Potapov, Dmitry Mefodevich

Born November 7, 1911 in the provincial city of Orel of the Russian Empire (now the city, the regional center of the Russian Federation ) in a working class family. Russian He graduated from the seven classes of the railway school number 12 in Orel and the courses of assistant locomotive driver . In 1933-1936 he served in the ranks of the Workers 'and Peasants' Red Army . Before the war, he worked as a steam engine driver at Orel station.

Once again, he was drafted into the Red Army by the Oryol city military registration and enlistment office in June 1941. He fought on the Western Front as an assistant driver of an armored train . In May 1942 he was sent to the Kazan Tank School . Upon its completion, in September 1943, he was sent to the Urals to receive new equipment for the 10th Guards Ural Volunteer Tank Corps , and at the end of the year he left for the 1st Ukrainian Front with a military echelon. On March 1, 1944, Senior Lieutenant D.M. Potapov as part of the 63rd Guards Tank Brigade of the 10th Guards Tank Corps of the 4th Tank Army as commander of a platoon of the 2nd Tank Battalion. Participated in the Proskurovsky-Chernivtsi operation , liberated Kamenetz-Podolsky . He particularly distinguished himself in the battles for the city of Lviv during the Lviv-Sandomierz operation .

On July 17, 1944, the 4th Panzer Army was brought into battle in the Koltu corridor. Reflecting the numerous counterattack counterattacks of German tanks, army units forced the river Strypa . The 63rd Guards Tank Brigade, operating at the forefront of the 10th Guards Tank Corps, broke through the enemy’s defenses near the village of Trostyanets and immediately burst into Zolochev . By evening, the city was completely cleared of the enemy, and the crew of the senior lieutenant D. M. Potapov’s guard was the first to enter its southwestern outskirts near the railway station. During the further offensive in the Lviv direction, the Potapov tank platoon operated in the brigade’s main march outpost. Potapov’s tankers carried out reconnaissance and were the first to take the blows of enemy ambushes. The Germans managed to knock out one car, but the crews of senior lieutenant Potapov and junior lieutenant P.P. Kuleshov continued to carry out their combat mission. At the approaches to Lviv, they together defeated a large convoy of the enemy: while Potapov was distracting the security tank, Kuleshov destroyed at least 20 vehicles with cannon fire and tracks.

East of Lviv, the Germans built a powerful and deeply echeloned defense, which was not possible to break through with tank attacks. Therefore, the command of the 1st Ukrainian Front decided to attack the Lviv group of the enemy by attacking the 3rd Guards Tank Army north of Lviv and the 4th Tank Army south of the city. On August 21, 1944, the T-34s of Potapov and Kuleshov were the first in the brigade to break into the southwestern outskirts of Lviv and immediately destroy the German Panther and three anti-tank guns. In the narrow streets the tankers parted. Senior Lieutenant Potapov, taking a position at one of the intersections, blocked the retreat of the German infantry. Reflecting the fierce attacks of the Germans trying to escape from the city, Potapov’s crew destroyed more than 100 enemy soldiers and officers with machine gun fire. Having organized a group of Soviet submachine gunners, Potapov advanced inland, where he was counterattacked by large German infantry forces of up to a battalion supported by two T-V tanks. For two days, he repelled attacks of superior enemy forces. When his tank was hit, Potapov continued to fight on foot. In battle, he was twice badly wounded, but continued to lead the defense until reinforcements arrived, after which he was evacuated to the hospital. For the exemplary performance of the combat missions of the command on the front of the fight against the German invaders and the courage and heroism shown by the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of September 23, 1944, the senior lieutenant Potapov Dmitry Mefodevich was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union.

After the war, Potapov continued to serve in the armed forces of the USSR until 1963. In reserve, he quit as a lieutenant colonel. He lived in Moscow . Before retiring, he worked at Soyuzvodproekt. He died on September 22, 1996. He was buried in Zelenograd at the Central Cemetery .

• Medal "Golden Star" (09/23/1944);
• Order of Lenin (09/23/1944);
• Order of the Patriotic War of the 1st degree (03/11/1985);
• Order of the Red Star ;
• medals.
• Honorary citizen of the city of Lviv (1966).

• The name of the Hero of the Soviet Union D.M. Potapov is immortalized in Orel on a memorial plaque in honor of the Heroes of the Soviet Union - natives of the city (Victory Boulevard, 1) and on a memorial plaque installed on the building of MBOU - Lyceum No. 32 named after I.M. Vorobyov (st. . Pushkin, 80).

• Heroes of the Soviet Union: A Brief Biographical Dictionary / Prev. ed. collegium I. N. Shkadov . - M .: Military Publishing , 1988. - T. 2 / Love - Yashchuk /. - 863 s. - 100,000 copies. - ISBN 5-203-00536-2 .
• Heroes and exploits. Book Six. - M: Military Publishing, 1978. - S. 139-147. - 279 p.
• Verbinsky M.V. Year 1944. Zarnitsy victory salute: Essays, memoirs, documents. - Lviv: Kamenyar, 1979. - S. 320—322. - 430 s.
• Frolov P.I., Pirogov V.A., Makushev A.F. Battle constellation of Orlovites. - Tula: Prioksky Book Publishing House, 1985. - S. 243-244. - 367 p.
• Ural-Lviv // Volunteers of the Urals: Essays. Memories. . - 2nd, add. - Sverdlovsk: Central Ural Book Publishing House, 1980. - 240 p.
• Fomichev M. G. The path began in the Urals . - M: Military Publishing House, 1976 .-- 224 p.

• Public electronic document bank “The Feat of the People in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945” (neopr.) . Date of treatment February 7, 2013. Archived March 13, 2012.

Presentation to the title of Hero of the Soviet Union (Neopr.) . Date of treatment February 7, 2013. Archived February 14, 2013.

Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on conferring the title of Hero of the Soviet Union (neopr.) . Date of treatment February 7, 2013. Archived February 14, 2013.

Order of the Patriotic War, 1st degree (information from the card awarded to the 40th anniversary of the Victory) (unopened) . Date of treatment February 7, 2013. Archived February 14, 2013.

• Potapov, Dmitry Mefodevich (Russian) . Site " Heroes of the country ".
• Potapov Dmitry Mefodevich on www.az-libr.ru (neopr.) . Date of treatment February 7, 2013. Archived February 14, 2013.
• D. M. Potapov on the website of GBOU secondary school No. 627 (neopr.) . Date of treatment February 7, 2013. Archived February 14, 2013.
• Kazan Higher Tank Command Red Banner School (Neopr.) . Date of treatment February 7, 2013. Archived February 14, 2013.