Not on the list…
Unrequited debt to those who died in the war …, in life, there is always a place for a feat …, the memory of heroes …, patriotism …
How hackneyed and routinely empty these holy concepts have become in our society, as, indeed, the very theme of the war, which we recall twice a year – on Victory Day and on City Day. How inattentive and shameless we have become in relation to specific people who have accomplished a feat, how we ourselves, sometimes without noticing it, contribute to the processes of oblivion …
With such feelings and gloomy thoughts, I left the renovated “Alley of Heroes” in Oktyabrsky Square near the monument to the “Warrior-Liberator”. It is not clear why, but the feat of 14 pilots, Heroes of the Soviet Union (among them four twice Heroes), who are directly related to Kremenchuk and their names are simply ignored by the initiators of the reconstruction of the alley. They are not listed in the lists and are not represented in portraits or alleys.
- German I.M. (GSS in 1943) attack pilot, com. squadron 70 GShAP. From 1933 to 1936 he studied at the Kremenchuk Construction College.
- Mikhail Ya.D. (GSS in 1946), fighter pilot, deputy. squadron commander of the 54th IAP. In 1938 – to 1940. worked in the locomotive depot st. Kremenchuk and studied at the Kremenchuk flying club.
- Kuznetsov M.V. (2 GSS in 1943 and 1945) fighter pilot, commander of 814 IAP and 106 GIAP. In 1955 – 1959 head of 10 VASHPOL in Kremenchuk.
- Petukhov N.D. (GSS in 1944), commander of the 221st page of the regiment. In 1953 – to 1958. Deputy Head of the 10th VASHPOL in Kremenchuk.
- Zabyrin N.V. Fighter pilot, (GSS in 1945), fought in the 814th (106th Guards) IAP, was a flight commander. After the war, until 1975, he served in the Air Force, and commanded the 113th IAP in Kremenchuk, from about 1957 to 1960.
- Prokopenko G.N. (GSS 1943) fighter pilot, lieutenant colonel, commander of the 3rd GIAP. Died on 07/14/1944 from the fire of a gunner of the Soviet Pe-2 bomber in the Lviv region. Buried in the village Zhitnoye, Romensky district, Sumy region In 1930 – 1933 studied at
Kremenchuk railway technical school. - Leonov A.A. (2 GSS – in 1965 and 1975), pilot-cosmonaut, the first man in the world to have been in outer space. From 1953 – to 1955 studied at the 10th VASHPOL in Kremenchuk, in 1957–1959. served in Kremenchuk in 113 IAP. Honorary citizen of Kremenchuk.
- Aksenov V.V. (2 GSS – in 1976 and 1980) pilot-cosmonaut. In 1954 – 1956 studied at 10 VASHPOL in Kremenchuk.
- Klimuk P.I. (2 GSS – in 1973 and 1975) pilot-cosmonaut. In 1959 – 1960. studied at 10 VASHPOL in Kremenchuk.
- Levchenko A.S. (GSS in 1987) pilot-cosmonaut. In 1959–1960 he studied at the 10th VASHPOL in Kremenchug
- Gardapkhadze A.B. (GSS in 1984) Crew commander of a Tu-134 passenger aircraft. The title of Hero was awarded for the heroism shown in the neutralization of the bandits who hijacked the plane. From 1962 – to 1965 studied at the Kremenchuk flight school.
- Lyalin B.V. (GSS in 1986) commander of civil aviation helicopters. The title of Hero was awarded for participating in the rescue of the Mikhail Somov research vessel, which was lost in the ice of Antarctica. From 1963 – to 1966 trained at the Kremenchuk Flight
school. - Melnik N.N. (SCAC in 1987) test pilot of the Ministry of Civil Aviation. The title of hero was awarded for participation in the liquidation of the consequences of the Chornobyl disaster. In 1975 he studied at the Kremenchuk Flight School.
I will not say, but it is very likely that during the creation of the Alley of Heroes and its reconstruction, the historical aspects, as well as the moral, ethical and moral side of this topic, were not considered by the authorities at all.
How did it all happen…?
I didn’t manage to understand the logic of the selection of candidates for inclusion in the Alley of Heroes, just as I failed to establish the criteria for their selection.
Now, probably, no one will remember when and who first came up with the idea to create a portrait gallery of the Heroes of the Soviet Union. One thing is known, it was created by the city authorities at the initiative of the Council of Veterans, but for many years it maintained and repaired portraits of Heroes, which were damaged with outrageous regularity by local vandals and unidentified law enforcement officers.
bodies. The authorities also carried out a major reconstruction of the alley, creating something similar to a small memorial.
Everything seems to be decorous, good and correct. The authorities forgot about only one, but very important, – to determine the concept, as well as the grounds, order and category of persons subject to entry on the Alley of Heroes, by decision of the City Council session. No matter how hard I tried, I could not find such a document either in the museum of local lore, or in the city department of culture, or in the council of veterans. And what is noteworthy, in each of these instances, they have different opinions on this topic. I am convinced that it was for this reason that the names of some heroes, with formally lesser grounds, were brought to the Alley (for example, G
SS Shcherbakov I.I., who lived in Kremenchuk for only 2 years), and others, with the same, or even more weighty ones, were simply ignored (for example, twice GSS Kuznetsov M.V., who headed the tenth VASHPOL in the city of . Kremenchuk). And it all looks, in the end, oh, how bad.
And by and large, this is an extremely cynical and frank disrespect, not only for the authorities but also for the city, for the heroic deeds of specific people and the feat in general. And it does not matter at all whether it happened on purpose or thoughtlessness.
What to do?
To begin with, I am convinced of this, the city authorities need to comprehend the situation, taking into account the moral and ethical nuances and historical aspects. The matter, in general, is quite fixable from the technical point of view. It is quite possible to complete the left and right wings of the alley to accommodate 14 portraits even by Victory Day. Actually, the problem itself is neither technical, nor organizational, nor financial. The main thing is whether officials will understand the moral
the ethical side of the problem and your own mistake?
I believe that the worst option would be if the authorities do not see the problems and their mistakes here, but start, if they come down to it, to explain that this is how it should be, and even worse, puffing out their cheeks, they will simply ignore the topic.
Byshenko A.N.
Materials of the scientific-practical conference “Kremenchuk – 435 years”