Rafael Ivanovich Kaprelyan (; in

Baku Baku (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Azerbaijan, largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is below sea level, which makes it the List of capital ci ...

– 12 July 1984 in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

) was a decorated Armenian-Soviet test pilot who received the title

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 ...

in 1975.

Early life

Kaprelyan was born on 5 May 1909 in Baku to the family of Armenian doctor Hovnan Kaprelyan. He graduated from Leningrad Institute of Civil Air Fleet Engineers in 1932, and Bataysk Military Aviation School of Pilots in 1934. He worked as an airline pilot before

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, mastering various Soviet transport aircraft of that era. During the war, he was the second-in-command of a special forces airgroup, fulfilling tasks of the General Staff. During one such flight, he landed poorly as a result of acute icing and was taken as a

POW POW is "prisoner of war", a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. POW or pow may also refer to: Music * P.O.W (Bullet for My Valentine song), "P.O.W" (Bull ...

by the

Nazis Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

, but he managed to escape and found himself among partisans. He was later appointed commander of the 89th bomber regiment.

Test pilot career

Starting in 1947 he worked as a test pilot at the Flight Research Institute, where he flew various weather condition tests on the

Tu-4 The Tupolev Tu-4 (; NATO reporting name: Bull) is a piston-engined Soviet strategic bomber that served the Soviet Air Force from the late 1940s to the mid-1960s. The aircraft was a copy of the American Boeing B-29 Superfortress, having been reve ...

and conducted various other tests on

B-25 The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Brigadier General William "Billy" Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation. Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served ...

Li-2 The Lisunov Li-2 (NATO reporting name: Cab), originally designated PS-84, was a license-built Soviet-version of the Douglas DC-3. It was produced by Factory #84 in Khimki, Moscow-Khimki and, after the factory's evacuation in 1941, at the Tash ...

, and

Tu-2 The Tupolev Tu-2 (development names ANT-58 and 103; NATO reporting name Bat) is a twin-engined Soviet high-speed daylight and frontline bomber aircraft used during World War II. The Tu-2 was tailored to meet a requirement for a high-speed bomber ...

aircraft. From 1950 to 1952 he worked as a test pilot at an aircraft factory in

Tushino Tushino ( rus, Тушино, p=ˈtuʂɨnə) is a former village and town to the north of Moscow, which has been part of the city's area since 1960. Between 1939 and 1960, Tushino was classed as a separate town. The Skhodnya River flows across the ...

, but switched to test-driving buses after that aircraft factory converted to a bus factory in 1952. The next year he transferred to the Mil Helicopter Design Bureau, where he worked as a senior test pilot. There, he carried out the maiden flights of the

Mi-6 The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intelligence ...

, Mi-10, and Mi-10K helicopters. He also set several aviation records, including payload records on the Mi-6 in 1956 and again in 1962. He also participated in tests of the Mi-2, Mi-4, and

Mi-8 The Mil Mi-8 (, NATO reporting name: Hip) is a medium twin-turbine helicopter, originally designed by the Soviet Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI) in the 1960s and introduced into the Soviet Air Force in 1968. Russian production of t ...

Awards

(15 May 1975) * 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 ...

(6 December 1949 and 15 May 1975) *

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 ...

(2 April 1943) *

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 (22 September 1944) * Two Orders of the Red Banner of Labour (31 July 1948 and 12 July 1957) * Two Orders of the Red Star (26 November 1941, 1 December 1943) *

Order of the Badge of Honour The Order of the Badge of Honour () was a civilian award of the Soviet Union. It was established on 25 November 1935, and was conferred on citizens of the USSR for outstanding achievements in sports, production, scientific research and socia ...

(31 July 1961) *

Medal "For Battle Merit" The Medal "For Battle Merit" () was a Soviet military medal awarded for "combat action resulting in a military success", "courageous defense of the state borders", or "successful military and political training and preparation". It was created on ...

(3 November 1944) * campaign and jubilee medals

References

1909 births 1984 deaths Military personnel from Baku People from Baku Governorate Gromov Flight Research Institute employees Heroes of the Soviet Union Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labour Recipients of the Order of the Red Star Soviet prisoners of war Escapees from German detention Soviet Air Force officers Soviet test pilots Soviet World War II pilots Soviet aviation record holders Rotorcraft flight record holders Flight instructors Burials at Kuntsevo Cemetery {{Authority control