Kupin, Fedor Nikolaevich

Early years

Fedor Nikolaevich Kupin was born on May 26, 1923 in the village of Giaginskaya, Adygea Autonomous Okrug, Krasnodar Territory (now the Republic of Adygea ) into a family of a Russian worker. Fedor’s father died when he was three years old, and in 1928 a mother with five children moved to Grozny . In 1935, Fyodor Nikolayevich graduated from the 4th grade, after which he worked as a groom, a master shoemaker, and then as head of a shoe shop. He was fond of athletics and football.

Participation in the Great Patriotic War

On March 9, Kupin was called up by the ranks of the armed forces and from March 20, 1942 he served in the army. He fought as a marksman, scout on the North Caucasian and 2nd Ukrainian fronts . Repeatedly went over the front line in order to capture prisoners and collect intelligence. He was wounded and shell-shocked several times.

On the night of June 28, 1944, the Red Army soldier Kupin took part in the capture of the "language". Being in the support group and ensuring the withdrawal of the reconnaissance group with the prisoner, Kupin with automatic fire destroyed the machine-gun crew and threw grenades at the enemy’s dugouts. For courage and decisiveness in that sortie, Kupin was awarded the medal “For Courage” ^[1] .

After the completion of the Iasi-Chisinau operation , the 1st Guards Airborne Division reached the city of Deta ( Romania ), which the Germans turned into a major stronghold and defensive point. On September 16, 1944, a reconnaissance group was sent over the front line, which included the Red Army soldier Kupin. Having passed the neutral zone, the group ambushed on the road. Seeing a truck carrying infantry and a car driving along the road, the scouts opened fire. Having destroyed the truck with grenades and automatic fire, the scouts found a major Wehrmacht in the passenger car. On the way back, the group was forced to fight off the enemy, but successfully delivered the prisoner to the headquarters. The obtained valuable information was used to attack the city of Deta, as a result of which the Germans were forced to retreat.

When completing a mission near the Hungarian city, Kartsag Kupin penetrated the enemy’s position; scouted the nature and system of defense, fire weapons and, having destroyed two machine gunners, he returned safely to the location of his troops. For courage and courage, Kupin was awarded the Order of the Red Star ^[2] .

On November 5, 1944, the Kupina division with battles approached the Tisza River south of the city of Tisafured (Hungary) and immediately began to force it. For the purpose of reconnaissance of the opposite coast, the first scouts to cross led by Dmitry Lytin , who were immediately forced to engage in battle. One of the companies of the 3rd Guards Rifle Regiment quickly moved to their aid. Having occupied a small bridgehead , Soviet soldiers fought with superior enemy forces for 11 hours, repelling five counterattacks. Ammunition, including trophy ones, was coming to an end: not a single support boat was able to get to help because of the dense artillery-mortar and machine-gun fire. Then Guard Private Kupin and his fellow guard Sergeant Pyotr Lytanov volunteered to deliver ammunition to the right bank of the Tisza. The boat of the two guardsmen received several dozen holes, but Kupin, holding the largest hole with his knee, continued to scoop out water while Lytanov worked with oars, maneuvering among the shell ruptures. Approaching the shore, the soldiers jumped into the water and began to push the boat with their hands, but it sank. Then the scouts, plunging boxes of ammunition on their shoulders, continued to swim towards the shore. By this time, the Nazis launched a sixth counterattack, but Kupin and Lytanov managed to deliver the cartridges in time and immediately entered the battle. In total, the defenders of the bridgehead repelled 9 enemy counterattacks, which sometimes turned into melee. During one of them, Kupin captured an enemy machine gun and opened heavy fire on the enemy, destroying up to 40 Germans.

Thanks to the heroic actions of the defenders of the bridgehead, the battalion, reinforced by machine guns, mortars and artillery, managed to concentrate on it, which went on the offensive, wedged into the enemy’s defenses. Having penetrated the Germans' location, Kupin (shell-shocked during the battle) and Lytanov found in the haystack two German artillery spotters, who were immediately neutralized and delivered under enemy fire to the division headquarters. The data obtained from them were used to further advance the troops ^[3] .

By a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of March 24, 1945, for the exemplary fulfillment of command tasks in the fight against Nazi invaders and the courage and heroism of the guard shown to Private Kupin, Fyodor Nikolayevich was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union with the Order of Lenin and the Golden Star medal . A similar award was awarded and Pavel Lytanov.

Successfully developing the offensive, the division entered Czechoslovakia . In the area of ​​the large settlement of Bregi, Kupin was once again sent to the enemy’s location, already as a reconnaissance group commander. Having seized the sentry, the group advanced back, but she was unable to leave silently. As a result, scouts were forced to fight off enemy soldiers and successfully completed this task. Guard Sergeant Kupin was awarded the Order of World War 1 degree ^[4] .

After the war

In 1945, the Guard Sergeant Kupin was demobilized and returned to Grozny . After 10 years, Kupin moved to the village of Giaginskaya , where he worked on the construction of a sugar factory. Since 1958 he lived in Maykop and worked as a driver in a motor depot. He took an active part in the military-patriotic education of youth.

On April 1, 1988, Fyodor Nikolaevich Kupin died in a car accident on the Rostov-on-Don - Baku highway.

Buried in Maykop.

• Gold Star Medal .
• Order of Lenin .
• Order of the Patriotic War I degree (twice).
• Order of the Red Star .
• Medal "For Courage" .
• Medal "For the victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945."
• Anniversary medal "Twenty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945."
• Anniversary medal "Thirty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945."
• Medal "Forty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945."

• The name of the Hero is carved in gold letters in the Hall of Glory of the Central Museum of the Great Patriotic War in Victory Park in Moscow .
• A tombstone is installed on the grave of the Hero.
• The name of the Hero is lane in the village of Giaginsky Republic of Adygea .
• In Maykop, in the house on Kommunarov Street, where the Hero lived, a memorial plaque hangs.

• List of Heroes of the Soviet Union (Adygea)

• List of Heroes of the Soviet Union (Krasnodar Territory)

• Heroes of the Soviet Union: A Brief Biographical Dictionary / Prev. ed. collegium I. N. Shkadov . - M .: Military Publishing , 1987.- T. 1 / Abaev - Lyubichev /. - 911 p. - 100,000 copies. - ISBN comp., Reg. RCP No. 87-95382.
• Sidzhakh Kh. I. Your Heroes, Adygea : Essays on the Heroes of the Soviet Union. - Maykop : Adyghe Republican book. Publishing House, 2005 .-- 413 p. - ISBN 5-7608-0459-6 .
• Sidzhakh Kh. I. Your Heroes, Adygea: Essays on the Heroes of the Soviet Union. - Maykop: Adyghe Republican book. Publishing House, 2005 .-- 416 p. - 1000 copies. - ISBN ISBN 5-7608-0459-6 .
• The feat of glory is your countrymen. Zaporozhye , 1962. / pp. 116-120.
• Kuban glorious sons. Krasnodar , 1963.
• Golden Stars of Adygea. 2nd ed., Ext. and dorab. Maykop , 1980. / pp. 48-49;
• Golden Stars of Chechen-Ingushetia. 3rd ed., Ext. Grozny , 1985. / pp. 117-120.

• Valery Vorobyov. Kupin, Fedor Nikolaevich (Russian) . Site " Heroes of the country ".