Photo of the first twice Hero of the Soviet Union B.F. Safonov at the banner

The original wartime photo is in very good condition. The size is 50*75 mm. Apparently, the picture was taken in March 1942, when four North Sea pilots (among them B. F. Safonov) were awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross by the head of the British mission, Lieutenant General MacFarlane, for their cooperation in Operation Benedict to equip the Soviet Air Force with British aircraft. Guarantee of authenticity.

Boris Feoktistovich Safonov (August 13 [26], 1915 — May 30, 1942) was a Soviet fighter ace of the Navy, a participant in the Great Patriotic War, twice Hero of the Soviet Union (09/16/1941, 06/14/1942). The first twice Hero of the Soviet Union to earn this title during the Great Patriotic War, the best Soviet fighter pilot of 1941-1942. Guards Lieutenant Colonel (04/22/1942).

Boris Safonov was born on August 26, 1915 (August 13 according to the old calendar) in the village of Sinyavino, now the Plavsky district of the Tula region. After graduating with honors from the seventh year, he entered the Tula Railway School of the Federal Law, joined the Komsomol in 1930, and studied at the gliding school. Among the best cadets, he was enrolled in the Tula Osoaviakhim Pilot School, where his instructor was Valentina Grizodubova, who later became a Hero of the Soviet Union. He graduated from this school in 1933. In August 1933, he was drafted into the Red Army and enrolled as a cadet in the 1st Military School of pilots named after A. F. Myasnikov (Kacha). After graduation, in December 1934, he was sent as a pilot to the 7th Separate Aviation Squadron. Dzerzhinsky 2nd Aviation Brigade of the Belarusian Military District (later the 106th Fighter Squadron named after Dzerzhinsky, and then the 15th Dzerzhinsky Fighter Aviation Regiment of the 40th Aviation Brigade). He was soon promoted and became an instructor of the squadron's parachute service. Since July 1938, he has been an assistant to the military commissar of the squadron for Komsomol work of the 15th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the 70th Aviation Brigade of the Air Force of the Belarusian Special Military District.

With the outbreak of World War II, he distinguished himself in aerial battles with the Luftwaffe. By early January 1942, B. F. Safonov was awarded two Orders of the Red Banner (July 14 and November 8, 1941). On September 15, 1941, seven fighters led by Safonov engaged 52 enemy aircraft. The result of the battle was 13 enemy planes shot down, and our seven returned to their airfield without losses. On September 16, 1941, he was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union. In October 1941, the command of the SF Air Force entrusted Major Safonov with the newly formed 78th Fighter Aviation Regiment, equipped with British Hawker Hurricane aircraft. On January 15, 1942, B. F. Safonov was awarded the third Order of the Red Banner.

On May 30, 1942, Lieutenant Colonel B. F. Safonov, already the commander of the 2nd Guards Mixed Red Banner Aviation Regiment of the SF Air Force, flew at the head of a flight of fighters to cover a convoy of PQ-16 ships heading for Murmansk. During the battle with superior enemy forces, the unit broke up, and Boris Safonov was left alone. He radioed that he had shot down three Yu-88 bombers, after which the connection with him was cut off. His last words were: "The engine is damaged, I'm going to be forced." The exact cause of Safonov's death is unknown. According to one version (later officially announced), his Kittyhawk crashed due to engine problems. It is also possible that Safonov's plane was shot down by defensive fire from bombers, as recorded in the operational summary of the 2nd GCAP on May 30. Sailors from one of the ships saw how a single Kittyhawk went into a steep dive, crashed into the water and quickly sank.

In total, during the fighting, Boris Safonov made 234 sorties, personally shot down 20 enemy aircraft (including 6 presumably) and 5 in a group. Higher numbers of his victories are also widespread in the literature, for example, up to 30 personal victories. The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, by Decree "On awarding the Hero of the Soviet Union, Lieutenant Colonel Safonov Boris Feoktistovich, with the second Gold Star Medal dated June 14, 1942, for "exemplary performance of combat missions of the command at the front of the struggle against the German invaders, entitling him to receive the title Hero of the Soviet Union," awarded Boris Safonov with the second Gold Star medal with the instruction "to build a bronze bust and install it on a pedestal in the homeland of the recipient." The presentation for the award was sent before Safonov's death. In 1943, the first bust of the hero was erected in the village of Vaenga (now the city of Severomorsk).