19. 3. 1913 - 13. 11. 1985

Alexander Pokryshkin is a fighter pilot and the first three-time Hero of the Soviet Union.

He was born on 6 (19) March 1913 in Novonikolayevsk (now Novosibirsk) in a working class family. Russian. CPSU member since 1942. In 1928, he graduated from school after 7 years. He worked as a roofer. After graduation he worked as a gage maker, in a factory.

In the Red Army since 1932. In 1933, he graduated from the third Perm military school of aeronautical engineering; in 1934 – Leningrad military-theoretical flying school. He served as a technician in the communication link of the 74^th Infantry Division, stationed in Krasnodar. Simultaneously, he studied in the Krasnodar flying club. He wrote 40 reports to commanders, Air Force Commander, People's Commissar of Defense, till he had been sent to the 1^st Kacha Military Aviation Pilot School named after A.F. Myasnikov, which he graduated summa cum laude in 1939.

He was sent to serve into the 55^th Fighter Aviation Regiment of Odessa Military District. In 1941 Senior Lieutenant Pokryshkin was appointed deputy squadron commander. One of the first in the regiment mastered MiG-3.

On the fronts he was from the first days of the Great Patriotic War.

In the first combat sortie by mistake he brought down the Soviet bomber “Su-2”, piloted by squadron commander of the 211^th Bomber Aviation Regiment, M.I. Gudzenko. This case then he will be long reminded by the leadership, and osobists. On June 23, during the air fight with five “Me-109” not far from the Prut River he knocked one of them, but was shot down. With great difficulty, he lasted up to the airfield and landed. In the summer of 1941 in the fighting on the southern front he shot down several enemy aircraft, but due to the destruction of the regimental documents, they were not credited to him.

In early 1942, the regiment was transferred to the rear of the Trans-Caucasus. Among the other pilots he mastered “Air cobra” P-39, even ferried them from Iran. Got to the front again in the spring of 1943. Especially distinguished himself during the fighting at the Kuban. Here was born his famous formula: “The height, speed, maneuver, fire”. Squadron commander of the 16^th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment (the 216^th Composite Air Division, the 4^th Air Army, the North-Caucasian Front), Guards Captain Pokryshkin on April 12 in an air battle near the village of Crimean right in front of the commander of the 4^th Air Army, General K. Vershinin shot down four Me-109. Later the same day, he shot down 3 planes more.

The title of Hero of the Soviet Union and the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star Medal (№ 993) squadron commander of the 16^th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment (the 216^th Composite Air Division, the 4^th Air Army, the North-Caucasian Front) Guards Captain Alexander Pokryshkin was conferred by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet on May 24, 1943 for 354 military sorties, 54 air battles, bagged down enemy planes (13 in person and 6 in the group).

The second Gold Star Medal (№ 10), commander of the same regiment (the 9^th Guards Fighter Division, the 4^th Air Army, the North-Caucasian Front) Guards Maj. Pokryshkin was awarded by a Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on August 24, 1943 for 455 military sorties and 30 enemy planes bagged down in person.

Later he participated in the battles over the Black Sea and the Dnieper.

Pokryshkin was the author of many of the new fighter tactics. Always took the album with him, where he drew diagrams of air battles (the album is currently kept in the Central Museum of Armed Forces). He was one of the first to practice “free hunt”. He piloted perfectly, thoroughly knew the construction of the plane (former technician!). His tactics and combat techniques then spread on all the fronts. In February 1944 he was summoned to Moscow Air Force by Commander A.A. Novikov and offered to take the post of Chief of a flying school, but Pokryshkin refused and returned to the front.

Acting commander of the 16^th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment (the same division, the 7^th Fighter Aviation Corps, the 8^th Air Force, the 1^st Ukrainian Front) Guards Lt. Col. Pokryshkin by May 1944 has made 550 sorties, during 137 air battles personally shot down 53 enemy planes. In May, was appointed commander of the 9^th Guards Division. On the P-39N with the hull number 100 participated in the battles over the Prut and Iasi, in the Lvov-Sandomier operation.

The third Gold Star Medal (№ 1) the commander of the 9^th Guards Division, Lt. Col. Pokryshkin was awarded by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet on August 19, 1944 for “exemplary performance of military missions and heroic feats on the front of the struggle against the Nazi invaders”.

He became the first triple Hero of the Soviet Union!

Commanding Division, he liberated Poland, Romania, participated in the Berlin Offensive Operation. He ended the war in Czechoslovakia (the last fight was held on May 9, 1945 over Prague). In total he had more than 650 sorties, during 156 air battles personally shot down 59 planes (according to unofficial data 75) and in a group – six enemy planes. During the Victory Parade on June 24, 1945 on Red Square in Moscow, he carried the Banner of the front.

After the war he served in command positions in Air Defense. In 1948 he graduated from the Military Academy of Frunze. In 1949–1955 – Deputy commander of the 33^rd Fighter Air Defense, the commander of the 88^th Fighter Aviation Corps in Rzhev. In 1957 he graduated from General Staff Academy. After graduation, served as chief of fighter aircraft of the North Caucasian military defense. Since 1959, he served in the 8^th Army Air Defense separate (Kiev). In 1961–1968 – Commander of the 8th Army Air Defense separate – deputy commander of the Kiev Military District Air Defense Forces; in 1968–1971 – Deputy Chief of the Air Defense Forces. In 1972–1981 he headed the Voluntary Association for Assistance to Army, Air Force and Navy.

On December 16, 1972 he was awarded the rank of Air Marshal.

Candidate of Military Sciences (1969). Candidate member of the CPSU since 1976. Was elected a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR in 2-10 convocation. In 1979-1984 - Member of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.

Author of books: Wings of a fighter, Your honorable duty, Sky War, To know yourself in the battle.

Died on November 13, 1985. He reposes at Novodevichy cemetery in Moscow.

He was awarded six Orders of Lenin (on December 22, 1941 – № 7086; 5/24/1943 – № 9600, 3/061963 – № 124904; 10/21/1967 – № 344099; 2/21/1978 – № 429973, 3/05/1983 – № 400362); four Orders of the Red Banner (4/22/1943 – № 66983; 7/18/1943–№ 8305 / 2; 12/24/1943 – № 448 / 3; 4/20/1953 – № 1392 / 4); the Orders of the October Revolution (3/05/1973 – № 1793); two 2^nd Class Orders of Suvorov (4/06/1945 – № 1484; 5/29/1945 – № 1662), the 1^st Class Order of the Patriotic War (3/11/1985 – № 537 850), two Orders of the Red Star ( 11/06/1947 – № 2762070; 6/04/1955 – № 3341640), the 3^rd Class Order “For the Service to Motherland in the Armed Forces” (4/30/1975 – № 0039); medals: For the Military Merits"(11/03/1944), For the Defense of the Caucasus (5/01/1944), For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 (5/09/1945), For Valiant Labor in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 (6/06/1945), For the Liberation of Prague (6/09/1945), For the capture of Berlin (6/09/1945); Thirty years of the Soviet Army and Navy (2/22/), In the Memory of the 800^th anniversary of Moscow (4/07/1951), Forty years of the Soviet Armed Forces (12/18/1957), For the development of virgin lands (11/05/1964), Twenty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 (5/07/1965), Fifty Years of the USSR Armed Forces (12/26/1967), For the Military Valor. To mark the 100^th anniversary of the birth of Vladimir Lenin (4/20/1970), Thirty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 (4/25/1975), Sixty Years of the Soviet Armed Forces (1/28/1978), For the strengthening of military cooperation (5/31/1980), In the memory of the 1,500^th anniversary of Kiev (5/17/1982), Veteran of the Armed Forces of the USSR (4/30/1984), Forty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 (4/12/1985). Foreign awards: the Medal “For the Distinguished Service” to the Army of the United States of America, 1943; the Orders of Tudor Vladimirescu of the 2^nd and 3^rd degree (Romania); the Order of Karl Marx (GDR), the Order “Virtuti Military” (“Military Valour”, Poland), the Order “Polonia Restitva” (“Rebirth of Poland”), the Order of Sukhbaatar (MPR), the Order of the Red Banner of the MPR; medals of Vietnam, Cuba, Bulgaria , GDR, Czechoslovakia.

Honorary citizen of Novosibirsk.

The bust and monument are installed in Novosibirsk, there is a metro station named after Marshal Pokryshkin. Hero Monument opened in Krasnodar, and a memorial plaque was set in the house where he lived the 1930s. Just plaques are installed in Moscow, Kiev and Novosibirsk. Streets in Moscow, Novosibirsk, Irkutsk, Krasnodar, Angarsk and other cities are named after Pokryshkin. Novosibirsk Aviation Center and the Kiev Higher Engineering Radio Technical College are also named after him.