Rear Admiral Vladimir Konstantinovich Konovalov, Владимир Константинович Коновалов ( – 29 November 1967) was a Soviet Navy distinguished

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

commander during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Born as Vulf Kalmanovich Konovalov in the village of Nadiyne (

Zaporizhzhia Oblast Zaporizhzhia Oblast ( uk, Запорі́зька о́бласть, translit=Zaporizka oblast), also referred to as Zaporizhzhia ( uk, Запорі́жжя, links=no), is an oblast (province) of southeast Ukraine. Its capital is Zaporizhzhia. The ...

, in what is now

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

), His family moved to Donetsk when he was a child. He studied at the

Donetsk National Technical University Donetsk National Technical University (DonNTU, formerly Donetsk Polytechnic Institute and other names) is the biggest and oldest higher education establishment in Donbas, founded in 1921. In its early years, it was attended by Nikita Khrushchev ...

. He joined the Soviet Navy in 1932 and graduated from the M. V. Frunze Higher Naval School in 1936. After graduation, he served on submarines in the

Black Sea Fleet Chernomorskiy flot , image = Great emblem of the Black Sea fleet.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Great emblem of the Black Sea fleet , dates = May 13, ...

. Beginning in October 1940 he transferred to the Baltic Fleet and was appointed second in command of the

Soviet submarine L-3 The World War II Soviet submarine ''L-3'' belonged to the L-class or ''Leninets'' class of minelayer submarines. It had been named ''Bolshevik'' and later ''Frunzenets'', before it was decided that submarines should stop having names and carry num ...

, and he was named her commander in March 1943. The L-3 was a

minelayer A minelayer is any warship, submarine or military aircraft deploying explosive mines. Since World War I the term "minelayer" refers specifically to a naval ship used for deploying naval mines. "Mine planting" was the term for installing controll ...

submarine, but it was also engaged in offensive operations against German shipping during

, ultimately making 11 torpedo attacks under Konovalov's command. On April 16, 1945, Konovalov sank the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

ship ''

Goya Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; ; 30 March 174616 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker. He is considered the most important Spanish artist of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His paintings, drawings, and ...

'', carrying civilians and military personnel fleeing from the Eastern Front. At least 6,000 people drowned, with only 165 people saved. It was one of the worst maritime disasters ever. According to some versions, the L-3 also might have sunk a small 1411 GRT ship on January 31, 1945, but it is not confirmed. Konovalov's submarine also laid five

mine Mine, mines, miners or mining may refer to: Extraction or digging * Miner, a person engaged in mining or digging *Mining, extraction of mineral resources from the ground through a mine Grammar *Mine, a first-person English possessive pronoun ...

barrages of 52 mines during the war, one of which sunk a ship ''Henry Lütgens'' measuring 1141 GRT on January 29, 1945. A torpedo boat T34 was also possibly sunk on mines laid by the L-3, on November 20, 1944. He was awarded the honorary title of

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union (russian: Герой Советского Союза, translit=Geroy Sovietskogo Soyuza) was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for ...

for an exemplary wartime record on July 8, 1945. From May 1946 to November 1947, he commanded the N-27 (formerly the German Type XXI U-Boat ''U-3515''). In 1950, he graduated from the Voroshilov staff college and from 1958 commanded the submarine brigade of the Baltic Fleet. He was made a

rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

on May 7, 1966, but died of a stroke in

Leningrad Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

the following year. Over the course of his career, Konovalov was awarded the

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration b ...

(three times), the

Order of Ushakov The Order of Ushakov (russian: орден Ушакова) is a military decoration of the Russian Federation named in honour of admiral Fyodor Ushakov (1744–1817) who never lost a battle and was proclaimed patron saint of the Russian Navy. ...

2nd class, the

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 (twice), and the

Order of the Red Star The Order of the Red Star (russian: Орден Красной Звезды, Orden Krasnoy Zvezdy) was a military decoration of the Soviet Union. It was established by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 6 April 193 ...

(twice). In the book and subsequent film ''

The Hunt for Red October ''The Hunt for Red October'' is the debut novel by American author Tom Clancy, first published on October 1, 1984, by the Naval Institute Press. It depicts Soviet submarine captain Marko Ramius as he seemingly goes rogue with his country's cutt ...

'', the fictional Soviet Alfa class

nuclear-powered Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced b ...

attack submarine is named the ''V.K. Konovalov''.

Honours and awards

* Three

Orders of Lenin The Order of Lenin (russian: Орден Ленина, Orden Lenina, ), named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration b ...

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

, twice *

, 2nd class *

, 1st class *

Medal "For the Defence of Leningrad" The Medal "For the Defence of Leningrad" (russian: Медаль «За оборону Ленинграда») was a World War II campaign medal of the Soviet Union established on December 22, 1942 by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Sovie ...

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 ...

Jubilee Medal "Twenty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941-1945" A jubilee is a particular anniversary of an event, usually denoting the 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and the 70th anniversary. The term is often now used to denote the celebrations associated with the reign of a monarch after a milestone number of ...

Jubilee Medal "30 Years of the Soviet Army and Navy" The Jubilee Medal "30 Years of the Soviet Army and Navy" (russian: Юбилейная медаль «30 лет Советской Армии и Флота») was a state military commemorative medal of the Soviet Union established on February 22 ...

Jubilee Medal "40 Years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" The Jubilee Medal "40 Years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" (russian: Юбилейная медаль «40 лет Вооружённых Сил СССР») was a state military commemorative medal of the Soviet Union established on December 18, ...

References

* Mark Shteinberg, "Evrei v voinakh tysiachiletii." Moscow, Jerusalem:

Gesharim Gesharim / Bridging Cultures is a Russian publishing house established in the 1990s which publishes books on Jewish topics in Russian language. It is linked with two associations "Gishrey Tarbut" (in Israel) and "The Bridges of Culture" (in Russia) ...

, 2005, p. 302.
Biography in Russian
at

Yad Vashem Yad Vashem ( he, יָד וַשֵׁם; literally, "a memorial and a name") is Israel's official memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. It is dedicated to preserving the memory of the Jews who were murdered; honoring Jews who fought against th ...

website {{DEFAULTSORT:Konovalov, Vladimir 1911 births 1967 deaths Jews from the Russian Empire Heroes of the Soviet Union People from Zaporizhzhia Oblast Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Star Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Recipients of the Order of Ushakov, 2nd class Soviet admirals Soviet Jews Soviet Jews in the military Soviet military personnel of World War II Soviet submarine commanders Ukrainian Jews N. G. Kuznetsov Naval Academy alumni Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union alumni