Asaf Abdrakhmanov

Asaf Kutdusovich Abdrakhmanov (Аса́ф Кутду́сович Абдрахма́нов Asaf Qotdus uğlı Ğabderaxmanov, Асаф Котдус улы Габдерахманов ; December 20, 1918 — September 3, 2000) was a Soviet naval figure of Tatar ethnicity and a Hero of the Soviet Union during World War II.

Biography
Abdrakhmanov was born on December 20, 1918 in Agryz, which is now located in Tatarstan. He grew up in a village in Agryzsky District and after graduated from junior high school and the Aviation Technical School in Kazan, Abdrakhmanov worked as a technician at an aircraft factory.

Abdrakhmanov joined the Soviet Navy in 1939 and in 1942 he graduated from the Higher Naval College. After finishing training, Lieutenant Abdrakhmanov joined the Black Sea Fleet and served aboard Motor boats. He was in charge of a detachment of three Motor torpedo boats when the Soviet Navy raided Mariupol one night.

In November 1943, during the Kerch–Eltigen Operation, Abdrakhmanov landed the first assault troops onto the Crimean side of the Kerch Strait and delivered ammunition and troops. On January 22, 1944 he was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union and a Gold Star for his courage and heroism in the fight against the Nazi invaders.

From 1963 to 1968, Abdrakhmanov was the commander of a "monitoring ship" (Корабль измерительного комплекса, Korabl izmeritelnogo kompleksa)) named Suchan, one of the Soviet Navy's signals monitoring vessels involved with missile testing.  (The ship was later (1972) renamed Spassk, as a side effect of the Sino-Soviet border conflict).

He retired from his naval duties in 1973 and lived in Sevastopol for the remainder of his life, where he died on September 3, 2000. Today there is a memorial plaque outside the house he lived in Sevastopol.

Honours and awards

 * "Gold Star" Medal Hero of the Soviet Union
 * Order of Lenin
 * Order of the Red Banner, twice
 * Order of the Patriotic War, 1st and 2nd classes
 * Order of the Red Star, three times