Arkady Yegorovich Chepelev (Russian: Аркадий Егорович Чепелев; 24 January 1915 – 31 July 1985) was a

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

Starshina ( rus, Старшина, p=stərʂɨˈna, a=Ru-старшина.ogg or ) is a senior military rank or designation in the military forces of some Slavs, Slavic states, and a historical military designation. Depending on a country, it had differen ...

sergeant major Sergeant major is a senior Non-commissioned officer, non-commissioned Military rank, rank or appointment in many militaries around the world. History In 16th century Spain, the ("sergeant major") was a general officer. He commanded an army's ...

and

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 ...

. He was awarded the title for ferrying weapons and ammunition to troops in the Dnieper bridgehead and repelling counterattacks during the

Battle of the Dnieper The Battle of the Dnieper was a military campaign that took place in 1943 on the Eastern Front of World War II. Being one of the largest operations of the war, it involved almost four million troops at one point and stretched over a front. Ov ...

. Chepelev continued to fight in combat and served with the 167th Rifle Division during the

Lvov–Sandomierz Offensive The Lvov–Sandomierz offensive or Lvov–Sandomierz strategic offensive operation () was a major Red Army operation to force the German troops from Ukraine and Eastern Poland. Launched in mid-July 1944, the operation was successfully completed ...

and

Battle of the Dukla Pass The Battle of the Dukla Pass, also known as the Dukla, Carpatho–Dukla, Rzeszów–Dukla, or Dukla–Prešov offensive, was the battle for control over the Dukla Pass on the border between Poland and Slovakia on the Eastern Front of World Wa ...

, among others. He was demobilized postwar and returned to Voronezh, working as a mechanic in an aircraft factory.

Early life

Chepelev was born on 24 January 1915 in the village of Tamlyk in

Voronezh Governorate Voronezh Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit ('' guberniya'') of the Tsardom of Russia, the Russian Empire, and the Russian SFSR, which existed from 1708 (as ''Azov Governorate'') to 1779 and again from 1796 to 1928. Its capital wa ...

to a peasant family. After he completed four years of primary school, Chepelev's family moved to

Voronezh Voronezh ( ; , ) is a city and the administrative centre of Voronezh Oblast in southwestern Russia straddling the Voronezh River, located from where it flows into the Don River. The city sits on the Southeastern Railway, which connects wes ...

. Chepelev then worked at a factory there.

World War II

In April 1942, Chepelev was drafted into the Red Army. He was sent to the 180th Separate Sapper Battalion of the 167th Rifle Division in April 1943. The division fought in the

Battle of Kursk The Battle of Kursk, also called the Battle of the Kursk Salient, was a major World War II Eastern Front battle between the forces of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union near Kursk in southwestern Russia during the summer of 1943, resulting in ...

. By September 1943, he was a

senior sergeant A Senior sergeant is often a rank of non-commissioned officer used in the armed forces of many nations. It is usually placed above sergeant. Police in Australia and New Zealand use the rank Senior Sergeant as a rank above sergeant, but below an I ...

commanding a sapper squad in the battalion. On 12 September, he was awarded the

Order of the Red Star The Order of the Red Star () was a military decoration of the Soviet Union. It was established by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 6 April 1930 but its statute was only defined in decree of the Presidium of the ...

. He fought in the

. On 26 September, Chepelev and his squad cleared lanes in German minefields near

Vyshhorod Vyshhorod (, ; ) is a city in Kyiv Oblast, central Ukraine, situated immediately north of the capital Kyiv, and part of the Kyiv metropolitan area. It is on the right (western) bank of the Dnieper river and, as the location of the Kyiv Hydro ...

, enabling the advance of infantry units. During the subsequent crossing of the Dnieper, Chepelev reportedly made several trips on a raft, ferrying weapons and ammunition to troops on the west bank. Chepelev's squad reportedly built an improvised rowboat and ferried two artillery guns and an infantry battalion across the river. On 3 November, Chepelev helped repulse German counterattacks on the bridgehead. On 10 January 1944, Chepelev was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union and the

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 ...

. He joined the

Communist Party of the Soviet Union The Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU),. Abbreviated in Russian as КПСС, ''KPSS''. at some points known as the Russian Communist Party (RCP), All-Union Communist Party and Bolshevik Party, and sometimes referred to as the Soviet ...

in 1944. Chepelev continued to fight with the 167th Rifle Division. In the summer, he fought in the

. During the fall, he participated in the

. On 8 December, he was awarded the

Order of the Patriotic War The Order of the Patriotic War () is a Soviet Union, Soviet military Order (decoration), decoration that was awarded to all soldiers in the Soviet armed forces, security troops, and to Partisan (military), partisans for heroic deeds in the Easte ...

2nd class. In January 1945, he fought in the Western Carpathian Offensive. During April, he fought in the Moravian-Ostrava Offensive.

Postwar

After the end of the war in 1945, Chepelev demobilized with the rank of sergeant major or Starshina and returned to Voronezh. He worked as a factory mechanic at the

Voronezh Aircraft Production Association Voronezh Aircraft Production Association (VASO in English, ВАСО in Russian, Воронежское акционерное самолётостроительное общество, literally ''Society of Voronezh Joint-Ownership Aircraft Buil ...

. On 11 March 1985, he was awarded the

1st class on the 40th anniversary of the end of World War II.TsAMO Anniversary card files, available online a
pamyatnaroda.mil.ru
/ref> Chepelev died on 31 July 1985 and was buried in the city's Southwestern Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chepelev, Arkady 1915 births 1985 deaths People from Novousmansky District People from Voronezhsky Uyezd Communist Party of the Soviet Union members Soviet military personnel of World War II Heroes of the Soviet Union Recipients of the Order of Lenin