“Night witches” were called the 46th Guards Women’s Taman Aviation Regiment, which was part of the Air Force Soviet Union. It was formed by order of the People's Commissariat of Defense in 1941. The “night witches” were commanded by the experienced pilot Evdokia Bocharova (Bershanskaya in her first marriage). The regiment's political officer was Maria Runt.

Women's Aviation Regiment

Due to the purely female composition, as well as the name of the commander, male pilots sometimes called the 46th Regiment “Dunkin”. With such a humorous name, female pilots knew how to instill real terror in the enemy. It was the Nazis who called these fearless aces in skirts “night witches.” Pilots trained in Arkhangelsk. On May 27, 1942, the women's regiment arrived at the front consisting of 115 girls, who occupied absolutely all positions in the combat formation.

They were called night “witches” because they were part of the 218th Night Bomber Division and flew only at night. The young ladies received their baptism of fire two weeks after arriving at the front, on June 12. For the exploits that these fragile ladies accomplished, the regiment earned the title “Guards”. At the end of the war, he became part of the 325th, then 2nd divisions. Upon its completion, it was completely disbanded.

The combat path of the “night witches”

The first flight took place in the Salsky steppes region. Then the girls fought on the Don, in the area of ​​the Mius River and the city of Stavropol. At the end of 1942, the 46th women's regiment defended Vladikavkaz. The pilots then took part in severe clashes with the enemy on the Taman Peninsula, where the Red Army and Air Force liberated Novorossiysk.

“Night Witches” took part in the battles for Kuban, the Crimean Peninsula, Belarus and other regions of the Soviet Union. After Soviet troops crossed the border line, the pilots fought on Polish territory for the liberation of the cities of Warsaw, Augustow, and Ostrolenk from the occupiers. At the beginning of 1945, the 46th regiment fought on Prussian territory and in the last months of the war participated in the legendary Vistula-Oder offensive operation.

What did the guards fly and how did they fight?

The “Night Witches” flew on Polikarpov, or Po-2, biplanes. The number of combat vehicles increased in a couple of years from 20 to 45. This aircraft was initially created not for combat at all, but for exercises. It didn’t even have a compartment for air bombs (the shells were hung under the “belly” of the aircraft on special bomb racks). The maximum speed that such a car could reach was 120 km/h.

With such modest weapons, the girls showed miracles of piloting. This is despite the fact that each Po-2 carried the load of a large bomber, often up to 200 kg at a time. The female pilots fought only at night. Moreover, in one night they made several sorties, terrifying enemy positions. The girls did not have parachutes on board, being literally suicide bombers. If a shell hit the plane, their only option was to die heroically.

The pilots loaded the places designated by technology for parachutes with bombs. Another 20 kg of weapons was a serious help in battle. Until 1944, these training aircraft were not equipped with machine guns. Both the pilot and the navigator could control them, so if the first died, his partner could lead the combat vehicle to the airfield.

Merits of female pilots

The girls carried out their sorties very intensively, literally showering enemy positions with a hail of bomb attacks. The breaks between flights were usually only 5 minutes. In one night, each Po-2 made up to ten or more sorties. In the battle for the Caucasus, the girls carried out about 3,000 sorties, for Kuban, Novorossiysk and Taman - more than 4,600, for Crimea - more than 6,000, for Belarus - 400, for Poland - almost 5,500 sorties. Already in Germany, the guards carried out about 2,000 more sorties, thus flying almost 29 thousand hours.

War does not have a woman’s face... This is probably why we look so closely at images of women in war photographs and are interested in their fates in the war. It is women's war stories that are especially touchingly reflected in fiction, and in the cinema. Below we will talk about the aviation regiment, which was formed to fight the fascist invader. “Night witches” - that’s what the enemies called this regiment. All his warriors - from pilots and navigators to technicians - were women.

History of the creation of the 46th Aviation Regiment

In 1941, in the city of Engels, under the personal responsibility of Senior Lieutenant of State Security Marina Paskova, the 46th Guards Night Bomber Women's Aviation Regiment was founded , which in the future was dubbed “Night Witches”.

Marina Raskova is the founder of the women's air regiment.
In 1941, Marina Raskova was 29 years old.

To do this, Mapina had to use her personal resources and personal acquaintance with Stalin. No one really counted on success, but they gave us the go-ahead and provided us with the necessary equipment. Evdokia Bershanskaya, a pilot with ten years of experience, was appointed commander of the regiment. Under her command the regiment fought until the end of the war. Sometimes this regiment was jokingly called “Dunkin’s Regiment,” hinting at its all-female composition, and justified by the name of the regiment commander.
The enemy called the pilots “Night Witches,” who suddenly silently appeared on small planes.

The 46th Guards Taman Regiment is a unique and only unit in the Red Army during the Great Patriotic War. There were three aviation regiments in which women flew: fighter, heavy bomber and light bomber.

Natalya Meklin (Kravtsova), at the age of 20, was enrolled in the air regiment. Hero of the Soviet Union.

The first two regiments were mixed, and only the last, which flew the Po-2 light bomber, was exclusively female. Pilots and navigators, commanders and commissars, instrument operators and electricians, technicians and armed forces, clerks and staff workers - all these were women. And all, even the hardest work was done by women's hands. None of the reinforcements had experience flying at night, so they flew under a canopy that created an imitation of darkness. Soon the regiment was transferred to Krasnodar, and night witches began to fly over the Caucasus.

There were no men in the regiment, so “ feminine spirit“was manifested in everything: the neatness of the uniform, the cleanliness and comfort of the hostel, the culture of leisure, the absence of rude and obscene words, and dozens of other little things. And as for combat work...

Our regiment was sent to carry out the most difficult tasks; we flew until complete physical exhaustion. There were cases when crews were unable to leave the cockpit due to fatigue and had to be helped

The flight lasted about an hour - long enough to reach a target in the immediate enemy rear or front line, drop bombs and return home. For one summer night We managed to make 5-6 combat sorties, in winter - 10-12. We had to work both in the dagger rays of German searchlights and under heavy artillery fire,” recalled Evdokia Rachkevich.

Aircraft and weapons of the “night witches”

The “Night Witches” flew on Polikarpov, or Po-2, biplanes. The number of combat vehicles increased in a couple of years from 20 to 45. This aircraft was initially created not for combat at all, but for exercises. It didn’t even have a compartment for air bombs (the shells were hung under the “belly” of the aircraft on special bomb racks). The maximum speed that such a car could reach was 120 km/h. With such modest weapons, the girls showed miracles of piloting. This is despite the fact that each Po-2 carried the load of a large bomber, often up to 200 kg at a time. The female pilots fought only at night. Moreover, in one night they made several sorties, terrifying enemy positions. The girls did not have parachutes on board, being literally suicide bombers. If a shell hit the plane, their only option was to die heroically. The pilots loaded the places designated by technology for parachutes with bombs. Another 20 kg of weapons was a serious help in battle. Until 1944, these training aircraft were not equipped with machine guns. Both the pilot and the navigator could control them, so if the first died, his partner could lead the combat vehicle to the airfield.

“Our training aircraft was not created for military operations. A wooden biplane with two open cockpits, located one behind the other, and dual controls - for the pilot and navigator. (Before the war, pilots were trained on these machines). Without radio communications and armored backs that could protect the crew from bullets, with a low-power engine that could reach a maximum speed of 120 km/h. The plane did not have a bomb bay; bombs were hung in bomb racks directly under the plane of the plane. There were no sights, we created them ourselves and called them PPR (simpler than a steamed turnip). The amount of bomb cargo varied from 100 to 300 kg. On average we took 150-200 kg. But during the night the plane managed to make several sorties, and the total bomb load was comparable to the load of a large bomber.Machine guns on airplanes also appeared only in 1944. Before this, the only weapons on board were TT pistols.”- the pilots recalled.

IN modern language the plywood bomber Po-2 could be called a stealth aircraft. At night, at low altitude and low level flight, German radars could not detect him. German fighters were afraid to huddle too close to the ground, and often this was what saved the lives of the pilots. That is why the girls from the night bomber regiment received such an ominous nickname - night witches. But if the Po-2 fell into the searchlight beam, it was not difficult to shoot it down.

War. Battle path

After night flights, the stiff girls had difficulty getting to the barracks. They were carried straight from the cabin by their friends, who had already managed to warm up, because their hands and feet, shackled by the cold, did not obey

• During the hostilities, the pilots of the air regiment carried out 23,672 combat missions. The breaks between flights were 5-8 minutes, sometimes during the night the crew made 6-8 flights in the summer and 10-12 in the winter.
• In total, the planes were in the air for 28,676 hours (1,191 full days).
• The pilots dropped more than 3 thousand tons of bombs and 26,000 incendiary shells. The regiment destroyed and damaged 17 crossings, 9 railway trains, 2 railway stations, 26 warehouses, 12 fuel tanks, 176 cars, 86 firing points, 11 searchlights.
• 811 fires and 1092 high-power explosions were caused.
• Also, 155 bags of ammunition and food were dropped to the surrounded Soviet troops.

Before the battle for Novorossiysk, base near Gelendzhik

Until mid-1944, the regiment's crews flew without parachutes, preferring to take an extra 20 kg of bombs with them. But after heavy losses I had to make friends with the white dome. We didn’t do this very willingly - the parachute hampered our movements, and by the morning our shoulders and back ached from the straps.
If there were no night flights, then during the day the girls played chess, wrote letters to their relatives, read, or, gathered in a circle, sang. They also embroidered with the “Bulgarian cross”. Sometimes the girls organized amateur evenings, to which they invited aviators from a neighboring regiment, who also flew at night on low-speed aircraft.

Novorossiysk is taken - the girls are dancing

The regiment's combat losses amounted to 32 people. Despite the fact that the pilots died behind the front line, not one of them is considered missing. After the war, regimental commissar Evdokia Yakovlevna Rachkevich, using money collected by the entire regiment, traveled to all the places where planes had crashed and found the graves of all those killed.

Composition of the regiment

On May 23, 1942, the regiment flew to the front, where it arrived on May 27. Then its number was 115 people - the majority were aged from 17 to 22 years.

Pilots heroes of the Soviet Union - Rufina Gasheva (left) and Natalya Meklin

During the war years, 24 servicemen of the regiment were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

One pilot was awarded the title of Hero of the Republic of Kazakhstan: Guard Art. Lieutenant Dospanova Khiuaz - more than 300 combat missions.

If it were possible to collect flowers from all over the world and lay them at your feet, then even with this we would not be able to express our admiration for the Soviet pilots!

Written by French soldiers of the Normandie-Niemen regiment.

Losses

The irretrievable combat losses of the regiment amounted to 23 people and 28 aircraft. Despite the fact that the pilots died behind the front line, not one of them is considered missing.

After the war, regimental commissar Evdokia Yakovlevna Rachkevich, using money collected by the entire regiment, traveled to all the places where planes had crashed and found the graves of all those killed

The most tragic night in the history of the regiment was the night of August 1, 1943, when four aircraft were lost at once. The German command, irritated by the constant night bombing, transferred a group of night fighters to the regiment's area of ​​operations. This came as a complete surprise to the Soviet pilots, who did not immediately understand why the enemy anti-aircraft artillery was inactive, but one after another the planes caught fire. When it became clear that Messerschmitt Bf.110 night fighters had been launched against them, the flights were stopped, but before that, the German ace pilot, who had only in the morning become a holder of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, Josef Kociok, managed to burn three Soviet bombers in the air along with their crews, on which there were no parachutes.

Another bomber was lost due to anti-aircraft artillery fire. Those who died that night were: Anna Vysotskaya with navigator Galina Dokutovich, Evgenia Krutova with navigator Elena Salikova, Valentina Polunina with navigator Glafira Kashirina, Sofia Rogova with navigator Evgenia Sukhorukova.

However, in addition to combat, there were other losses. So, on August 22, 1943, the regiment’s communications chief, Valentina Stupina, died of tuberculosis in the hospital. And on April 10, 1943, already at the airfield, one plane, landing in the dark, landed directly on another that had just landed. As a result, pilots Polina Makagon and Lida Svistunova died immediately, Yulia Pashkova died from her injuries in the hospital. Only one pilot survived - Khiuaz Dospanova, who received severe injuries - her legs were broken, but after several months of hospitalization the girl returned to duty, although due to improperly fused bones, she became a 2nd group disabled person.
Crews also died before they were sent to the front, in accidents during training.

Photos of female pilots. Night witches. War

1 of 28

Pilots heroes of the Soviet Union - Rushina Gasheva (left) and Natalya Meklin

Novorossiysk is taken - the girls are dancing

Memories of War

Maximum nights

Pilot Marina Chechneva, at the age of 21 became commander of the 4th squadron

Marina Chechneva recalls:
“Flying over the mountains is difficult, especially in the fall. Suddenly, clouds roll in, pressing the plane to the ground, or rather to the mountains, and you have to fly in gorges or over peaks of different heights. Here, every slight turn, the slightest decline threatens disaster, and besides, near the mountain slopes, ascending and descending air currents arise that powerfully pick up the car. In such cases, the pilot is required to have remarkable composure and skill in order to remain at the required altitude...

...These were “maximum nights” when we were in the air for eight to nine hours at a time. After three or four flights, the eyes closed by themselves. While the navigator went to the checkpoint to report on the flight, the pilot slept for several minutes in the cockpit, and meanwhile the armed forces hung bombs, the mechanics refueled the plane with gasoline and oil. The navigator returned, and the pilot woke up...

“Maximum nights” brought us enormous strain of physical and mental strength, and when dawn broke, we, barely moving our legs, walked to the dining room, dreaming of quickly having breakfast and falling asleep. At breakfast we were given some wine, which pilots were entitled to after combat work. But still the dream was disturbing - they dreamed of searchlights and anti-aircraft guns, some had persistent insomnia..."

A feat of mechanics

In their memoirs, the pilots describe the feat of the mechanics who had to work around the clock. Aircraft refueling at night, aircraft maintenance and repairs during the day.

“...The flight lasts about an hour, and mechanics and armed forces are waiting on the ground. They were able to inspect, refuel a plane, and hang bombs in three to five minutes. It’s hard to believe that young, thin girls hung up to three tons of bombs each with their hands and knees, without any equipment, throughout the night. These humble pilot assistants showed true miracles of endurance and skill. What about the mechanics? We worked all night at the start, and during the day we repaired cars and prepared for the next night. There were cases when the mechanic did not have time to jump away from the propeller when starting the engine and her hand was broken...

...And then we introduced a new service system - shift teams on duty. Each mechanic was assigned a specific operation on all planes: meeting, refueling or releasing... Three soldiers were on duty at the cars with bombs. One of the senior AE technicians was in charge.

Fighting nights began to resemble the work of a well-functioning factory assembly line. The plane returning from the mission was ready for a new flight within five minutes. This allowed the pilots to make 10–12 combat missions on some winter nights.”

A minute of rest

“Of course, the girls remained girls: they carried kittens on planes, danced in bad weather at the airfield, right in overalls and fur boots, embroidered forget-me-nots on foot wraps, unraveling blue knitted underpants for this, and cried bitterly if they were suspended from flights.”

The girls made up their own humorous rules.
“Be proud, you are a woman. Look down on men!
Don't push the groom away from his neighbor!
Don't be jealous of your friend (especially if he's dressed up)!
Don't cut your hair. Save femininity!
Don't trample your boots. They won't give you new ones!
Love the drill!
Don't pour it out, give it to a friend!
Don't use foul language!
Don't get lost!"

The pilots in their memoirs describe their baggy uniforms and huge boots. They did not immediately sew uniforms to fit them. Then two types of uniforms appeared - casual with trousers and formal with a skirt.
Of course, they flew out on missions in trousers; the uniform with a skirt was intended for ceremonial meetings of the command. Of course, the girls dreamed of dresses and shoes.

“After the formation, the entire command gathered at our headquarters, we reported to the commander about our work and our problems, including the huge tarpaulin boots... He was also not very pleased with our trousers. And after some time, they took everyone’s measurements and sent us brown tunics with blue skirts and red chrome boots - American ones. They only let water through like a blotter.
For a long time after this, our uniform with Tyulenevskaya skirts was considered, and we put it on according to the order of the regiment: “Dress uniform.” For example, when they received the Guards Banner. Of course, it was inconvenient to fly in skirts, or hang bombs, or clean the engine ... "

In moments of relaxation, the girls liked to embroider:
“In Belarus, we began to actively “get sick” of embroidery, and this continued until the end of the war. It started with forget-me-nots. Oh, what beautiful forget-me-nots you would get if you unraveled the blue knitted pants and embroidered flowers on thin summer foot wraps! You can make a napkin from this and use it for a pillowcase. This disease, like chickenpox, took over the entire regiment...

During the day I come to the dugout to see the armed forces. The rain has soaked her through, pouring from every crack, and there are puddles on the floor. In the middle there is a girl standing on a chair and embroidering some kind of flower. Only there are no colored threads. And I wrote to my sister in Moscow: “I have a very important request to you: send me colored threads, and if you could make a gift to our women and send more. Our girls care deeply about every thread and use every rag for embroidery. You will do a great job, and everyone will be very grateful.” From the same letter: “And this afternoon we have a company: I’m sitting embroidering forget-me-nots, Bershanskaya is embroidering roses, cross-stitching, Anka is embroidering poppies, and Olga is reading aloud to us. There was no weather..."

Memory and newsreel about the 46th Aviation Regiment

Poems about night witch pilots

Under snow, rain and in good weather
With your wings you cut the darkness above the ground.
"Night Witches" on "Heavenly Slugs"
They are bombing fascist positions in the rear.

Also in terms of age and temperament - girls...
It's time to fall in love and be loved.
You hid your bangs under the pilot's helmets
And they rushed into the sky to beat the enemy of the Fatherland.

And immediately take off into the darkness from the desks of flying clubs
Without a parachute and without a gun, only with a TT.
You probably loved the starry sky.
You are always on top even at low level.

For your fighters you are “heavenly creatures”,
And for strangers - “night witches” on Po-2.
You brought fear over the Don and Taman,
Yes, and on the Oder there was a rumor about you.

Not everyone, not everyone will return from the night battle.
Sometimes the wings and body are worse than a sieve.
Miraculously, we landed with a pile of enemy holes.
Patches - during the day, and at night again - “From the screw!”

As soon as the sun sets in its hangar for a third and
The winged apparatus will be serviced by technicians,
The “night witches” are taking off along the runway,
To create a Russian hell for the Germans on earth.

Song from the film "Night Witches in the Sky"

Watch the film “Night Witches in the Sky” (1981)

“Night Witches” or “Night Swallows” TV series 2012

This is a film about women in aviation who fought in the Red Army during the Great Patriotic War along with men.
The cast is not bad, the acting is also good.

June 1942 was difficult for the Red Army. German troops developed an offensive on the southern wing of the Soviet - German front. At this time, the command of the 218th Night Bomber Aviation Division introduced the 588th Night Light Bomber Aviation Regiment into battle. The regiment began combat work, striking German lines in the south of Donbass in the area of ​​the Mius River. A fierce battle broke out here for the approaches to the Kuban and the North Caucasus.

The first to fly out on a combat mission were 3 crews - regiment commander E. D. Bershanskaya with regiment navigator Sofia Burzaeva and squadron commanders Serafima Amosova with navigator Larisa Rozanova and Lyubov Olkhovskaya with navigator Vera Tarasova. The entire regiment accompanied them. It was June 8, 1942. The first bombs with the inscription “For the Motherland!” fell on the heads of the enemies. The pilots, maneuvering in the night sky, broke through the curtain of anti-aircraft fire and completed the mission. However, the crew of L. Olkhovskaya and V. Tarasova were seriously wounded by the explosion of an enemy shell; they tried to reach their airfield, but were forced to land. Residents found them dead. In place of those killed, the excellent pilot Dina Nikulina was appointed squadron commander and the navigator, a former student of the Faculty of Mechanics and Mathematics of Moscow University, Zhenya Rudneva. On the eve of the first combat mission, many girls, including Dina Nikulina and Zhenya Rudneva, submitted applications asking for admission to the ranks of the Communist Party.

The next night, the entire 588th Regiment - 20 crews - took off. The first massive raid on the enemy was dedicated to the memory of fallen combat friends.

Day after day (more precisely, night after night), the pilots of the 588th regiment increased their attacks on the Nazi invaders. With the onset of darkness and until dawn, bombs flew onto the heads of enemies. Until the summer of 1944, crews flew without parachutes, preferring instead to take with them an extra 20 kilograms of bombs. The small U-2 terrified the enemy, and already in 1942, German pilots and anti-aircraft gunners were often awarded the Iron Cross for each downed “maize plant.”

During the war, the number of personnel in the regiment increased from 112 to 190 people, and the number of combat vehicles - from 20 to 45 aircraft. The regiment finished its combat journey with 36 combat aircraft. During the battles, the combat skills and flying skills of the girls were improved.

Every night they made several sorties to bomb the enemy, bringing the combat load to the maximum limit. When breaking through enemy defenses on the Narew River near Warsaw, the regiment flew 324 sorties in one night. Night flights and constant danger required great exertion of physical and moral strength. But no one tarnished the honor of their regiment.

The 588th regiment began its combat journey in the Salsky steppes and ended it on the territory fascist Germany. Brave female pilots destroyed enemy crossings and defensive structures, destroyed enemy equipment and manpower. The regiment took part in offensive operations in the Mozdok area, on the Terek River and the Kuban, contributed to the liberation of Sevastopol, Mogilev, Bialystok, Warsaw, Gdynia, Gdansk (Danzig), and assisted ground units in breaking through enemy defenses on the Oder. For successful fighting In breaking through the strong defensive zone "Blue Line" on the Taman Peninsula, the regiment received the honorary name "Taman".

For the exemplary performance of combat missions of the command for the defense of the North Caucasus, the regiment was awarded the highest military honor: in February 1943 it was reorganized into the 46th Guards NBAP. For the liberation of Crimea and the Kerch Peninsula and the courage and heroism shown, he was awarded the Order of the Red Banner, and for the liberation of Poland and the defeat of the enemy in East Prussia - the Order of Suvorov, 3rd degree. In February 1945, the Komsomol Central Committee awarded the Komsomol organization of the regiment with a Certificate of Honor.

During the war, the 46th Guards Taman Night Light Bomber Aviation Regiment was transformed from a 2-squadron regiment into a 3-squadron regiment, and then a 4-squadron regiment. This restructuring, which contributed to the intensification of attacks on the enemy, caused the need to replenish new personnel of pilots, technicians and armed forces. This task was successfully solved. During the war, the regiment received 95 people as reinforcements. Of these, and mainly from among the former personnel directly in a combat situation on our own 36 pilots, 35 navigators and 8 aircraft mechanics were trained. In addition, specialists of this profile arrived in the regiment and as part of the specified replenishment. A number of navigators were retrained as pilots, and mechanics and military personnel mastered the specialty of navigators.

Each combat mission was a test of will, courage, and devotion to our Motherland. On the way to many targets, the slow-moving U-2, lacking armor protection, was met by the enemy with dense anti-aircraft fire. The pilots required true art, skill and perseverance to break through the curtain of fire and complete the combat mission.

The regiment lost 28 aircraft, 13 pilots and 10 navigators from enemy fire. Among the dead were squadron commanders O. A. Sanfirova, P. A. Makogon, L. Olkhovskaya, air unit commander T. Makarova, regiment navigator E. M. Rudneva, squadron navigators V. Tarasova and L. Svistunova. Among dead Heroes Soviet Union E. I. Nosal, O. A. Sanfirova, V. L. Belik, E. M. Rudneva.

During the war, the regiment inflicted enormous damage to enemy personnel and equipment. The brave pilots carried out 23,672 combat sorties at night and dropped 2,902,980 kg of bomb load and 26,000 ampoules of flammable liquid on the heads of enemies. According to far from complete data, the regiment destroyed and damaged 17 crossings, 9 railway trains, 2 railway stations, 46 ammunition and fuel warehouses, 12 fuel tanks, 1 aircraft, 2 barges, 76 vehicles, 86 firing points, 11 searchlights. 811 fires and 1092 high-power explosions were caused in the enemy camp. The pilots dropped 155 bags of ammunition and food to our surrounded troops. The aircraft of the 46th Guards Taman Order of the Red Banner and the Order of Suvorov Aviation Regiment were in combat flights for 28,676 hours, in other words, 1191 full days without a break. This was a great contribution of Soviet patriots to the defeat of the enemy.

During the war years, 23 servicemen of the regiment were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union:

Guard senior lieutenant Aronova Raisa Ermolaevna - 960 combat missions. Awarded on May 15, 1946.
- Guard senior lieutenant Vera Lukyanovna Belik - 813 combat missions. Awarded posthumously on February 23, 1945.
- Guard senior lieutenant Rufina Sergeevna Gasheva - 848 combat missions. Awarded on February 23, 1945.
- Guard senior lieutenant Polina Vladimirovna Gelman - 860 combat missions. Awarded on May 15, 1946.
- Guard senior lieutenant Zhigulenko Evgenia Andreevna - 968 combat missions. Awarded on February 23, 1945.
- Guard Captain Litvinova (Rozanova) Larisa Nikolaevna - 793 combat missions. Awarded on February 23, 1948.
- Guard senior lieutenant Tatyana Petrovna Makarova - 628 combat missions. Awarded posthumously on February 23, 1945.
- Guard senior lieutenant Natalya Fedorovna Meklin - 980 combat missions. Awarded on February 23, 1945.
- Guard captain Nikulina Evdokia Andreevna - 760 combat missions. Awarded on October 26, 1944.
- Guard Lieutenant Evdokia Ivanovna Nosal - 354 combat missions. Awarded posthumously on May 24, 1943.
- Guard senior lieutenant Zoya Ivanovna Parfyonova - 739 combat missions. Awarded on August 18, 1945.
- Guard senior lieutenant Evdokia Borisovna Pasko - 790 combat missions. Awarded on October 26, 1944.
- Guard captain Anastasia Vasilievna Popova - 852 combat missions. Awarded on February 23, 1945.
- Guard senior lieutenant Raspopova Nina Maksimovna - 805 combat missions. Awarded on May 15, 1946.
- Guard Lieutenant Rudneva Evgenia Maksimovna - 645 combat missions. Awarded posthumously on October 26, 1944.
- Guard senior lieutenant Ekaterina Vasilievna Ryabova - 890 combat missions. Awarded on February 23, 1945.
- Guard captain Olga Aleksandrovna Sanfirova - 630 combat missions. Awarded posthumously on February 23, 1945.
- Guard senior lieutenant Sebrova Irina Fedorovna - 1004 combat missions. Awarded on February 23, 1945.
- Guard captain Maria Vasilievna Smirnova - 950 combat sorties. Awarded on October 26, 1944.
- Guard senior lieutenant Syrtlanova Maguba Guseinovna - 782 combat missions. Awarded on May 15, 1946.
- Guard senior lieutenant Ulyanenko Nina Zakharovna - 915 combat missions. Awarded on August 18, 1945.
- Guard senior lieutenant Antonina Fedorovna Khudyakova - 926 combat missions. Awarded on May 15, 1946.
- Guard captain Marina Pavlovna Chechneva - 810 combat missions. Awarded on May 15, 1946.

In 1994 - 1995, 2 more former navigators of the regiment received the title of Hero of Russia:

Guard senior lieutenant Akimova Alexandra Fedorovna - 680 combat missions. Awarded on December 31, 1994.
- Guard senior lieutenant Tatyana Nikolaevna Sumarokova - 725 combat missions. Awarded on October 11, 1995.

One pilot was awarded the title of Hero of the Republic of Kazakhstan:

Guard senior lieutenant Khiuaz Kairovna Dospanova - more than 300 combat missions. Awarded on December 7, 2004.

* * *

OUR FAVORITE COMMANDER

“Today, on International Women’s Day, we are summing up some preliminary results of our work, the work of the pilots. Almost all of us have been at the front since the first days of the Patriotic War, destroying German invaders from the air.

We girls made 20,000 combat missions, spent 25,000 hours in the air and from there dropped a deadly load on the heads of the enemy.

Our 46th Guards Night Bomber Aviation Taman Regiment has come a long way. Many of us took part in the defense of the North Caucasus. We crushed the enemy in Kuban, Taman, on the Kerch and Crimean peninsulas, in Belarus, fought for the liberation of Poland, and now we are delivering blow after blow to the Nazis in Eastern Pomerania.

For exemplary performance of command tasks, the regiment was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. About 200 people from the regiment were awarded orders and medals, including two orders - 60 people, three - 30 people, and 10 people - four times order bearers. Recently, 13 pilots of the regiment were awarded the high title of Hero of the Soviet Union, 4 of them posthumously.

E. D. Bershanskaya.

Our regiment was repeatedly named in the orders of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief. Just the day before yesterday, the order noted that the pilots of Lieutenant Colonel E.D. Bershanskaya distinguished themselves in battles.

Evdokia Davydovna Bershanskaya - regiment commander. We owe much of our success to her. From the first days of World War II, she skillfully commanded our night bomber aviation regiment. Evdokia Bershanskaya graduated from the aviation pilot school in 1932, in 1933 she was already a pilot - a school instructor, then a flight commander, squad leader. And so, step by step, she reached the regiment commander.

We love our commander. We believe her. She herself sets an example of heroism and courage. She loves flying and has flown about 3,000 hours. Personally carried out 20 combat missions. And in each such flight she destroyed many enemies. As a commander, she gives great attention training of flight and navigator personnel and aircraft navigation at night.

Our regiment is formed of volunteer girls who have never served in the Red Army before. And here, in combat conditions, on the battlefield, Evdokia Davydovna Bershanskaya, as a regiment commander, managed to rally a friendly team that enjoys good reputation among the regiments of our aviation division.

We took a solemn oath to beat the enemy even harder. We keep our word. Without sparing lives, we deal him blow after blow.

The Nazis contemptuously called our plane “Russ - plywood”. But on their backs and heads they felt the power of our magnificent aircraft. Soon "Russ - plywood" will appear over Berlin. There's not long to wait."

This letter from the Heroes of the Soviet Union to Guard Major Evdokia Nikulina and Guard Senior Lieutenant Rufina Gasheva was published in the Pravda newspaper on March 8, 1945.

(From the collection "Victory Banners", volume 1, Pravda Publishing House, Moscow, 1975.)
A participant in the Great Patriotic War, deputy squadron commander of the 46th Guards Women's Night Bomber Regiment of the 4th Air Army of the 2nd Belorussian Front, Hero of the Soviet Union, guard reserve major Nadezhda Vasilyevna Popova died in Moscow on July 8 at the age of 92.

After graduating from school in the city of Stalino (now Donetsk), Nadezhda Popova studied at the flying club, and in 1939 she came to Moscow to become a military pilot. I met the Hero of the Soviet Union Polina Osipenko, who contributed to Popova’s direction to the Kherson aviation school of OSOAVIAKHIM, then to the military aviation school. In May 1942, Nadezhda Popova flew to the front as part of the 588th Night Bomber Women's Aviation Regiment.

German soldiers called the Po-2 night bombers, piloted by girls, “night witches.” Pilots of the 46th Guards Women's Night Bomber Regiment at that time fought in Ukraine, Crimea, Belarus, Poland and in Nazi Germany.

Nadezhda Popova carried out 852 combat missions. On February 23, 1945, in the decree conferring the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, the surnames of her and her future husband Semyon Kharlamov were separated by only a few lines, and they always considered their wedding day to be May 10, 1945, when they signed one by one on the Reichstag: “Semyon Kharlamov, Saratov", "Nadya Popova from Donbass".

It is believed that Nadezhda and Semyon became the prototypes of Masha and Romeo from Leonid Bykov’s film “Only Old Men Go to Battle” - Semyon Kharlamov was a consultant for the film. Fortunately, their love story, unlike the on-screen characters, had a happy continuation.

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Nadezhda Popova: “The Germans thought that we all smoked and drank... But we were all clean girls.” Last interview.

“Our whole family is Heroes...” With her husband, General Semyon Kharlamov.

She flew through the entire war, the “night witch” - a pilot of the legendary women’s regiment

I’ve been calling Nadezhda Popova all April, trying to get a date, but the receiver coquettishly answers: “I’m now addicted: not to love, but to the weather...” All April there was bad weather, she’s 90, she fell while getting out of bed and was badly injured: she had to call the Ministry of Emergency Situations and break the door, to save... Meanwhile, everyone asks Nadezhda Popova - just about love. Especially on the eve of Victory. They say that this is her story with her husband - the story of Masha and Romeo from the film “Only “old men” go into battle.” Only Nadya and Senya, unlike the movie characters, survived.

I arrive without calling, listen to her story, which has been repeated without variation for many years for different audiences, and I think: what if it’s in last time? She has it. And that means for me too... Who will tell me about the war when all its heroes leave and only cinema remains?

"Women's Unit"

Nadezhda Vasilyevna has a manicure, snow-white curls and Blue eyes. She has already forgotten where I am from, but she remembers how a gypsy prophesied in childhood: “You will be happy”; remembers how, as a girl, she waited for her father’s salary so that she could eat sweets once a month, and how everyone school years their Donetsk, then Stalino, along with the whole country, was covered with waves coming from the black dish of the radio point. These waves made me feel an ache somewhere in my chest: Papanin’s people! Chkalovites! Stakhanovites! “It was a touch of feat...”

At the age of 19, after flying school, she wrote a report about being sent to the front and ended up in a night bomber regiment. The nickname “night witches”, which the Germans awarded, only flattered them:

The Germans thought that we all smoked, drank, that we were fine prisoners, just out of prison... But we were all clean girls, 240 people. The navigators were girls, the mechanics were girls, the four of them hung the hundred-kilogram bombs. They slept under the wings of airplanes, in canvas bags, in twos, in an embrace... They ignored the men: they thought they brought trouble, and the regiment was kept as a purely female unit.

But they sang in those very rare moments of calm: “Ducks and two geese are flying, I can’t wait for the one I love...”

She waited - in the middle of the war. Sena Kharlamov was 20 years old, and on that day - in the summer

On the 42nd, somewhere near Rostov, he also experienced a feat: he was shot down, he was burning, he fell, but he did not abandon the plane. “Why did you take such a risk?” - “I felt sorry for the car!” The bullet was stuck in the cheek, the thigh was pierced, and the nose was cut off by shrapnel. They operated under “crikaine” - the recipe: a glass of alcohol and her own scream... Nadezhda Vasilievna remembers their meeting, and her voice rises a tone higher than when talking about the Stakhanovites, even higher, even hotter - she had already forgotten that today the pressure was again.

The Germans said about us: “Rusish Schwein!” It was so offensive! What kind of pig am I? I am beautiful! I have a tablet over my shoulder, a pistol, a rocket launcher in my belt... That day I was delivering a package to the command, and I accidentally found out that a wounded pilot was being transported in an ambulance - and I went to look. But there was nothing to look at: the whole head was in bandages, only a crack brown eyes mischievous and lips - plump, unkissed... I felt so sorry for him: how could he be like this, without a nose... We talked, I liked his eyes - playful, but then there was no time for any such thoughts: there was a retreat to the east... I said goodbye: “Senya, goodbye, write.”

He didn't write. I just found her one day on the roads of war: their women’s regiment was flying from a “male” airfield - almost like in the movie, in which Masha (actress Evgenia Simonova) made an emergency landing at the airfield of the “singing squadron.”

My mechanic comes running to me: “Comrade commander, a man is asking for you!” And my plane is already taking off. And it turns out it’s really him, Senya, whose top I only managed to really see from under the bandages!.. And here he is entirely. “So it turns out you have a nose!”

In the cabin of her “heavenly slow-moving vehicle” there were apples - the regiment stood in the orchards, a flask with combat hundred grams, which were given out after night flights: “I didn’t drink, I gave everything to him - and flew away.”

Masha and Romeo from the film died on the same day - maybe on the same apple day...

And Nadya Popova is a guard captain, 852 combat missions during the entire war!!! - and Semyon Kharlamov met each other’s names more than once on the pages of newspapers, as if they were saying hello to each other, until one day, on February 23, 1945, they agreed on the front page, in the decree conferring the title of Hero of the Soviet Union: in the column of their surnames separated only by the order of the letters of the alphabet - and it was already clear to the heart that this was fate.

And we always considered our wedding day to be May 10, 1945, when we signed one after another on the Reichstag: “Semyon Kharlamov, Saratov”, “Nadya Popova from Donbass” - this was our marriage registration...

“Really just pots?!”

With her son under her heart, she flew until the 9th month, moving after the Victory to serve with her husband in the regiment. Semyon Kharlamov rose to the rank of general, high rank, and was deputy air marshal Pokryshkin. Consulted Leonid Bykov during the filming of “Only “old men” go into battle.” “Bykov, short, looked at my husband like he was a god, and Senya joked all the time.” Their best years came during the war...

When the reduction of the army began in Khrushchev’s times, I quit my job and was horrified: “Are there really only pots now?!”

Instead of pots, she was a deputy and was a member of the Soviet Women's Committee and the Peace Committee. Met with the Belgian Queen:

Are you like Tereshkova? - asked the queen, nodding at the star and straps on her chest.

No, I'm like Popova.

Widowed in 1990. “Believe me, in all these years I haven’t said anything like that to my Senechka...” Left behind is a son, also a general, two grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

She sleeps poorly due to bad weather, watches TV at night and eats ice cream. After the fall, rescue from the Ministry of Emergency Situations and the hospital, he walks around the house one step at a time, using a walker. Calls the girls. I thought they were discussing illnesses, but: “We are all politically savvy, and now we are outraged by the story with Bout: it’s a shame that they think badly about Russian weapons!”

From the girls last year to the park Bolshoi Theater seven people came. Two died this year. "Tanya Maslennikova and Klava Ryzhkova." The rest are suspended on thin strings of telephone wires and do not leave the house. They don't parade. Carnations are not placed at the Eternal Flame.

Nadezhda Vasilievna Popova presses a manicured finger to her pale lips with small wrinkles: “I wish that on May 9 I will go to the parade!..”

Still holds a punch. Night witch.

Author: Polina Ivanushkina
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How many heroic deeds our ancestors performed during the Great Patriotic War. Soviet women took part in the fight against the enemy on an equal basis with men, and even young girls. Several years before the Nazi offensive, it was deployed in the vastness of the Soviet Union mass training youth in flying clubs. The profession of a pilot was so romantic and attractive that not only enthusiastic young men, but also girls aspired to the sky. As a result, by June 1941 the country had a staff of young pilots, this circumstance once again refutes the assertions that the USSR was completely unprepared for war, and the country’s leadership did not expect an attack.

In October 1941, in a difficult military situation, the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR issued an order to form the women's aviation regiment No. 0099. Responsibility for the execution of the order was assigned to Maria Raskova. In their interviews, the surviving female front-line soldiers speak of Raskova as the most authoritative person in their midst. Her orders were not discussed; young girls who came from different parts of the country, who had just completed pilot courses, looked at Raskova as a pilot of an unattainable level. By that time, Raskova was a little over twenty-five years old, but even then Maria Mikhailovna was a Hero of the USSR. An amazing, brave and very beautiful woman died in 1943 in a plane crash in difficult weather conditions near the village of Mikhailovka in the Saratov region. Maria Raskova was cremated, and the urn with her ashes was placed in the Kremlin wall so that grateful descendants could lay flowers and honor the memory of the woman hero.

In accordance with the order of the People's Commissar of Defense, Maria Mikhailovna formed three units:
Fighter Aviation Regiment 586;
aviation regiment BB 587;
night aviation regiment 588 (legendary “night witches”).

The first two units became mixed during the war; not only girls, but also Soviet men fought valiantly in them. The night aviation regiment consisted exclusively of women; even the heaviest work here was performed by the fairer sex.

At the head of the “night witches” or 46th Guards NBP was the experienced pilot Evdokia Bershanskaya. Evdokia Davydovna was born in the Stavropol Territory in 1913. Her parents died during the period Civil War, and the girl was raised by her uncle. This woman's strong character allowed her to become brilliant pilot and commander. By the beginning of the war, Evdokia Bershanskaya already had ten years of flying experience, and she diligently passed on her knowledge to her young subordinates. Evdokia Davydovna went through the entire war, and after that she worked for a long time in public organizations for the benefit of the Fatherland.

Regiment commander Evdokia Davydovna Bershanskaya and regiment navigator Hero of the Soviet Union Larisa Rozanova. 1945

The regiment entrusted to Bershanskaya was sometimes called “Dunkin”. This name reveals the whole history of brave female pilots. Plywood, lungs Po-2 aircraft were not at all suitable for fierce battles with the German invaders. The Germans openly laughed at the sight of this fragile structure. Often the girls were not taken seriously, and throughout the war they had to prove their skills and demonstrate the capabilities of the “whatnot”. The risk was extremely great, since Po-2 fast caught fire and was completely devoid of any armor or other type of protection. Po-2 is a civil aircraft used for transport purposes, as well as in the field of communications. The girls independently suspended the bomb load on special beams on the lower plane of the aircraft, which sometimes exceeded 300 kg. Each shift could carry a weight reaching a ton. The girls worked under extreme pressure, which allowed them to fight the enemy on equal terms with men. If earlier the Germans laughed at the mention of the “Kuban bookcase,” then after the raids they began to call the regiment “night witches” and attribute to them magical properties. Probably, the fascists simply could not imagine that Soviet girls were capable of such feats.

Maria Runt, a native of Samara and the same age as Bershanskaya, was responsible for party work in the regiment of girls studying flying in the city of Engels. She was an experienced and courageous bomber pilot who patiently shared her experience with the younger generation. Before and after the war, Runt worked pedagogical work and even defended her Ph.D. dissertation.

The PO-2 combat aircraft, on which the regiment's crews flew to bomb the Nazis

The baptism of fire of the 46th Guards National Guard took place in mid-June 1942. Lungs 2 each took off into the sky. Pilot Bershanskaya and navigator Sofia Burzaeva, as well as Amosova and Rozanova, went on the first flight. According to the stories of the pilots, the expected fire from the enemy position did not come and the crew of Amosov-Rozanov circled three times over the given target - the mine - to drop the deadly load. Today we can judge the events of that time only from documents and a few interviews with direct participants in combat missions. In 1994, Larisa Rozanova, navigator, born in 1918, son of the hero of the USSR Aronova, and Olga Yakovleva, navigator, spoke about the exploits of the women's air regiment. They describe all the difficulties and horrors of war that fragile Soviet girls had to face, as well as the heroic pilots and navigators who died.

It should be said separately about each of those who, in the light Po-2s, terrified the invaders. Larisa Rozanova was refused several times to her requests to be sent to the front. After order No. 0099 was issued, Rozanova ended up in a flight school in the city of Engels, and then in the 46th Guards. During the war she flew over Stavropol Territory and Kuban, soared on her light Po-2 over Northern Caucasus and Novorossiysk. Rozanova contributed to the liberation of Poland and Belarus and celebrated the victory in Germany. Larisa Nikolaevna died in 1997, having lived a long and interesting life.

Flight commander Tanya Makarova and navigator Vera Belik. 1942 Posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union

Olga Yakovleva went from a soldier to a navigator, participated in the battles with the invaders for the Caucasus, as well as in the liberation of Crimea, Kuban and Belarus. The brave woman carried out well-aimed bomb attacks on enemy targets in East Prussia.

The regiment's combat path is a series of glorious exploits, to which each of the “night witches” made a contribution. Despite the formidable name that the Nazis gave to the women's air regiment, for the Russian people they will forever remain noble conquerors of the sky. After the first combat mission took place, the young girls lungs They fought on plywood “shelves” for a long time. From August to December 1942 they defended Vladikavkaz. In January 1943, the regiment was sent to help break through the line of German troops on the Terek, as well as to support offensive operations in the area of ​​​​Sevastopol and Kuban. From March to September of the same year, the girls undertook operations on the Blue Front Line, and from November to May 1944 they covered the landing of Soviet forces on the Taman Peninsula. The regiment was involved in actions to break through the fascist defenses near Kerch, in the village of Eltigen, as well as in the liberation of Sevastopol and Crimea. From June to July 1944, the women's aviation regiment was thrown into battle on the Pronya River, and from August of the same year it flew flights across the territory of occupied Poland. From the beginning of 1945, the girls were transferred to East Prussia, where the “night witches” on PO-2 successfully fought and supported the crossing of the Narew River. March 1945 is marked in the history of the valiant regiment by its participation in the liberation battles for Gdansk and Gdynia, and from April to May, brave female pilots supported the advance of the Soviet Army behind the retreating fascists. Over the entire period, the regiment flew over twenty-three thousand combat missions, most of which took place in difficult conditions. On October 15, 1945, the regiment was disbanded, and the bulk of the girls were demobilized.

Twenty-three brave pilots of the 49th Women's Aviation Regiment were awarded the title of Hero of the USSR. Evdokia Nosal, a native of the Zaporozhye region, was killed by a shell that exploded in the cabin in the battles for Novorossiysk. Evgenia Rudneva, also from Zaporozhye, died in April 1944 on a combat mission in the sky north of Kerch. Tatyana Makarova, a 24-year-old Muscovite, burned to death on a plane in 1944 in the battles for Poland. Vera Belik, a girl from the Zaporozhye region, died along with Makarova in the sky over Poland. Olga Sanfirova, born in 1917 in the city of Kuibyshev, died in December 1944 on a combat mission. Maria Smirnova from the Tver region, a smiling Karelian, retired with the rank of guard major, lived a long life and died in 2002. Evdokia Pasko is a girl from Kyrgyzstan, born in 1919, who retired with the rank of senior lieutenant. Irina Sebrova from the Tula region, since 1948 senior lieutenant in the reserve. Natalya Meklin, a native of the Poltava region, also survived bloody battles and retired with the rank of guard major, died in 2005. Evgenia Zhigulenko, a resident of Krasnodar, with beautiful eyes and an open smile, also became a Hero of the USSR in 1945. Evdokia Nikulina, native Kaluga region, joined the guard reserve as a major and after the war lived until 1993. Raisa Aronova, a girl from Saratov, retired as a major and died in 1982. Antonia Khudyakova, Nina Ulyanenko, Polina Gelman, Ekaterina Ryabova, Nadezhda Popova, Nina Raspolova, Rufina Gasheva, Syrtlanova Maguba, Larisa Rozanova, Tatyana Sumarokova, Zoya Parfenova, Khivaz Dospanova and Alexandra Akimova also became heroes of the USSR in the valiant 49th Aviation Regiment.

Checking machine guns. Left st. weapons technician of the 2nd squadron Nina Buzina. 1943

About each of these great women, as well as about other girls who served in the 49th regiment, called “night witches” by the Nazis, you can write not only an article, but also a book. Each of them has passed a difficult path and is worthy of memory and respect. Soviet women They did not fight for the party or for Soviet power, they fought for our future, for the right of subsequent generations to live free.

In 2005, a literary “creation” called “Field Wives” was published, the authors of which are certain Olga and Oleg Greig. Not to mention this scandalous fact, which is the product of attempts to interpret historical truth, would be criminal. The mentioned “creators”, the writer has no desire to call them proudly, tried to denigrate the bright memory of heroic women with allegations of their sexual promiscuity and other vices. In refutation of the shameful and narrow-minded speculation, I would like to remind you that not a single fighter of the 49th Women's Aviation Regiment left the ranks due to gynecological diseases or pregnancy. We will not deny that, based on the real story of Nadya Popova and Semyon Kharlamov, the love story was highlighted in the film “Only Old Men Go to Battle,” but people with stable moral values ​​perfectly understand the differences between sexual promiscuity and high feelings.

Heroes of the Soviet Union: Tanya Makarova, Vera Belik, Polya Gelman, Katya Ryabova, Dina Nikulina, Nadya Popova. 1944

The war is over. Girls in the parking lot of their "swallows". Ahead of Serafim Amosov is the deputy. regiment commander, followed by Hero of the Soviet Union Natasha Meklin. 1945

Heroes of the Soviet Union squadron commander Maria Smirnova and navigator Tatyana Sumarokova. 1945

Heroes of the Soviet Union Nadezhda Popova and Larisa Rozanova. 1945

In the Second world war Not only young seventeen-year-old boys, but also female students went to the front. Young beauties who just yesterday were preparing for exams, dating guys and dreaming of wedding dress, today they fought for the lives of their compatriots and the freedom of the Motherland. Some of the brave girls became a military nurse, some became a scout, some became a machine gunner, and some became a military pilot. They fought against fascism along with men, often in the same regiment.

"Night Witches"

The most famous and at the same time the only women's regiment in Russian and world history is the 46th Guards Women's Night Bomber Regiment, affectionately called regular army Soviet Union “Dunka Regiment” and fearfully nicknamed “Night Witches” by fascist soldiers.

At first, the “Night Witches” evoked only contemptuous laughter from the German army, since they flew on plywood U-2 planes, which, in the event of a direct hit, were not difficult to shoot down. However, during the battles, the fearless warriors were able to show what they were worth, inspiring the enemy horror of “night swallows” (that’s what the girls called their planes).

The Women's Night Bomber Aviation Regiment made an invaluable contribution to the victory.

"U-2" - a cardboard corn truck or a combat "Heavenly Slug"?

“U-2” and “Po-2” are light plywood airplanes, the hulls of which were not protected from hits from large-caliber weapons. They caught fire at the slightest contact with fire. Slow cars, whose speed limit was just above 100 km/h, gained altitude up to 500 meters, but in the skillful hands of female pilots they turned into a formidable weapon.

As darkness fell, the 46th Women's Aviation Regiment of night bombers appeared out of nowhere and bombarded enemy positions.

The Germans were afraid of girls and endowed the 46th regiment with supernatural abilities, not believing that, flying on such primitive devices, ordinary person can achieve such results. However, few people knew how hard it was for the pilots to maintain their fantastic image. After all for a long time, in order to fit a larger number of bombs on board the “swallows”, the girls did not even take parachutes with them, and only had TT weapons with them. In the second half of the war, pistols were replaced by machine guns, which significantly increased the pilots' ability to defend and resist. But, even despite the improvement of weapons, when caught in the spotlight, the “Heavenly Slugs” had no chance.

During the night, the planes flown by the 46th Guards Women's Night Bomber Regiment made eight sorties, and on long winter evenings their number doubled. The regiment's mechanics, who, by the way, were also women, patched up the broken and burnt parts of the plywood “shelves” in a matter of hours, and the warriors set off on their mission again.

Who knows, maybe the 46th Women's Aviation Regiment really enjoyed favor higher powers? How else can we explain the fact that the “night swallows” returned to the airfield in a condition in which any other plane would not have flown even five meters?

The world-famous experienced pilot Marina Raskova saw the bombers in the plywood U-2s.

Baptism of fire of the "Tamansky" regiment

The operation to break through the Blue Line can be considered a real baptism of fire for the girls. This was the name of the fighting in Novorossiysk. Having liberated the Taman Peninsula, the 46th Guards Women's Night Bomber Regiment, a photo of which you can find in any world history textbook, received the nickname “Tamansky”.

The battles here were the bloodiest operation in the entire history of the Night Witches. The regiment suffered invaluable losses: 11 heavenly Valkyries gave their lives for the freedom of Novorossiysk.

On the last night of July 1943 alone, in the rays of a searchlight, the regiment lost 8 soldiers and 4 crew.

Marina Mikhailovna Raskova

Marina Mikhailovna Raskova was born on March 28, 1912. Her father was a singing teacher, and the girl, gifted with musical talent, wanted to become an opera singer. But fate decided otherwise - the breadwinner in the Raskov family died. To help her mother and younger brother, upon reaching the age of sixteen, Marina went to work at the Butyrsky chemical plant. A year later, a fateful change of profession occurred in the life of the future pilot - the girl got a job as a laboratory assistant at the Zhukovsky Air Force Academy.

The job she agreed to out of desperation grew into a passion and became her life’s work. The famous girl graduated from the Institute of Civil Air Fleet and began teaching navigation. She also set several world records in flying.

In 1938, Raskova went to the front, where she became the first navigator of the fair sex.

By the way, it was Marina Raskova who came up with the idea to create the 46th Guards Women’s Night Bomber Regiment. In three months, with her help, two regiments of professional female pilots were organized.

A widely known story tells that when a plane with bomber girls made an emergency landing in the taiga, Raskova jumped with a parachute and was discovered ten days later, barefoot, but not losing the will to win. For her brave jump, the woman was awarded the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal.

Regimental commander

The commander of the “Dunka Regiment,” as the 46th female regiment of night bombers was jokingly called by their combat brothers - soldiers of the Soviet Army, was the experienced pilot Evdokia Davydovna Bershanskaya.

Evdokia was born on February 6, 1913 in the Stavropol region, in the village of Dobrovolnoye, in the family of a blacksmith. During the Civil War, the girl lost her parents, and her uncle Georgy Sereda took over her upbringing. Probably, it was precisely thanks to the patriotic instructions of his uncle, who was listed as the commissar of the 286th Infantry Regiment, and his friends, among whom were such famous personalities as Voroshilov, Budyonny and Apanasenko, a girl with masculine character decided to become a conqueror of the sky. After completing her studies at Blagodarny School No. 1, she entered the Bataysk Pilot School, after which she began teaching there as an instructor.

In 1941, Evdokia Davydovna was appointed commander of the 46th Guards Women's Night Bomber Regiment, under her command there were over thirty aircraft. Alexandra Nevsky was also awarded.

After the war, she married the commander of the night bomber regiment, Konstantin Bocharov, and gave birth to three children.

Awards and titles of “Night Witches”

The Taman Women's Regiment also distinguished itself in the number of women nominated for awards. Twenty-three of them became Heroes of the Soviet Union.

Rakobolskaya speaks with respect of Raskova, who turned an “unformed, shaggy, dirty-haired army” into a professional regiment of night bombers. With a laugh, ninety-year-old Irina Vyacheslavovna recalls her girlish resentment when she, like the entire female regiment, was ordered by the command to cut her hair short, and about the annoyance that arose when she found out what their battle brothers called their unit.

A woman who fought for the people, for the future of her children, talks with tears in her eyes about how the fate of some of the girls from the “Dunka Regiment” turned out after the war, because not every one of them found her calling in peacetime. However, the wise Irina Vyacheslavovna Rakobolskaya holds no grudge against either the authorities or the eccentric youth. She believes that if a war started in our time, young boys and girls, without a moment’s doubt, would go to defend their Motherland.

"Night witches" in art

Glory overtook the regiment in the field of art. Many films have been made about brave girls and many songs have been sung.

The first film about the 46th Guards Women's Regiment of Night Bombers with the title “1100 Nights” was shot by Semyon Aronovich back in the Soviet Union, in 1961. 20 years later, another film was released - “In the Sky “Night Witches”.

In the well-known and beloved work “Only Old Men Go to Battle,” the plot was based on the story “ Night Witch» Nadezhda Popova and pilot Semyon Kharlamov.

Some foreign groups, such as Hail of Bullets and Sabaton, glorify the 46th Guards Women's Regiment in their compositions.