Nikolai Kamanin - Chelyuskin Rescue

Chelyuskin Rescue

In February 1934, Chelyuskin steamship was crushed by Arctic ice in the Chukchi Sea. 104 crewmembers and passengers set their base on pack ice. At that time, United States grounded all arctic flights after a string of accidents, and the only rescue force on hand was Anatoly Liapidevsky and his crew of ANT-4. After 28 failed attempts, Liapidevski located the ice camp on 5 March landed and hauled out twelve of 104 survivors. A week later, on the second flight to ice camp, he crash-landed the airplane after an engine failure. Operation stalled; Soviet government dispatched three groups of pilots from Far Eastern air bases.

The largest group of seven military and civilian reconnaissance pilots on Polikarpov R-5 biplanes, based in Primorsky Krai, was led by Kamanin (he later grounded one of the pilots for insubordination). The group sailed from Vladivostok 2 March 1934, disembarked at Olyutorka and landed at Vankarem airfield 1 April. Kamanin and Vasily Molokov flew from a temporary base in Vankarem settlement to the ice camp, saving 34 and 39 survivors. On their first flight from the ice camp, R-5 (designed as a two-seater) carried a crew of two, plus two men from Chelyuskin in the hull. Next flights added makeshift wing gondolas, carrying two more men per mission. Other pilots from Kamanin team hauled them from Vankarem to Providence Bay seaport. The ice camp was completely evacuated 13 April 1934; Kamanin returned with the ship's bosun and eight riding dogs.

The next day, six pilots that flew to the ice camp and back (including Kamanin) and Sigizmund Levanevsky were announced as the first Heroes of the Soviet Union. Pilots who ferried survivors from Vankarem to Providence received Order of the Red Star.