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Yaroslav IosselianiSubmariner, captain 3rd rank, commander of 'M-111'
Date of Birth: 29.02.1912
Country:  Georgia |
Content:
Biography of Yaroslav Iosseliani
Yaroslav Iosseliani, born in 1912, was a submariner and a captain of the 3rd rank. He hailed from Upper Svaneti. His life journey began in Gagra, where he attended the School of Life in a children's home. It was here that he spoke his first words in Russian and received his secondary education. After that, he spent years studying at the Sukhumi Pedagogical Institute. In 1934, Iosseliani's Komsomol voucher led him to the M.V. Frunze Naval School.
Early Career
Iosseliani had to master the art of seamanship in Leningrad, in the north of Russia. On the fourth day of the war, he, as a recent graduate of the Higher Special Underwater Swimming Course, embarked on his first combat mission as the assistant commander of one of the submarines in the Black Sea Fleet. The submarine returned without completing its mission, solely due to the fault of its commander. He was cautious of shallow waters and did not allow the submarine to approach the coast, where German ships were likely hiding. Iosseliani, fearless and deeply affected by the failure, made a decision for himself: "If I become a commander myself, I will do everything possible to ensure that the efforts of the crew are not wasted due to my indecisiveness." He received his first submarine, the "M-111," in 1942, as a Captain of the 3rd rank.
Combat Missions
As a young commander, Iosseliani had to carry out missions in various areas of the Black Sea. In November 1942, the "M-111" participated in battles for the Caucasus. While assisting army corps in maintaining their defense, "M-111" and other submarines from the Black Sea Fleet controlled a vast area: from the Bosphorus along the western coast of the Black Sea to Constanta, spanning over 200 miles, and from Constanta to Odessa, covering 180 miles, and from Odessa to Anapa, covering 335 miles. Submariners had to operate in challenging conditions of shallow depths.
During the eleven months of 1943, the submarine "M-111" under the command of Yaroslav Iosseliani completed 11 combat missions, torpedoed 12 vessels, and sank two transports and a lighter with a total displacement of around 14,000 tons. After the victory, Hero of the Soviet Union Yaroslav Konstantinovich Iosseliani lived and worked in Tbilisi. He retired in 1966 with the rank of Captain of the 1st rank. Yaroslav Iosseliani passed away in 1978.
