Marina Raskova

Marina Mikhailovna Raskova (1912 to January 4,1943) was a soviet airforce pilot during the 2nd world war, who organized the 588th night bomber squad. Marina Raskova had been a world breaking aviator for making a none stop direct flgiht with two other soviet woman. On the journey the plane began to ice over while traveling above the Siberian wilderness. The three woman began to throw anything not tied down out of the plane in order to maintain altitude, but it kept going down. Marina heroically made note of the plane's locations, and bailed out; making the plane light enought to finish the journey. She was latter rescued by a siberian hunter, and the three woman where honored in Moscow by being decorated with The Hero of the Soviet Union award, which was the highest destinction in the Soviet Union.

When the Germans invaded the Soviet Union on June 22, 1941 the soviets insituted operiation Barbarossa, which created three all female air regements. Marina was summoned to organized the first of these regiments, the The 586th Fighter Aviation Regiment, and latter was appointed commander of the The 46th Taman Guards Night Bomber Aviation Regiment. The Germans would come to know the 46th as, the Night Witches. This regement was the only one to remain all female though out the war.

One January 4, 1943 she, and her bomber crew parished attempting to make forcelanding near stalingrad. She was the first to recieve a Soviet state funeral during the war, and was posthumously awarded the Order of Patriotic War 1st Class. The M.M. Raskova Higher Air Force School in Tambov was named in her honor, but ceased to function in 1997.