Larisa Nikolayevna Rozanova (; Litvinova after marriage; 6 December 1918 – 5 October, 1997) was a Soviet pilot and later the senior navigator of the 46th Taman Guards Night Bomber Aviation Regiment, nicknamed the "

Night Witches "Night Witches" was a World War II German nickname for the all-female military aviators of the 588th Night Bomber Regiment, known later as the 46th "Taman" Guards Night Bomber Aviation Red Banner and Order of Suvorov Regiment, of the Soviet Air ...

" during World War II. For successfully completing 793 sorties, she was declared a

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 ...

on 23 February, 1948.

Civilian life

Rozanova was born on 6 December, 1918 in the city of

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

Ukrainian People's Republic The Ukrainian People's Republic (UPR) was a short-lived state in Eastern Europe. Prior to its proclamation, the Central Council of Ukraine was elected in March 1917 Ukraine after the Russian Revolution, as a result of the February Revolution, ...

to a Ukrainian family. Her father was employed at an aircraft plant; she would often visit the facility and observe the aircraft. After graduating from high school, she worked at a shoe factory before entering flight school at the Kiev aeroclub. She went on to graduate from the Kherson Aviation School to become a flight instructor; she went on to teach cadets in Feodosia and the Kirov flight club in Moscow. She became a member of the Communist Party in 1942.

Military career

Not long after the start of World War II, Rozanova attempted to enlist in the military, but her request was denied. On 1 August, 1941, the aviation school in Moscow where she worked was evacuated and relocated to

Ryazan Oblast Ryazan Oblast (, ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Ryazan, which is also the oblast's largest city. Geography Ryazan Oblast ...

. Again she requested to join the military and fight on the front lines, which was again denied. In October, she and several friends who had also tried to enlist were summoned to the Osoaviahim council in Moscow, where they were informed of an all-female aviation regiment founded by

Marina Raskova Marina Mikhaylovna Raskova ( rus, Мари́на Миха́йловна Раско́ва, , mɐˈrʲinə mʲɪˈxajləvnə rɐˈskovə; née Malinina; 28 March 1912 – 4 January 1943) was the first woman in the Soviet Union to achieve the diplom ...

. The women who were admitted to the three regiments were trained at

Engels Friedrich Engels ( ;"Engels"
''

Upon arriving at Engels, she was assigned into the navigators group; she repeatedly appealed to be a pilot, not a navigator, but as her aviation background included some navigation training and given the lack of certified female navigators, Raskova wanted her to serve as a navigator. After having a conversation with Raskova, Rozanova eventually changed her mind and withdrew her appeals. Before the war, navigation training took over a year but due to the state of the war at the time, it only lasted six months. She graduated from Engels in 1942 and was appointed a squadron navigator in the 588th Night Bomber Regiment, which was renamed in October 1943 to the 46th Taman Guards Night Bomber Aviation Regiment. On 27 May, 1942, she was deployed to the Eastern front. During the regiment's first sortie she navigated for

Serafima Amosova Serafima Tarasovna Amosova (; 20 August 1914 – 17 December 1992) was the deputy commander of flight operations in the 46th Guards Night Bomber Aviation Regiment during the Second World War. Early life Amosova was born in central Siberia on 2 ...

, following the plane with

Yevdokia Bershanskaya Yevdokiya Davidovna Bershanskaya (Russian: Евдокия Давыдовна Бершанская; 6 February 1913, in Dobrovolnoye, Stavropol – 16 September 1982, in Moscow) was the regimental commander of the 46th Taman Guards Night Bomber ...

and Sofya Burzayeva. In December, she was allowed to become a pilot and promoted to the rank of flight commander; in April 1943, she was assigned to ferry aircraft from the frontline to repair stations in Armavir, where she met her future husband Ilya Litvinov. Throughout March to September 1943, she participated in the operation to breach the

Kuban bridgehead The Kuban Bridgehead (), also known as the "Goth's head position" (), was a German military position on the Taman Peninsula, Russia, between the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea. Existing from January to October 1943, the bridgehead formed after th ...

in the Taman Peninsula. In November 1943, after success in the Taman offensive, the regiment moved to the

Kerch Peninsula The Kerch Peninsula is a major and prominent geographic peninsula located at the eastern end of the Crimean Peninsula. This peninsula stretches eastward toward the Taman Peninsula between the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea. Most of the peninsula i ...

and she participated in the Crimean and Sevastopol offensives. On 24 December, 1943, a shell fragment hit the plane Rozanova was in, piloted by Maria Olkhovskaya. Despite losing altitude quickly, they managed to land safely. After the death of Senior Lieutenant

Yevgeniya Rudneva Yevgeniya Maksimovna Rudneva (; 24 May 1921 – 9 April 1944) was the head navigator of the 46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment posthumously awarded Hero of the Soviet Union. Prior to World War II she was an astronomer, the head of the Solar Depart ...

in the battle of Crimea in April 1944, Rozanova became the senior navigator of the regiment. She made a total of 793 sorties, having participated in bombing campaigns in the

North Caucasus The North Caucasus, or Ciscaucasia, is a subregion in Eastern Europe governed by Russia. It constitutes the northern part of the wider Caucasus region, which separates Europe and Asia. The North Caucasus is bordered by the Sea of Azov and the B ...

Stavropol Stavropol (, ), known as Voroshilovsk from 1935 until 1943, is a city and the administrative centre of Stavropol Krai, in southern Russia. As of the 2021 Census, its population was 547,820, making it one of Russia's fastest growing cities. E ...

Kuban Kuban ( Russian and Ukrainian: Кубань; ) is a historical and geographical region in the North Caucasus region of southern Russia surrounding the Kuban River, on the Black Sea between the Don Steppe, the Volga Delta and separated fr ...

Novorossiysk Novorossiysk (, ; ) is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. It is one of the largest ports on the Black Sea. It is one of the few cities designated by the Soviet Union as a Hero City. The population was History In antiquity, the shores of the ...

, Crimea, Kuban, Kerch, Belorussia, Poland, and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. Rozanova was demobilized from active duty in 1945 after the end of the war and stayed in the reserve.

Later life

Rozanova was nominated for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union in 1945, but was initially awarded

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 ...

instead in 1946. The nomination was reevaluated in 1948, and on 23 February, 1948 she was officially declared a Hero of the Soviet Union. After the war, she and her husband, Ilya Litvinov, lived in Moscow and had a son, Sergey. She worked as a senior engineer at the All-Russian Institute of Power Sources until she retired in 1979. On 5 October, 1997 she died at the age of 79 and was buried in the Nikolo-Arkhangelsk cemetery.

Awards

(23 February 1948) * Two

Orders 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 ...

(15 May 1946 and 23 February 1948) * Two

Orders 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 Sovi ...

(30 October 1943 and 7 March 1945) * Two

Orders of the Patriotic War The Order of the Patriotic War () is a Soviet military decoration that was awarded to all soldiers in the Soviet armed forces, security troops, and to partisans for heroic deeds in the Eastern Front of World War II. After the beginning of the G ...

1st Class (26 April 1944 and 11 March 1985) *

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 ...

(9 September 1942) * campaign and jubilee medals

References

Bibliography