Biography of Ekaterina Zelenko

Bibliography Biography of Ekaterina Ivanovna Zelenko is the first and the only one among the pilots who made a ram of an enemy aircraft, Hero of the Soviet Union Ekaterina Ivanovna Zelenko was born on September 14 during the First World War, the time was troubled, and her family decided to move to the city of Kursk. Catherine grew the tenth child in the family.

According to the stories of the sister of the pilot, Lyudmila Ivanovna, Katerina was very energetic and Shustro, rarely cried. Together with the boys, she loved to climb trees and fences, jump from the roofs of sheds. All the childhood of Katya passed in the city of Kursk. She studied in the Kursk airborne club. Catherine had a desire to become a pilot since childhood. Perhaps she was also prompted by the fact that two older brothers studied at aviators.

When she told them about her dreams, they did not laugh, but advised me to enter the Voronezh aircraft technology, preparing workers for a local aviation plant. In addition, their older sister Sophia lived in Voronezh. Soon, Katya's father died, and the girl went to Voronezh with her mother. In the year, when she studied in the second year of the technical school, an aero club began to work in Voronezh.

I went through the country: “All Komsomol members are on airplanes! This was the only chance for fulfilling a long -standing desire. Zelenko was recorded in a circle. Among the hundreds of guys there were only a few girls, and Katya had to constantly prove that she might not worse than the guys fulfill flight standards. To do this, she had to show dexterity, strength and courage, jumping with a parachute much more than others, flying on airplanes is better than others.

She was a strong athlete. Among the first, she finished on a hundred -meter, fired aptly, threw a disk, spear and hammer. In the year, a commission arrived in the aero club to search for candidates for military flight schools. Katya Zelenko, together with Nina Rusakova, managed to go through a strict test and was sent to further study at the Orenburg Military Aviation School named after Voroshilova.

In the year, she graduated with honors from the Orenburg military aviation school of pilots and observer pilots. A participant in the Finnish War of the year, for the fighting during which she was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. After the Finnish war, Ekaterina Zelenko returned to the South Aviation Brigade belonging to the Kharkov military district. In the year, Ekaterina Zelenko in the Kharkov house for officers met with young pilot Pavel Ignatenko, commander of a neighboring squadron, a future husband.

She terribly experienced the death of her two babies, and for the rest of her life she wore a medallion with a strand of her son's hair. Also in the medallion lay a photo of her beloved nephew Valentine - a child of Sonya's sister. Soon after the war began, Ekaterina Zelenko wrote to her sister: “How did everything change! What were the plans! I wanted to cook jam.

There are a lot of strawberries in the forests near our airfield. Thought with Paul about the child. For the sake of this, I would stop flying. And now I am writing this letter under the wing, I am about to go on a mission. Don't worry about me. Has anyone else went to the front from ours? Hello from Pasha. From the first days of World War II, Ekaterina Zelenko fought in the army.

Upon learning that his beloved was going to war, in May, Ignatenko threw his studies at the Zhukovsky Air Air Air Air and returned to the regiment to fly with her. Pavel Ignatenko was the commander of the 4th squadron of the bomber regiment in the year. For three incomplete months of being on the front line, Ekaterina Zelenko managed to make about forty sorties. In an air unequal battle against 7 enemy aircraft, Ekaterina Zelenko shot down 2 aircraft, one - a machine gun, the second rammed.

Zelenko died. In November, Ekaterina Zelenko was awarded the Order of Lenin posthumously. Was buried in with. Anastasievka Sumy region of Ukraine at the site of death.

After the war, her remains were transported to the city of Kursk. In the history of world aviation, this was the first case of an air ram committed by a pilot a woman. From the letter of Ekaterina Zelenko to his elder sister: “Sonya, if something happens, especially do not despair. There is no victims in war. I just ask you not to forget me, do not forget your Katya. ”