Red Banner awarded to crashed HSU fighter pilot

**PapaStalin1943** · 02-01-2021, 10:06 PM

Absolutely amazing piece Marcel, with even more fascinating research. I especially love awards pertaining to the Red Air Force, as I'm quite interested in fighter pilots. A sad story with this one, but still nonetheless very interesting

Regards,
Nikita.

**Espenlaub Militaria** · 02-01-2021 10:06 PM

We also buy and trade your items and full collections!

**Marcel Banziger** · 02-02-2021, 06:09 AM

Thanks Nikita! A sad story indeed when death comes at such a young age. I compared it to when I and all my friends were just 20....what a difference. In hindsight we were just kids compared to these brave men. It's very hard to comprehend what they went through. Reading the many memoirs reveals just a tiny glimpse.

**Bjorn S** · 02-02-2021, 08:51 AM

That's a really interesting piece Marcel! Congratulations.

That award really went trough something...
Also very nice to have the research and photos with it! History really comes alive...

I have one KIA award myself. It was send to his family after his death. It is a strange idea, that the owner didn't survive it (but his award did).

I think it's possible to trace his relatives if you want, Naryshkino is only a small town, so if they're still living in the area they wouldn't be too hard to find I guess.

**Woolgar** · 02-02-2021, 10:43 AM

Congrats on a superb addition Marcel !

Fascinating history to this brave pilot and well researched

Nick

**Adrian Stevenson** · 02-02-2021, 11:46 AM

Very nice indeed. Great thread.

**Marcel Banziger** · 02-02-2021, 07:34 PM

Thanks a lot guys!

@ Bjorn: I also have another posthumously awarded OPW 1st class. It is indeed weird to know someone had to die to get this award. Quite humbling when holding the award in hands. This also started to be one of my side-collecting fields: collecting posthumously awarded orders (usually only the OPWI and II and the title HSU). This Red Banner however is not a posthumously awarded order but was actually worn by Gavril when he crashed, hence the very bad shape of this award.

Hereby some more nice publications, photos and reports. Research is done by Igor/Egorka.

This page is taken out of the book which tells the history about the 65th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment. This specific page shows Heroes of the Soviet Union from the 65GFAR with on the bottom Gavril:

Red Banner awarded to crashed HSU fighter pilot

Up next a newspaper article from Pravda, July 17 1943 telling about Gavril's and Popov's airbattle, shooting down German bombers and scaring away the remaining bomber formation, dropping bombs over own territory.

The tragedy of war. A death notification send to the parents explaing Gavril's death:

**Marcel Banziger** · 02-02-2021, 08:27 PM

A combat diary also still exists from the 4th Guards Fighter Aviation Division, mentioning the kills from Gavril.

Here's the overview again from his shot down planes:

The Focke Wulf 190, shot down on January 14 1943 is mentioned on page 66 of the combat diary.

On page 75 of the combat diary, dating January 26 1943 the shot down Me-109 is mentioned.

One day later, January 27 another Me-109 was shot down by Gavril.

May 27 1943 Gavril is awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union. This was reason for a celebration as mentioned in the combat diary.

One Junker Ju-87 Stuka was shot down on July 12 1943.

On July 15 1943 two more Focke Wulfs were shot down by Gavril. Two days later, July 17 was the tragic day when Gavril Gavrillovich Guskov crashed with his Yak-1, very close by the area where he grew up.