Shipilov, Vasily Alekseevich

Born on February 13, 1908 in the village of Verkhny Karachan (now Gribanovsky District, Voronezh Region) in a working class family. Russian. He graduated from six classes. From 1930 to 1933 he served in the Red Army in military service.

In 1937 he graduated from the Balashov school of pilots of the Civil Air Fleet . He worked as a pilot of the North Kazakhstan Civil Air Fleet Directorate, then in the Saratov Aviation Detachment of Special Use for Civil Air Fleet.

Since July 1941, he was again drafted into the Red Army, and since August 1941, at the front. Enrolled in the Special Air Force Group of the Civil Air Fleet at the headquarters of the Western Front, made hundreds of sorties on a U-2 light aircraft. In 1943, retrained as commander of transport aircraft, mastered the transport C-47 and Li-2 .

In July 1944, he was assigned to the Long-Range Aviation Special Purpose Aviation Group (from December 1944 to the 18th Air Army), in which he fought until March 1945, providing communications and supplies with the Yugoslav partisans and troops of the People's Liberation Army of Yugoslavia . As part of this group, made 138 sorties, of which 83 at night. He made 43 night landings, delivered about 140 tons of weapons and ammunition to the NOAJ fighters and partisans, and removed 262 wounded.

Then, before the end of World War II, he made combat sorties in the interests of the troops of the NOAU and the 3rd Ukrainian Front .

For the exemplary performance of the combat missions of the command on the front of the fight against German fascism and courage and heroism shown by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the USSR of June 29, 1945, Lieutenant Shipilov Vasily Alekseevich was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union with the award of the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal (No. 8604).

In 1946, Senior Lieutenant Shipilov was transferred to the reserve and returned to civil aviation. For another 12 years he was the commander of an airship, then worked at the airport. He lived in the city of Vnukovo, Moscow Region. He died on May 22, 1987. He was buried in Vnukovo.

He was awarded the orders of Lenin, the Red Banner, World War 1 and 2 degrees, the Badge of Honor, medals, the Yugoslav Order ^[1] .

• 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 .
• Grinko A.I., Ulaev G.F. Heroes of the Voronezh land. - Voronezh, 1965.