Photo of Air Force Lieutenant V.A. Orekhov, Hero of the Soviet Union

The original wartime photo is in very good collector's condition. The size is 50*80 mm. There are traces of pasting into the album on the back. Guarantee of authenticity.

Vladimir Alexandrovich Orekhov (1921-1997) was a colonel in the Guards of the Soviet Army, a participant in the Great Patriotic War, Hero of the Soviet Union (1943), Honored Military Pilot of the USSR (1967).

Vladimir Orekhov was born on January 8, 1921 in Tula. He graduated from eight grades of school. In 1939, Orekhov was drafted to serve in the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army and was enrolled in the Kachin Military Aviation School named after A. Myasnikov, studied in the same course with Vasily Stalin. He graduated from aviation school in March 1940 and was sent to the Air Force of the Kiev Special Military District as a junior pilot of the 87th IAP.. Since June 1941, Junior Lieutenant Orekhov served on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War as part of the same 87th IAP (16th SAD), flying the I-16. From August 1941, he was a pilot of the 434th IAP (on November 22, 1942, he was transformed into the 32nd Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment); he flew LaGG-3, Yak-1, Yak-7, Yak-9, La-5 and La-7. By March 1943, Guards Senior Lieutenant Vladimir Orekhov commanded the 1st Squadron of the 32nd Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment of the 210th Fighter Aviation Division of the 1st Fighter Aviation Corps of the 3rd Air Army of the Kalinin Front. By that time, he had flown 235 combat missions, personally shooting down 8 enemy aircraft, and destroyed 2 more on the ground.

By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR dated May 1, 1943, for "exemplary performance of combat missions of the command at the front of the struggle against the German invaders and the courage and heroism shown at the same time", Guard Senior Lieutenant Vladimir Orekhov was awarded the high title Hero of the Soviet Union with the award of the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal number 926.

On September 20, 1944, V. Orekhov destroyed an FW-190, which turned out to be the last enemy aircraft shot down during the war. At the end of December 1944, Major Orekhov, Hero of the Soviet Union of the Guard, was sent to advanced training courses at the Poltava Higher Officer School of Navigators of the Red Army Air Force and no longer took part in hostilities against Germany. After graduation, he was appointed navigator of the 246th IAD, which participated in the war with Japan as part of the Trans-Baikal Front. There was no enemy resistance in the air, the fighters were engaged in attacking Japanese troops and reconnaissance. Guards Major Orekhov flew 3 combat missions in the skies of Manchuria.

During the war, V. A. Orekhov flew 420 combat missions, including 40 for ground-attack missions, 25 for reconnaissance, conducted 105 aerial battles, in which he shot down 19 aircraft personally and 3 in a group, 2 balloons, and destroyed 4 aircraft on the ground.