Trofimov, Nikolaj Dmitrievich, 64th Guards Interceptor Aviation Regiment

[RedMaestro2]

This group was only the second I ever bought (how little I knew then, four years ago, and how lucky I was!). It originally came with an Order of the Red Star (which turned out to be unrelated but very interesting, see http://soviet-awards.com/forum/sovie...2124058-a.html) and damaged OPW2 (yet unresearched). Supposedly, the group was "unresearchable". However, I recently got very lucky on Podvignaroda.

Originally, I knew the following from the group itself: Guards Senior Technical Lieutenant Nikolai Dmitrievich Trofimov was deputy chief of engineering for special equipment for the 64th Order of the Red Banner, Order of Alexander Nevsky Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment. He fought in the war start to finish, making it through the battles of Moscow, Stalingrad, and Berlin. With Russian search engines, I discovered this highly relevant quote from one of Trofimov's comrades, possibly his direct superior, in an excerpt from a history book discussing air battles over Berlin (http://militera.lib.ru/h/kostenko_fa/08.html):

[while relating officers' speeches at meetings before an offensive in April, 1945] "The best mechanic of the 64th Guards Fighter Regiment, Guards Senior Lieutenant Communist Nechayev said: "We, engineers, mechanics, and all junior aviation specialists, will prepare combat aircraft so that our brave falcons do not know mechanical failure in the battle and will strike even harder before the final defeat of the enemy. I, on behalf of the entire technical staff, assure you that we will make every effort to honor and fulfill our task."

On Podvignaroda, I discovered the following about Trofimov: He was awarded an Order of the Red Star in 1944 for long service (originally recommended for an Order of the Patriotic War 2nd Class... interestingly, no downgrades appear on the archive documents). The citation mentions "the usual": hardworking, disciplined, knowledgeable, excellent reputation with the men of the regiment, X number of repairs and 937 sorties free of mechanical failure, etc... But also in the citation is the following sentence, which makes the group significantly more interesting:

"In 1940, he was awarded a medal “For Bravery” by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR for active participation in combat operations on the river Khalin Gol."

Unfortunately, both the Red Star and Bravery Medal are now missing. I hope to retrieve the award record card from the archives eventually. If anyone has the Ukaz for Khalin Gol or other relevant documents and could share, I would greatly appreciate it!

Thanks! :thumbsup

Alex