Ismailbek Taranchiev (; 6 April 1923 – 18 March 1944) was a Kyrgyz

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

aviator An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators because they a ...

and posthumous

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 is one of the Soviet war heroes to conduct a "fire taran" – a suicide attack by an aircraft on a ground target. After his

Ilyushin Il-2 The Ilyushin Il-2 ( Russian: Илью́шин Ил-2) is a ground-attack plane that was produced by the Soviet Union in large numbers during the Second World War. The word ''shturmovík'' (Cyrillic: штурмовик), the generic Russian term ...

was hit by antiaircraft fire, Taranchiev crashed his plane into a concentration of German tanks in Estonia in March 1944.

Early life

Ismailbek Taranchiev was born on 6 April 1923 in the village of Besh-Kungey in what is now part of the Chuy Region in Kyrgyzstan. Taranchiev graduated from eighth grade.

World War II

By June 1941, Taranchiev had joined the

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 ...

. In 1943, he graduated from the 3rd Chkalovsky Pilots Military Aviation School. 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 and fought in combat from January of the year. He became a pilot in the 566th Assault Aviation Regiment, which was assigned to the 277th Assault Aviation Division. A month later, he had made 11 combat sorties, destroying or damaging 13 vehicles, 12 freight carriages, and a motorcycle. He also reportedly suppressed the fire of a machine gun, a mortar, and an artillery gun, as well as killing up to 50 German soldiers. On 13 February his Il-2 was heavily damaged but Taranchiev was managed to land. For an air attack on German ground troops west of

Narva Narva is a municipality and city in Estonia. It is located in the Ida-Viru County, at the Extreme points of Estonia, eastern extreme point of Estonia, on the west bank of the Narva (river), Narva river which forms the Estonia–Russia border, E ...

on 18 February, the regiment received thanks from the

30th Guards Rifle Corps 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious and cultural significance in many societies ...

. Taranchiev 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 ...

on 22 February for his actions. On 26 February, along with other aircraft, he conducted a raid on the Axis-held airfield at

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 97,759 (as of 2024). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of Riga, Latvia. Tartu lies on the Emajõgi river, which connects the ...

. Taranchiev personally destroyed three German aircraft on the ground during the attack. By 18 March, Taranchiev had made 35 successful sorties attacking defense structures, railways, airfields and other targets flying an

Il-2 The Ilyushin Il-2 (Russian language, Russian: Илью́шин Ил-2) is a Ground attack aircraft, ground-attack plane that was produced by the Soviet Union in large numbers during the World War II, Second World War. The word ''shturmovík'' (C ...

ground attack aircraft. On 18 March, Taranchiev flew a sortie with four other Il-2s, attacking enemy troops and equipment in the area described in Soviet sources with illiterate village names Jaama-kyule, Kyarikuyula and Lastikolony, which may be Jaama village, ''Käriküla'' (no such village in Estonia) and Lastekodumägi. During the attack, Taranchiev's plane was hit by antiaircraft fire and he deliberately crashed his plane into a concentration of enemy tanks, in a maneuver called a "fire taran" – a suicide attack by an aircraft on a ground target. Taranchiev was killed in the crash, as was his gunner, Alexey Tkachev. On 29 April 1944, he was posthumously 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 ...

1st class. For his actions, he was posthumously 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 ...

on 5 May 1991.

Legacy

In 2015, Kyrgyz Pochtasy issued a stamp depicting Taranchiev and his Il-2 for the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II. A

Sukhoi Su-25 The Sukhoi Su-25 ''Grach'' ( ('' rook''); NATO reporting name: Frogfoot) is a subsonic, single-seat, twin-engine jet aircraft developed in the Soviet Union by Sukhoi. It was designed to provide close air support for Soviet Ground Forces. Th ...

of the

Russian Air Force The Russian Air Force () is a branch of the Russian Aerospace Forces, the latter being formed on 1 August 2015 with the merging of the Russian Air Force and the Russian Aerospace Defence Forces. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the reb ...

based at

Kant air base Kant Air Base ( ''Aviabaza Kant'') is a military air base in Ysyk-Ata District of Chüy Region in Kyrgyzstan. It is located just south of Kant, around 20 km east of Bishkek and is home to the Russian Aerospace Forces' 999th Air Base. Histo ...

in Kyrgyzstan was named after Taranchiev in 2015.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taranchiev, Ismailbek 1923 births 1944 deaths Soviet World War II pilots Kyrgyzstani aviators Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents Heroes of the Soviet Union Soviet military personnel killed in World War II Soviet Air Force officers Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the Soviet Union People from Chüy Region Recipients of the Order of Lenin Pilots who performed an aerial ramming Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1944

Early life

World War II

Legacy

See also

References