Gagarin Air Force Academy () is a Russian military aviation academy located in Monino,

Moscow Oblast Moscow Oblast ( rus, Моско́вская о́бласть, r=Moskovskaya oblast', p=mɐˈskofskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ), or Podmoskovye ( rus, Подмоско́вье, p=pədmɐˈskovʲjə, literally " under Moscow"), is a federal subject of R ...

. The academy prepares high-ranking military personnel for the

Russian Air Force "Air March" , mascot = , anniversaries = 12 August , equipment = , equipment_label = , battles = , decorations = , batt ...

. Among the academy alumni are around 700

Heroes 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 ...

(highest award in the USSR), more than 10

cosmonauts An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally ...

, and over 2000 military specialists from 21 foreign countries. The schools provides regiment and division-level commanding officers to fill commanding, staff, navigation, logistics, communications and radar-support positions.''Top-level school for military flyers'' Vladimir Vasyutin, ''Military Parade'' Volume 18
Alternative academy names in the English-language literature include Yuri Gagarin Military Air Academy and Yuri Gagarin Air Force Academy. In conversational speech often simply referred to as Gagarin Academy or Monino Academy. By late 2008, this academy and the N. Zhukovsky Aviation Engineering Academy both merged to become the Gagarin-Zhukovsky Military Combined Air Force Academy, but it still retained its Monino campus. Later in 2011 the Monino campus was closed.

History

The academy was founded in 1940. It was named Air Force Academy in 1946. In 1968 it was named after

Yuri Gagarin Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin; Gagarin's first name is sometimes transliterated as ''Yuriy'', ''Youri'', or ''Yury''. (9 March 1934 – 27 March 1968) was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut who became the first human to journey into outer space. T ...

(). In Soviet times, only the officers with a primary military education (летное училище- flight school) and holding the position of major could study at the academy. The collection of the serial and experimental Soviet aircrafts (air force museum) served as a base for the studying by cadets of the academy. According to tradition, after the end of active military service as teachers of the academy, the officers became the guides in the museum. In 2008, Gagarin Air Force Academy was amalgamated with the

Zhukovsky Air Force Engineering Academy Zhukovsky Air Force Engineering Academy () – is a higher military educational institution for training and retraining of engineers for the Russian Air Force. The academy trains specialists – engineers, research engineers in the following sp ...

(russian: Военно-воздушная инженерная академия имени профессора Н.Е. Жуковского).РАСПОРЯЖЕНИЕ Правительства РФ от 07.03.2008 N 283-р
(Russian Government Directive). The new academy was titled " Zhukovsky – Gagarin Air Force Academy" – a federal government military educational institution of higher education run by the Russian Ministry of Defence. Since 2010 the full name is Russian Air Force Military Educational and Scientific Center "Air Force Academy named after Professor N.E. Zhukovsky and Y.A. Gagarin". For the latest history of the academy see the article on Zhukovsky – Gagarin Air Force Academy

Leadership (Superintendent – commander and senior officer)

* 1940 – * 1940-1941 – * 1942 –

Fyodor Astakhov Fyodor Alekseyevich Astakhov (russian: Фёдор Алексеевич Астахов; 9 October 1966) was a Soviet Marshal of Aviation. From the start of the German-Soviet War, he commanded the Air Force of the Soviet Southwestern Front. The ...

* 1941–1942 – * 1942–1944 – * 1944–1946 – * 1946–1950 – Fedor Falaleyev * 1950–1956 – * 1956–1968 – Stepan Krasovsky * 1968–1973 –

Sergei Rudenko Sergei Ivanovich Rudenko (russian: Серге́й Ива́нович Руде́нко; January 16, 1885, Kharkov - July 16, 1969, Leningrad) was a prominent Soviet anthropologist and archaeologist who discovered and excavated the most celebrated ...

* 1973–1988 – Nikolai Skomorokhov

Notable faculty

* – professor, Major-General retired. *

Ivan Timokhovich Ivan Vasilievich Timokhovich (russian: Иван Васильевич Тимохович; 23 May 1922 – 13 May 1994) was a Russian military historian, Doctor of Historical Sciences, professor, Honored Scientist of Russia, Associate Member o ...

– Doctor of Historical Sciences, professor, Major-General of aviation.

Notable alumni

Vladimir Aleksenko Vladimir Avramovich Aleksenko (russian: Владимир Аврамович Алексенко; 27 January 1923 – 16 June 1995) was a ground-attack aviation squadron and regimental commander during World War II who was twice awarded the title ...

– Twice

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 ...

Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

. * Vasily Andrianov – Twice Hero of the Soviet Union,

Major-General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

. *

Leonid Beda Leonid Ignatyevich Beda (russian: Леони́д Игна́тьевич Беда́; 16 August 1920 – 26 December 1976) was a ground-attack squadron commander in the Soviet Air Forces during the Second World War who went on to become a Lieutenan ...

– Twice Hero of the Soviet Union, Honored Military Pilot of the USSR (1971), Lieutenant-General of aviation (1972). * Georgy Beregovoy – Pilot-Cosmonaut of the USSR, twice Hero of the Soviet Union. * Mikhail Bondarenko – Twice Hero of the Soviet Union *

Viktor Bondarev Viktor Nikolaevich Bondarev (russian: Виктор Николаевич Бондарев; born 7 December 1959) is a Colonel General and former Commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces (1 August 2015 – 26 September 2017), and the former Comm ...

– Commander in Chief, Russian Federation Air Force (2011), Colonel-General. Hero of the Russian Federation. * Andrei Borovykh – Hero of the Soviet Union awarded twice, Colonel-General of aviation, Commander of the Aviation of the Air Defense Forces of the USSR (1969–1977). * Rafael del Pino – Deputy Chief of the

Cuban Air and Air Defense Force The Cuban Revolutionary Air and Air Defense Force ( es, Defensa Anti-Aérea y Fuerza Aérea Revolucionaria) commonly abbreviated to DAAFAR in both Spanish and English, is the air force of Cuba. History Background The Cuban Army Air Force was ...

* Pavel Galkin - Hero of the Soviet Union *

Aleksei Gubarev Aleksei Aleksandrovich Gubarev (russian: Алексе́й Алекса́ндрович Гу́барев; 29 March 1931 – 21 February 2015) was a Soviet cosmonaut who flew on two space flights: Soyuz 17 and Soyuz 28. Biography Gubarev gr ...

– Pilot-Cosmonaut of the USSR, twice Hero of the Soviet Union Major-General. *

Sigmund Jähn Sigmund Werner Paul Jähn (; 13 February 1937 – 21 September 2019) was a German cosmonaut and pilot who in 1978 became the first German to fly into space as part of the Soviet Union's Interkosmos programme. Early life Jähn was born on 13 Fe ...

– East German cosmonaut * Mikhail Karpeyev - Hero of the Soviet Union * Ivan Kozhedub – World War II ace-pilot, shoot down highest number of enemy aircraft (64) among pilots of Soviet forces. Thrice Hero of the Soviet Union; Marshal of Aviation (1985). *

Anatoly Nedbaylo Anatoly Konstantinovich Nedbaylo (russian: Анатолий Константинович Недбайло; 28 January 1923 13 May 2008) was an Il-2 pilot in the 75th Guards Assault Aviation Regiment of the Soviet Air Forces during the Second Worl ...

– Twice Hero of the Soviet Union, Deputy Superintendent of the Kiev Higher Air Force Engineering Academy (1968–1983), Major-General of aviation. * Ivan Vorobyov – Twice Hero of the Soviet Union *

Alexander Yefimov 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 from 1984 to 1990. Earlier in ...

– Commander in Chief Air Force and Deputy Minister of Defense of the USSR (1984–1990);

Marshal of Aviation Marshal of the branch (or "marshal of the branch of service"; russian: Ма́ршал ро́да во́йск, Marshal roda voysk) was from 1943 to 1974 the designation to a separate rank class in the general officer's rank group of the form ...

(1975), Honored Military Pilot of the USSR (1970), Doctor of Military Sciences, professor. *

Alexander Zelin Alexander Nikolayevich Zelin (russian: Александр Николаевич Зелин; born 6 May 1953) served as Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Air Force from 9 May 2007 until 27 April 2012. Zelin holds the Air Force rank of colonel-ge ...

– Commander in Chief, Russian Federation Air Force (2007), Colonel-General.

References

Герои Советского Союза, окончившие ВВА имени Ю. А. Гагарина (A list of the academy alumni – Heroes of the Soviet Union)
{{Coord, 55, 50, 34, N, 38, 10, 53, E, region:RU-MOS_type:landmark_source:kolossus-dewiki, display=title Air force academies Military academies of Russia Military education and training in Russia Soviet Air Forces education and training Military units and formations awarded the Order of the Red Banner Monuments and memorials to Yuri Gagarin

History

Leadership (Superintendent – commander and senior officer)

Notable faculty

Notable alumni

See also

References