Anatoly Konstantinovich Serov (; 11 May 1939) was a Soviet fighter pilot credited with becoming a flying ace during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

Early life

Serov was born on in the mining town of Vysokoe. After moving to the city of Bogoslovsk in 1918 he went on to complete his fourth grade of school in 1923. He then went on to live in Turyinsky before moving to Nadezhdinsk, where he worked as a steelworker and graduated from factory apprenticeship school in 1929.

Aviation career

Almost a year after entering the Red Army in July 1929, Serov graduated from the Volskaya Theoretical School of Pilots and Aviation Technicians in June 1930, going on to attend the Orenburg Military Aviation School of Pilots, which he graduated from in December 1931. He was then assigned to the 1st Fighter Squadron in city of Krasnogvardisk in the

Leningrad Military District The Order of Lenin Leningrad Military District () is a military district of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. The district was awarded the Order of Lenin in 1968. In 2010, it was merged with the Moscow Military District, the Northern ...

, and from August 1933 to October 1935 he served with the 20th Fighter Squadron in

Khabarovsk Khabarovsk ( ) is the largest city and the administrative centre of Khabarovsk Krai, Russia,Law #109 located from the China–Russia border, at the confluence of the Amur and Ussuri Rivers, about north of Vladivostok. As of the 2021 Russian c ...

. From then until May 1936 he trained at the Zhukovsky Air Force Academy, after which he worked for one year as a test pilot at the Air Force Research and Development Institute, where he flew modified versions of the

I-15 I15 may refer to: * Interstate 15, a north–south Interstate Highway in the United States of America * Polikarpov I-15, a Soviet fighter aircraft * I15 (band), a band * , of the Imperial Japanese Navy * Älvsborg Regiment The Älvsborg Regiment ...

and I-16 fighter aircraft.

Spanish Civil War

Soon after arriving in Spain in June 1937 as a flight commander in a fighter aviation group, Serov became among the first Soviet pilots to engage in aerial combat at night after a sortie with Mikhail Yakushin. He returned in the USSR in January 1938, by then having totaled 150 sorties and been credited with eight solo aerial victories, including one at night.

Postwar

Not long after being awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union on 2 March 1938 for his actions in Spain, he became head of the main flight inspectorate, and in April 1939 he graduated from advanced training for commanders at the Military Academy of General Staff.

Last flight

Serov was killed during a training flight with

Polina Osipenko Polina Denisovna Osipenko (, ; 8 October 1907 – 11 May 1939) was a Soviet military pilot who, with Valentina Grizodubova and Marina Raskova on 24–25 September 1938, performed a nonstop flight between Moscow and the Sea of Okhotsk, setting a n ...

in a UTI-4 on 11 May 1939; during

aerobatics Aerobatics is the practice of flying maneuvers involving aircraft attitudes that are not used in conventional passenger-carrying flights. The term is a portmanteau of "aeroplane" and "acrobatics". Aerobatics are performed in aeroplanes and gl ...

the plane went into a tailspin and crashed despite almost recovering from the loss of control. The exact cause of the tailspin remains unknown, but the pilots were supposed to perform the maneuver that led to it at an altitude of 1000 meters, not the much lower 500 meter altitude they were at during the flight, which was supposed to give them more room for recovering in the event of such incident. He was buried at the

Kremlin Wall Necropolis The Kremlin Wall Necropolis is the former national cemetery of the Soviet Union, located in Red Square in Moscow beside the Moscow Kremlin Wall, Kremlin Wall. Burials there began in November 1917, when 240 pro-Bolsheviks who died during the Mosc ...

Awards

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union () was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for heroic feats in service to the Soviet state and society. The title was awarded both ...

(2 March 1938) *

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (, ) was an award named after Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the October Revolution. It was established by the Central Executive Committee on 6 April 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration bestowed by the Soviet ...

(2 March 1938) * Two

Order of the Red Banner The Order of the Red Banner () was the first Soviet military decoration. The Order was established on 16 September 1918, during the Russian Civil War by decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. It was the highest award of S ...

(31 July 1937 and 22 October 1937)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Serov, Anatoly 1910 births 1939 deaths Heroes of the Soviet Union Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Soviet people of the Spanish Civil War Spanish Civil War flying aces Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the Soviet Union Communist Party of the Soviet Union members Burials at the Kremlin Wall Necropolis Soviet Air Force officers People from Verkhotursky Uyezd Soviet flying aces Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1939