Anatoly Vasilyevich Lyapidevsky was a Soviet aircraft pilot and one of the first people to be awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
13 Facts About Anatoly Lyapidevsky
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Anatoly Lyapidevsky was born on March 23,1908 in the Belaya Glina village in Stavropol Governorate in the family of a clergyman.
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Anatoly Lyapidevsky's family is of a dynasty of clergymen from Tula Governorate.
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Anatoly Lyapidevsky served in a frontline unit of Naval Aviation of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet, then as an instructor pilot at Yeysk School of Naval Pilots.
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Anatoly Lyapidevsky worked as a pilot with the Far Eastern department of the Civil Air Fleet.
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Anatoly Lyapidevsky took part in an aerial search and rescue operation for the crew of the steamship Chelyuskin, under extremely difficult conditions, after it was sunk in Arctic waters after February 13,1934.
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Together with six other pilots, Anatoly Lyapidevsky rescued 104 people from the wrecked freighter.
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Anatoly Lyapidevsky took off from the floe with 10 women and 2 children on board his plane.
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Anatoly Lyapidevsky flew the stranded people from their makeshift airstrip on the floating ice field of the Chukchi Sea to the town of Uelen.
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Anatoly Lyapidevsky was awarded the title of the Hero of the Soviet Union for this deed on April 20,1934.
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In 1943 Anatoly Lyapidevsky returned to his work as head of an aviation factory.
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From 1949 to 1954 Anatoly Lyapidevsky was head of Factory No 25 of Ministry of Aviation Industry.
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Anatoly Lyapidevsky died on April 29,1983, after catching a cold at the funeral of Vasily Molokov.