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Aleksandr ShevtsovNavigator of the 171st Fighter Aviation Regiment
Date of Birth: 17.10.1918
Country:  Ukraine |
Content:
Biography of Alexander Shevtsov
Alexander Grigorievich Shevtsov was born on October 17, 1918, in the village of Shebekino, now in the Belgorod region of Russia. He came from a family of civil servants. Shevtsov completed his education by finishing 10 years of secondary school.
In 1937, Shevtsov was drafted into the ranks of the Red Army. In 1940, he graduated from the Chuguev Military Aviation School for Pilots. He took part in the Great Patriotic War, starting from June 1941, and in 1943, he participated in the Battle of Kursk. Later, he served on the 2nd Baltic Front. By August 1943, Shevtsov, as a captain, became a navigator of the 171st Fighter Aviation Regiment (315th Fighter Aviation Division, 15th Air Army, Bryansk Front). During his service, Shevtsov completed 220 combat missions, engaged in 47 aerial battles, personally shot down 10 enemy aircraft, and 6 as part of a group.
On September 8, 1943, for his courage and bravery demonstrated in battles against the enemy, he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
By the end of the war, Shevtsov had completed nearly 300 successful combat missions, personally destroying 15 enemy aircraft in aerial battles. After the war, Alexander Grigorievich continued his service in the Air Force. In 1949, he graduated from the M.V. Frunze Military Academy. In 1951, he commanded a fighter aviation division in North Korea. In 1956, he graduated from the General Staff Academy and later became the Chief of the General Staff and the First Deputy Commander of the Strategic Missile Forces.
Shevtsov was elected as a Deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR (5th convocation) and the Ukrainian SSR (6th convocation). Since 1976, he held the rank of Air Force Colonel General in reserve. He lived in Moscow. Shevtsov was awarded orders of Lenin (three times), the Red Banner (four times), Alexander Nevsky, the Patriotic War 1st Class (twice), the Red Star (twice), "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" 3rd Class, various medals, and a foreign order.
