Igor Danshin
Igor Mikhailovich Danshin | |
|---|---|
22nd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Division | |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | |
Igor Mikhailovich Danshin (
Early life and prewar service
An
After completing studies at the Engineering and Command Department of the
Danshin returned to operational units in November 1940 as commander of the artillery regiment of the 10th Mechanized Brigade of the Leningrad Military District. After the disbandment of the regiment in April 1941, he was appointed chief of staff of the Svir PVO Brigade Region, forming the brigade region headquarters and organizing the air defense of key points in its zone of responsibility.[1][2]
World War II
After the beginning of the war on the Eastern Front, the Svir PVO Brigade Region became crucial as it provided air defense for the only supply route for besieged Leningrad. In 1941, the anti-aircraft gunners of the region were credited with destroying 124 aircraft. In January 1942 Danshin was appointed chief of the air defense department of the 55th Army, being promoted lieutenant colonel on 13 February, and in January 1943 became deputy chief of the artillery of the 55th Army for air defense. in this position he participated in defensive battles in the area of Nevskaya Dubrovka and Kamenka during the Siege of Leningrad.[1][2]
Promoted to colonel on 14 February 1943, Danshin was appointed commander of the
The division, reinforced with tanks and infantry, acted as an assault group during the battle for Belgrade, participating in the capture of the royal palace, parliament building, post and telegraph office, and the military academy. Danshin was promoted to major general of artillery on 18 November. The 22nd supported the raid of the 18th Tank Corps during the Budapest offensive and operated in conjunction with the 5th Guards Tank Army during the Vienna offensive. The division was awarded the Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky, 2nd class, on 26 April 1945 in recognition of its performance in the capture of Pápa and Devecser. From 1943 to the end of the war, the division was credited with destroying 264 aircraft, up to 3 infantry regiments, capturing up to 10,000 soldiers and officers, knocking out 45 tanks, burning three railway echelons, and suppressing the fire of 15 batteries. For his skillful leadership of the division during operations in Hungary and Yugoslavia, Danshin received the Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky, 2nd class, on 28 April 1945, and the Yugoslav Order of Merits for the People, 1st class, in 1946.[1][2]
Postwar
After the end of the war, Danshin was transferred to the Dzerzhinsky Artillery Academy in August 1945, serving as an instructor and senior instructor in the anti-aircraft artillery tactics department. In August 1946 he was sent to the
Awards and decorations
Danshin was a recipient of the following awards and decorations:[1][2]
- Order of Lenin
- Order of the Red Banner (2)
- Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky, 2nd class
- Order of the Patriotic War, 2nd class
- Order of the Red Star
- Medals
- Foreign orders, including the Yugoslav Order of Merits for the People, 1st class
References
Citations
Bibliography
- Golotyuk, Vasily; Tsapayev, Dmitry (2012). Командный состав Войск ПВО Красной Армии в годы Великой Отечественной и советско-японской войн 1941-1945 гг [Command structure of the Red Army Air Defense Troops in the years of the Great Patriotic and Soviet-Japanese wars of 1941-1945] (in Russian). Moscow: ARTKRAS. ISBN 978-5-9903475-2-6.
- Tsapayev, D.A.; et al. (2014). Goremykin, Viktor (ed.). Великая Отечественная: Комдивы. Военный биографический словарь [The Great Patriotic War: Division Commanders. Military Biographical Dictionary] (in Russian). Vol. 2. Moscow: Kuchkovo Pole. ISBN 978-5-9950-0341-0.