Alexander Yefimov
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Aleksandr Nikolaevich Yefimov (russian: Александр Николаевич Ефимов; 6 February 1923 – 31 August 2012) was a senior military officer who served as Commander-in-Chief of the
Soviet Air Force The Soviet Air Forces ( rus, Военно-воздушные силы, r=Voyenno-vozdushnyye sily, VVS; literally "Military Air Forces") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Soviet Air Defence Forces. The Air Forces ...
from 1984 to 1990. Earlier in his life, he had been an Il-2 pilot for which he was twice awarded the title
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 ...
.


Early life

Yefimov was born on 6 February 1923 to a working-class family of Russian
Don Cossacks Don Cossacks (russian: Донские казаки, Donskie kazaki) or Donians (russian: донцы, dontsy) are Cossacks who settled along the middle and lower Don. Historically, they lived within the former Don Cossack Host (russian: До ...
in
Kantemirovka Kantemirovka (russian: Кантемировка; earlier Konstantinovka, russian: Константиновка) is an urban locality (an urban-type settlement) in Kantemirovsky District of Voronezh Oblast, Russia. Population: Founded in 18 cent ...
; his father was a railway worker. He spent most of his childhood in Millerovo, where he completed his tenth grade of school in 1940. There he developed a passion for aviation, joining the local Osoaviakhim glider school, where he made his first flight on 18 August 1938. He then went on to graduate from the Voroshilovgrad aeroclub in May 1941 and entered the military that month. After graduating from the Voroshilovgrad Military Aviation School of Pilots in June 1942 he was assigned as a pilot to the 10th Reserve Aviation Regiment, based in Kamenka.


World War II

Having been deployed to the warfront in August 1942, he flew as a pilot in the 594th Assault Aviation Regiment until being transferred to 198th Assault Regiment in November. There he rose up through the ranks from being an ordinary pilot to flight commander, deputy squadron commander, and eventually squadron commander. In June 1944 he was nominated for the title Hero of the Soviet Union for having flown 100 sorties, and was awarded it on 26 October 1944. His actions during an attack on Danzig airfield on 25 March 1945 were described by Marshal
Fedor Falaleyev Fedor Yakovlevich Falaleyev (russian: Фёдор Я́ковлевич Фалале́ев; May 19, 1899 - August 12, 1955) was a Soviet Marshal of the aviation. Early life Falaleyev was born on 31 May 1899 in Mozhginsky District, Polyanskoye, Vyat ...
in a book of essays praising pilots published by a military academy after the war. In that mission, he led a group of 16 Il-2 in attacking a hangar, resulting in the destruction of 14 enemy aircraft. Two days later he completed his two-hundredth sortie; in that flight he led a group of eight Il-2s in taking out three tanks, four anti-tank guns, two mortars, and killing dozens of enemy personnel. On 6 April 1945 he was nominated for a second gold star for having tallied 200 sorties. By then he had transferred to the 62nd Assault Aviation Regiment as head navigator, but he continued to fly in combat, flying his later sortie on 5 May 1945 over Świnoujście, for a final tally of 222 sorties. After the war he was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union for a second time on 18 August 1945.


Postwar

Yefimov remained posted in the 62nd Regiment until July 1946, but after graduating from the Monino Air Force Academy in 1951 he took command of the 167th Guards Assault Aviation Regiment. In 1954, he was promoted to deputy commander of the 10th Guards Assault Aviation Training Division, but he did not remain there for very long since he graduated from the Military Academy of General Staff in 1957 and then became commander of the 339th Fighter-bomber Aviation Division. In 1958, he switched to command of the 6th Guards Bomber Aviation Division, where he remained until October 1959. He then became the deputy commander for combat training of the 30th Air Army; there, he was promoted to general major in 1960 and later became the deputy commander of the unit. Upon leaving the 30th Air Army in 1964 he took command of the 57th Air Army, and the next year he was promoted to lieutenant-general. In February 1969 he was promoted to colonel-general, and the next month he was made deputy commander-in-chief of the air force; he was eventually promoted to the rank of marshal in 1975. During those two decades he made multiple trips to Egypt and Syria due to the Arab-Israeli conflicts. During his travels he befriended then-aviator Hosni Mubarak, who later became the president of Egypt. After Marshal
Pavel Kutakhov Pavel Stepanovich Kutakhov CBE (; – 3 December 1984) was a flying ace during World War II who went on to become Commander-in-Chief of the Soviet Air Forces between 1969 and 1984. During his career he held a variety of commands and visited seve ...
died in 1984, Yefimov took over as commander of the air force. At that time the Soviet Union was involved in the fighting against Islamist guerrillas, so during his tenure he supported the development of the Su-25 as a solution to the different nature of the war. Shortly before the end of his tenure in 1990 the air force reached its height of power, amassing over 13,000 planes and 6,000 helicopters. Afterwards he was the chairman of the state commission of the use of airspace and air traffic control before he retired in August 1993. During his career he flew the Il-2, Il-10, Il-14, Il-28,
Li-2 The Lisunov Li-2 (NATO reporting name: Cab), originally designated PS-84, was a license-built Soviet-version of the Douglas DC-3. It was produced by Factory #84 in Moscow-Khimki and, after evacuation in 1941, at TAPO in Tashkent. The proje ...
, Mi-1, Mi-4,
MiG-15 The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 (russian: Микоя́н и Гуре́вич МиГ-15; USAF/DoD designation: Type 14; NATO reporting name: Fagot) is a jet fighter aircraft developed by Mikoyan-Gurevich for the Soviet Union. The MiG-15 was one of ...
,
MiG-17 The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 (russian: Микоян и Гуревич МиГ-17; NATO reporting name: Fresco) is a high-subsonic fighter aircraft produced in the Soviet Union from 1952 and was operated by air forces internationally. The MiG-17 w ...
,
MiG-21 The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 (russian: Микоян и Гуревич МиГ-21; NATO reporting name: Fishbed) is a supersonic jet fighter and interceptor aircraft, designed by the Mikoyan-Gurevich Design Bureau in the Soviet Union. Its nickna ...
,
Tu-104 The Tupolev Tu-104 ( NATO reporting name: Camel) is a retired twinjet, medium-range, narrow-body turbojet The turbojet is an airbreathing jet engine which is typically used in aircraft. It consists of a gas turbine with a propelling noz ...
, and
Tu-124 The Tupolev Tu-124 (NATO reporting name: Cookpot) was a 56-passenger short-range twinjet airliner built in the Soviet Union. It was the first Soviet airliner powered by turbofan engines. Design and development Developed from the medium-range ...
, accumulating over 3000 flight hours. Before the dissolution of the Soviet Union he was also active in politics; as a member of the Communist party, he was a deputy in the Supreme Soviet of the USSR and several SSRs. While retired he remained socially active, participating in a variety of veterans organizations and serving in the civil chamber of Russia from 2006 to 2010. He died in Moscow on 31 August 2012 and was buried in the
Novodevichy cemetery Novodevichy Cemetery ( rus, Новоде́вичье кла́дбище, Novodevichye kladbishche) is a cemetery in Moscow. It lies next to the southern wall of the 16th-century Novodevichy Convent, which is the city's third most popular tourist ...
.


Awards and honors

;Soviet * Twice Hero of the Soviet Union (26 October 1944 and 18 August 1945) *
Honoured Military Pilot of the USSR The Honorary Title "Honoured Military Pilot of the USSR" (russian: Заслуженный военный лётчик СССР) was a state military award of the Soviet Union established on January 26, 1965, by Decree of the Presidium of the Supr ...
(17 August 1970) *
USSR State Prize The USSR State Prize (russian: links=no, Государственная премия СССР, Gosudarstvennaya premiya SSSR) was the Soviet Union's state honor. It was established on 9 September 1966. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, t ...
(3 November 1984) * Three
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 ...
(26 October 1944 and 31 October 1967, and 4 September 1981) *
Order of the October Revolution The Order of the October Revolution (russian: Орден Октябрьской Революции, ''Orden Oktyabr'skoy Revolyutsii'') was instituted on October 31, 1967, in time for the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution. It was conferr ...
(19 February 1988) * Five
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 ...
(29 May 1943, 21 February 1944, 24 October 1944, 21 February 1969, 5 February 1973) *
Order of Alexander Nevsky The Order of Alexander Nevsky ( ''orden Alexandra Nevskogo'') is an order of merit of the Russian Federation named in honour of saint Alexander Nevsky (1220–1263) and bestowed to civil servants for twenty years or more of highly meritorious se ...
(1 August 1944) * Two
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 (5 November 1943 and 11 March 1985) *
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 ...
(30 December 1956) *
Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" The Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" (russian: Орден «За службу Родине в Вооружённых Силах СССР»), also known as the Order "For Service to the Motherland in the Armed For ...
3rd class (17 February 1976) ; Other states * Poland -
Order of the Cross of Grunwald The Order of the Cross of Grunwald (') was a military decoration created in Poland in November 1943 by the High Command of Gwardia Ludowa, a Polish resistance movement in World War II, World War II Polish resistance movement organised by the Polis ...
(6 April 1946) * Poland -
Order of Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta ( pl, Order Odrodzenia Polski, en, Order of Restored Poland) is a Polish state decoration, state Order (decoration), order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on al ...
(6 October 1973) * Poland -
Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland The Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Order Zasługi Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej) is a Polish order of merit created in 1974, awarded to persons who have rendered great service to Poland. It is granted to foreigners or Poles resident ab ...
(27 March 1985) * Mongolia -
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 ...
(6 July 1971) * Peru - Order of Aeronautical Merit (November 1972) * Bulgaria - Order of 9 September 1944 (14 September 1974) * Bulgaria -
Order of Georgi Dimitrov The Order of Georgi Dimitrov (or Order of Georgy Dimitrov, bg, Орден Георги Димитров) was the highest award of the People's Republic of Bulgaria. It was instituted on 17 June 1950 and awarded to Bulgarians and foreigners for out ...
(22 January 1985) * Syria - Order of Friendship and Cooperation (15 May 1988) * Russia -
Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" The Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" (russian: Орден «За заслуги перед Отечеством», ''Orden "Za zaslugi pered Otechestvom"'') is a state decoration of the Russian Federation. It was instituted on 2 March 1994 by P ...
2nd, 3rd, and 4th class (4th class - 16 January 1998; 3rd class - 6 February 2003; 2nd class - 1 February 2008) * Russia - Order of Courage (12 July 2000)


References


Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yefimov, Alexander 1923 births 2012 deaths Members of the Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation Soviet Air Force marshals Heroes of the Soviet Union Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Commanders of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland Knights of the Order of Polonia Restituta Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union alumni People from Voronezh Governorate Soviet military personnel of World War II Recipients of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 4th class Recipients of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 3rd class Recipients of the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland", 2nd class Recipients of the Order of Courage Recipients of the Order of Alexander Nevsky Recipients of the Order of the Red Star Recipients of the Medal of Zhukov Recipients of the Medal "For Distinction in Guarding the State Border of the USSR" Recipients of the Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR", 3rd class Recipients of the USSR State Prize Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Grunwald, 2nd class Recipients of the Cross of Valour (Poland) Communist Party of the Soviet Union members