 |
Pavel PavlovFighter pilot
Date of Birth: 16.11.1919
Country:  Estonia |
Content:
Biography of Pavel Pavlov
Pavel Pavlov was born on November 16, 1919, in the village of Ploskovo, now in the Borovichsky district of the Novgorod region, in a peasant family. He completed 7 grades of primary school and then went on to study at an aeroclub. In 1939, he joined the Naval Aviation of the Soviet Navy and a year later graduated from the Eisk Military Aviation School for Naval Pilots.
During the Great Patriotic War, Pavlov defended Leningrad and served as the commander of the 21st Fighter Aviation Regiment (8th Mine-Torpedo Aviation Division, Baltic Fleet Air Force). He flew a total of 557 combat missions and personally shot down 10 enemy aircraft and 3 more in group battles. For his courage and military valor demonstrated in battles against the enemy, he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union on July 22, 1944.
After the war, Pavlov continued to serve in the Navy and in 1956 he graduated from the Naval Academy. He was honored with orders of Lenin, the Red Banner (four times), and various medals for his achievements. Pavel Pavlov passed away in 1963.
The War Years
Pavel Pavlov served throughout the war in the 21st Fighter Aviation Regiment of the Baltic Fleet Air Force. He started as a regular pilot and ended as the commander of the 3rd squadron. Let's talk about some of the most interesting episodes of his combat activities.
On January 22, 1943, in an unequal aerial battle, Captain Pavel Pavlov was attacked by an enemy fighter. Instead of saving himself, he rushed to help his comrade who was also under attack. This brought triple luck: his comrade was saved, the enemy aircraft was shot down, and at the same time, Pavel managed to evade the attack. Another time, Captain Pavlov saved the leader of a group who was attacked by 4 enemy FW-190 fighters. By shooting down the German aircraft that was about to attack, Pavel gave the leader an opportunity to take a favorable position and defend against the remaining enemy fighters.
In another instance, leading a group of "Yaks", Captain Pavlov provided cover for our bombers. German fighters appeared, and it so happened that Captain Pavlov had to fight three Me-109s at once. He shot down one of them, and the others became more cautious. Our dive bombers were then able to bomb the area between the stations of Detskoye Selo and Antropshino. The bomber pilots later invited the leader of the "Yak" group to have a drink of 100 grams of alcohol as a gesture of gratitude.
The Gift of a Fresh Cucumber
At the front near Leningrad, in the Rzhevka area, three Messerschmitts were circling. The command center directed Captain Pavlov and another pilot to engage them. After the first attacks, Pavel noticed that only two German fighters were behaving actively, while the third one was avoiding the fight. Moreover, the others were protecting him. Captain Pavlov then attacked that specific aircraft, damaging it. The Messerschmitt started to descend rapidly and was about to crash. The German pilot managed to parachute out of the falling plane.
The captured German pilot turned out to be the head of reconnaissance for one of the enemy's aviation units. Just in case, he was flying in civilian clothes and had a substantial amount of Soviet money as a backup. However, neither the civilian clothes nor the money helped him. The Leningraders caught him when he landed on the outskirts of the city.
For this victory, the division commander sent a unique gift to the pilot - a fresh cucumber. But he warned his adjutant:
"Just don't mix up the Pavlovs. If Pavel Ivanovich accidentally eats the cucumber, I won't have anything left to treat Pavel Ilyich with."
The thing was, there were two Pavlovs in the 21st regiment with the same names but different patronymics. The regiment's commander was Pavel Pavlovich.
