Ruslan Polovinko (; 21 October 1969 – 6 August 1992) was a Ukrainian–Azerbaijani helicopter pilot and

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

, who participated in the

First Nagorno-Karabakh War The First Nagorno-Karabakh War was an ethnic conflict, ethnic and territorial conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in southwestern Azerbaijan, between the majority ethnic Armenians of Nag ...

within

Azerbaijani military The Azerbaijani Armed Forces () is the military of the Republic of Azerbaijan. It was re-established according to the country's Law of the Armed Forces on 9 October 1991. The original Azerbaijan Democratic Republic's armed forces were dissolved a ...

. For his actions in the war he was posthumously awarded the title of the

National Hero of Azerbaijan The National Hero of Azerbaijan () is the highest national title in the Republic of Azerbaijan. The title was named on 25 March 1992, and the "Qizil Ulduz" Medal awarded as a sign of receiving this title was established by a separate law on 15 J ...

Biography

Polovinko was born on 21 October 1969, in

Zmiiv Zmiiv or Zmiyiv () from 1976 to 1990, is a city in Chuhuiv Raion, Kharkiv, Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Zmiiv urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. The population in 2001 was 17,063, falling to The town is located from Khar ...

of the

Kharkiv Oblast Kharkiv Oblast (, ), also referred to as Kharkivshchyna (), is an oblast (province) in eastern Ukraine. Kharkiv borders Luhansk Oblast to the east, Donetsk Oblast to the southeast, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast to the southwest, Poltava Oblast to the w ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

. In 1987, he enrolled at the

Syzran Higher Military Aviation School The Syzran Higher Military Aviation School () is a military academy of the Russian Aerospace Forces, responsible for training airmen of the Russian Armed Forces. It is a branch of the Zhukovsky – Gagarin Air Force Academy. History The school ...

Syzran Syzran ( rus, Сызрань, p=ˈsɨzrənʲ) is the third largest city in Samara Oblast, Russia, located on the right bank of Saratov Reservoir of the Volga River. Population: History Founded in 1683 as a fortress, Syzran grew into an importa ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. After graduating from high school in 1991, he was sent to serve in the Nakhchivan. After the formation of

Azerbaijani Air Forces The Azerbaijani Air Forces and Air Defense Troops (stylized as ), composed of the Azerbaijani Air Forces () and the Azerbaijani Air Defense Troops (), are the aerial warfare, air and air defense service branch of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces. H ...

, he continued his service in the Baku Helicopter Squadron.

Military service

From 1991, he began to fight in the

. Polovinko showed high heroism in the battles for

Gubadly Qubadli (, ) is a city in Azerbaijan and the administrative centre of the Qubadli District. It is situated along the Vorotan (Bargushad) river. History Qubadli was part of the Zangezur uezd of the Elizavetpol Governorate during the Russian E ...

Lachin Lachin (, , ; ) is a town in Azerbaijan and the administrative centre of the Lachin District. It was located within the strategic Lachin corridor, which used to link the Nagorno-Karabakh region with Armenia. The town was under control of Armen ...

and Aghdere. On 6 August 1992, after the receipt of information about the siege of

by the Armenian forces on the Kasapet height, the crew of

Mi-24 The Mil Mi-24 (; NATO reporting name: Hind) is a large helicopter gunship, attack helicopter and low-capacity transport helicopter, troop transport with room for eight passengers. It is produced by Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant and was introduced ...

helicopter, consisting of Ruslan Polovinko, Zakir Majidov (commander) and

Javanshir Rahimov Javanshir Izzat oglu Rahimov (; June 5, 1973 – August 6, 1992) was an Azerbaijani soldier and the National Hero of Azerbaijan. Early years Rahimov was born in Qaşqaçay, Qakh. When he was one year old his family moved to Baku, Qaraçuxur. He ...

rushed to help them to evacuate. After flying three sorties of attacking enemy positions and evacuating injured and fallen soldiers, they were shot down on their fourth flight, resulting in the death of all crew members.Polovinko Ruslan Aleksandroviç
/ref> Polovinko was posthumously awarded the title of the

on 14 September 1992, by the decree no. 204 of the President of Azerbaijan. He was buried in his native town of

. Polovinko was single.

References

External links

Polovinko Ruslan Aleksandroviç
{{DEFAULTSORT:Polovinko, Ruslan 1969 births 1992 deaths Helicopter pilots National Heroes of Azerbaijan Azerbaijani military personnel of the Nagorno-Karabakh War Azerbaijani military personnel killed in action Azerbaijani people of Ukrainian descent Ukrainian military personnel killed in action People from Zmiiv Syzran Higher Military Aviation School alumni Victims of helicopter accidents or incidents Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1992 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Azerbaijan