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Yury BalichevMajor General
Date of Birth: 10.04.1924
Country:  Russia |
Content:
Early Life and Education
General-Major Yuri Nikolayevich Balychev was born on April 10, 1924, in the village of Khotynets, Oryol Oblast. His father, Nikolai Afanasyevich Balychev, was a mechanical engineer, and his mother, Anna Vasilyevna Balycheva, was a Russian language teacher.
In the late 1920s, the Balychevs moved to Orel, then to Orsk, and finally to Balashikha, a town just outside Moscow, where Yuri completed his schooling. During the years leading up to World War II, Balashikha's industrial infrastructure expanded rapidly, and Yuri took a keen interest in military affairs. He served as chief of staff in a school war game simulating combat against potential adversaries. This early experience in command may have foreshadowed his future military destiny.
World War II
In August 1942, Balychev was drafted into the Red Army and sent to the Sverdlovsk Military Infantry School. After graduating in March 1943, he was assigned as commander of a mortar platoon in the 724th Rifle Regiment of the 315th Rifle Division. He fought in fierce battles during the Soviet counteroffensive and the liberation of Donbas, the defeat of enemy forces at the Milk line, and the capture of Melitopol and Tauria as part of the Southern and 4th Ukrainian Fronts.
During preparations for an offensive on the Crimean isthmus, Balychev served as acting chief of staff of a battalion. In the early minutes of the attack, he was forced to replace the battalion chief of staff who had been killed. He led the advance against the Ishun fortified line and during the pursuit of enemy forces towards the Sevastopol defensive perimeter. He also participated in the liberation of the heroic city of Sevastopol, which was completed on May 9, 1944.
Post-War Service
After the liberation of Sevastopol, Balychev's division was held in reserve for reinforcements. With new personnel, the battalion staff resumed its duties in planning and controlling combat training and organizing daily military operations. Gradually, life in the army returned to normal, but this peaceful period was short-lived.
The Military Council of the Tauride Military District selected Balychev as one of over a hundred promising young officers to serve temporarily in local military administration offices in the Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, and Crimean regions. Balychev was appointed deputy military commissar of a district military office in Kherson Oblast.
His new duties were significantly different from his previous experience. He mastered conversational Ukrainian and focused on working with the civilian population, providing information about relatives missing in action and assistance with social welfare requests. In 1954, Balychev successfully graduated from the Frunze Military Academy and served in operational departments in the staff of the Ural and Volga-Urals Military Districts, the General Staff of the Armed Forces, and the Southern Group of Forces.
International Service and Retirement
In 1972, Balychev was seconded to the headquarters of the United Armed Forces of the Warsaw Pact member states. After graduating from advanced courses at the Military Academy of the General Staff, he held various positions in the Operational Department of the headquarters.
Balychev was awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, three Orders of the Red Star, the Order "For Service to the Motherland in the Armed Forces of the USSR," the Order of Friendship of Peoples, and numerous medals and foreign decorations. He retired in 1986 with the rank of General-Major.
After a period of adjustment to civilian life, Balychev became actively involved in veterans' organizations. From 1986 to 1992, he served as chairman of the district veterans' council. Currently, he is chairman of the Council of War Veterans, Labor Veterans, and Veterans of the Armed Forces and Law Enforcement Agencies in the South-Western Administrative District of Moscow. For his outstanding contributions to the development and strengthening of the veterans' movement, Balychev has received numerous awards from veteran organizations in the Soviet Union, Russia, and Moscow.
