Alexander Alexandrovich Kazakov
Alexander Kazakov ( Russian Александр Александрович Казаков or Kosakow , Козаков ., Scientific transliteration Ivan Aleksandrovich Kazakov ; * 2. January 1889 in Kherson Gubernia ; † 1. August 1919 at bereznik , Arkhangelsk Governorate ) was the most successful Russian fighter pilot of the First World War .
Life
Born on January 2, 1889 as the son of a noble family from the Cherson Governorate , Kazakov attended the cavalry school in Kalata from 1908 and began his training as a military aviator in Gatchina / Saint Petersburg in 1913 .
With his French aircraft of the types Morane-Saulnier , SPAD A , Nieuport 11 and Nieuport 17 , he achieved the most aerial victories within the Imperial Russian Air Force . He achieved 17 officially recognized and 15 further unconfirmed victories over German and Austro-Hungarian aircraft; At that time only aerial victories were confirmed over aircraft that crashed on this side of the Russian lines or were forced to land.
On March 19, 1915, Kazakov successfully rammed an enemy plane, following the example of Pyotr Nikolayevich Nesterov , who had lost his life in such an attack in 1914.
Between 1915 and 1917 Kazakov fought as the leader of the 19th squadron, which led to the XIX. Army Corps was subordinate to the Galician and Romanian fronts and took part in the Brusilov Offensive as commander of the 1st Air Combat Squadron . On July 29, 1916, he scored his third kill.
Alexander Alexandrovich Kazakov received 18 awards and decorations, including the British Distinguished Service Order , the British Military Cross and was made a member of the French Legion of Honor .
During the Russian Civil War , Kazakov fought in the Slav British Expeditionary Corps, which operated from Arkhangelsk , against the Bolsheviks .
On August 1, 1918, Kazakov was appointed major in the Royal Air Force and took command of the Legion's aviation division, which was equipped with Sopwith Camels .
After the British withdrawal, Kazakov continued to resist alongside the White Army . On August 1, 1919, he was killed in a flight demonstration; many witnesses claimed that he attempted suicide in the face of the desperate war situation .
literature
- Visser, Johan GH: Iwan Wasilievich Smirnoff "Number Two Star Ace of the Tsar" , from: Over The Front, League of WWI Aero Historians, Vol. 3, No. 2, Dallas 1988
Web links
- Fighterpilot Aces List (English)
- The Aerodrome Aleksandr Kozakov (English)
- Military History of Russia - Kazakov Aleksandr (Russian)
- Personal file, victory list, color schemes (Russian)
- Russian WWI aces (English and Russian)
Individual evidence
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Kazakov, Alexander Alexandrovich |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Казаков, Александр Александрович (Russian spelling); Kosakow, Alexander Alexandrovich; Козаков, Александр Александрович |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Russian officer, fighter pilot of the First World War |
| DATE OF BIRTH | January 2, 1889 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Kherson Governorate |
| DATE OF DEATH | August 1, 1919 |
| Place of death | near Beresnik , Arkhangelsk Governorate |