraft of the war,Ethell 1996, p. 152. it also proved successful as a heav ...

and SB bombers, and also participated in tests of the DB-A bomber.

During the Second World War

In 1939–1940, Baydukov participated in the Soviet-Finnish War. He served in 85th Bomber Regiment. In August 1941, Baydukov was sent to meet with US president Franklin D. Roosevelt to secure the purchase of warplanes. He managed to arrange the sale of several P-39 Airacobra fighter planes to the Soviet Union. He returned to the front lines in January 1942. Baydukov served as deputy commander of the

31st Mixed Aviation Division 31 (thirty-one) is the natural number following 30 and preceding 32. It is a prime number. In mathematics 31 is the 11th prime number. It is a superprime and a self prime (after 3, 5, and 7), as no integer added up to its base 10 digits ...

from December 1941. In February, he became commander of the Division. In March 1942, he became commander of the Air Force of the

4th Shock Army The 4th Shock Army was a combined arms army of the Soviet Armed Forces during World War II. The Army was formed from the 27th Army on 25 December 1941 (1st formation) within the Northwestern Front. On 1 October 1942 it included the 249th, 332 ...

. In May 1942, Baydukov was appointed commander of the 211th Mixed Aviation Division. In June 1942, he became commander of the 212th Assault Aviation Division. In May 1943, the Division became the

4th Guards Assault Aviation Division. Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

In January 1944, Baydukov became commander of the 4th Assault Aviation Corps.

Post-War years

In December 1945, Baydukov became deputy commander of the

13th Air Army The 76th Air Army was a unit of the Soviet Air Forces from 1949–1980, and again from 1988–98. As the 13th Air Army, it was originally formed on 25 November 1942 and based on air units of the Leningrad Front. 13th Air Army's initial components ...

. In July 1946, he became deputy head of the State Red Banner Air Force Research and Testing Institute for flight testing. Baydukov participated in the Tupolev Tu-70 tests in fall 1947. From December 1947 until December 1949, he was a head of the Main Department of the

Civil Air Fleet PJSC AeroflotRussian Airlines (russian: ПАО "Аэрофло́т — Росси́йские авиали́нии", ), commonly known as Aeroflot ( or ; russian: Аэрофлот, , ), is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Russia. The ...

(GVF). In September 1949, Baydukov entered the Higher Military Academy, graduating in December 1951. Baydukov was a colonel-general of aviation from May 1961. In the 1980s, he was a consultant of the Ministry of Defense. Georgy Baydukov served with the Soviet Air Force in various capacities until May 1988, when he retired with the rank of

Colonel General Colonel general is a three- or four-star military rank used in some armies. It is particularly associated with Germany, where historically general officer ranks were one grade lower than in the Commonwealth and the United States, and was a ra ...

Honours and awards

USSR

* Hero of the Soviet Union (July 1936) * Two Orders of Lenin (July 1936, November 1950) * Order of the October Revolution (December 1972) * Four

Orders of the Red Banner The Order of the Red Banner (russian: Орден Красного Знамени, Orden Krasnogo Znameni) was the first Soviet Union, Soviet military decoration. The Order was established on 16 September 1918, during the Russian Civil War b ...

* Order of Kutuzov 1st class (May 1945) * Two Orders of Suvorov 2nd class (1944, 1944) * Order of Kutuzov 2nd class (April 1945) *

Order of the Patriotic War The Order of the Patriotic War (russian: Орден Отечественной войны, Orden Otechestvennoy voiny) is a Soviet military decoration that was awarded to all soldiers in the Soviet armed forces, security troops, and to partisan ...

1st class *

2nd class * Order of the Red Banner of Labour (May 1977) * Four Orders of the Red Star * Order for Service to the Homeland 1st, 2nd, and 3rd class * campaign and jubilee medals :*

Medal "For the Capture of Königsberg" The Medal "For the Capture of Königsberg" (russian: Медаль «За взятие Кёнигсберга») was a World War II campaign medal of the Soviet Union established on June 9, 1945 by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of t ...

Medal "For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" The Medal "For the Victory Over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" (russian: Медаль «За победу над Германией в Великой Отечественной войне 1941—1945 гг.») was a military de ...

:* Medal "Veteran of the Armed Forces of the USSR" * USSR State Prize (1970) * honorary citizen of Nikolayevsk-on-Amur (since August 1981)

Russian Federation

* Order of Friendship (April 1994)

Foreign awards

Officer of the Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

(USA) *

Army Distinguished Service Medal The Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a military decoration of the United States Army that is presented to soldiers who have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious service to the government in a duty of great responsibility. Th ...

(USA) * Distinguished Flying Cross (USA) * Medal for Odra, Nisso and the Baltic (Poland) * Medal for Warsaw (Poland) * Order of the Grunwald Cross 2nd class ( Polish People's Republic, 1946) * Order of Polonia Restituta 2nd and 3rd classes (Poland) * Order of Sukhbaatar (Mongolia) *

Order of the Red Banner (Mongolia) The Order of the Red Banner ( mn, «Цэргийн гавьяаны улаан туг» одон) is a military decoration of Mongolia, originally established as the "Order for Military Merit" of the People's Republic of Mongolia. The medal has be ...

* Czechoslovak War Cross (Czechoslovakia) * Order of the White Lion 1st class (Czechoslovakia) * Order of the White Lion 1st class For Victory

References

External links