Polina Gelman
Polina Gelman | |
---|---|
Native name | Поліна Володимирівна Гельман |
Born | 24 October 1919 Berdychiv, Ukraine |
Died | 25 November 2005 Moscow, Russia | (aged 86)
Allegiance | Soviet Union |
Service/ | Soviet Air Force |
Years of service | 1941–1957 |
Rank | Lieutenant Colonel |
Unit | 46th Taman Guards Night Bomber Aviation Regiment |
Battles/wars | World War II |
Awards | Hero of the Soviet Union |
Polina Vladimirovna Gelman (Russian: Поли́на Влади́мировна Ге́льман, Ukrainian: Поли́на Володи́мирівна Ге́льман; 24 October 1919 – 25 November 2005) was a flight navigator in the all-female 46th Guards Night Bomber Aviation Regiment who was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union in 1946 for having totaled 857 sorties during World War II.
Early life
Born to a working-class
World War II
A history major at MSU at the time of the German invasion of the Soviet Union, Gelman was recruited by
Postwar
Continuing her career as a professional military officer, she was sent for instruction as a military translator, graduating from the Military Institute of Foreign Languages in 1951.[4]
Gelman settled in Moscow following her retirement from active service as a major in 1957, and worked at the Institute of Social Sciences teaching political economy as a college instructor until retiring in 1990. She attained the rank of lieutenant colonel in the reserves. A member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union since 1942, she was sent as an advisor and translator to Cuba.[5] She died in Moscow on 25 November 2005 and was buried in the Novodevichy Cemetery.[6][7]
Honours and awards
- Hero of the Soviet Union (15 May 1946)
- Order of Lenin (15 May 1946)
- Two Orders of the Red Banner (25 October 1943 and 22 May 1945)
- Two Orders of the Patriotic War 1st class (26 April 1944 and 11 March 1985)
- Two Orders of the Red Star (9 September 1945 and 30 December 1956)
- Medal "For Battle Merit" (19 November 1951)
- campaign and jubilee medals
See also
- 46th Guards Night Bomber Regiment
- List of female Heroes of the Soviet Union
- List of Jewish Heroes of the Soviet Union
- Polikarpov Po-2
References
- ^ Cottam 1998, p. 56.
- ^ Simonov & Chudinova 2017, p. 34.
- ^ Simonov & Chudinova 2017, p. 34-35.
- ^ Simonov & Chudinova 2017, p. 35.
- ^ Simonov, Andrey. "Гельман Полина Владимировна" [Gelman, Polina Vladimirovna]. warheroes.ru. Retrieved 2018-01-19.
- ^ a b Simonov & Chudinova 2017, p. 36.
- ^ Cottam 1998, p. 58.
Bibliography
- OCLC 1019634607.
- Cottam, Kazimiera (1998). Women in War and Resistance: Selected Biographies of Soviet Women Soldiers. Newburyport, MA: Focus Publishing/R. Pullins Co. OCLC 228063546.