Ahmed Malsagov

Ahmed Tatarkhanovich Malsagov (Ахмед Татарханович Мальсагов; 1912 – 14 January 1942) was an Ingush pilot in 5th Short-range Bomber Aviation Regiment during the Second World War who was killed in action. He was twice posthumously nominated for the title Hero of the Soviet Union but was not awarded it. In 1995 he was declared a Hero of the Russian Federation.

Prewar life
Malsagov was born in 1912 in the village of Altievsky in the Russian Empire to an Ingush family. In 1935 he joined the Red Army and in 1937 he graduated from the Stalingrad Military Aviation School. He became a member of the Communist Party in 1939. Before the start of the war, he was part of a bomber aviation regiment in the Western part of the USSR.

World War II
During the German invasion of the Soviet Union Malsagov served in the 5th Short-range Bomber Aviation Regiment in the Odessa Military District. The regiment, originally equipped with Tupolev SB s, was soon provided with modern Petlyakov Pe-2 dive bombers right after the invasion. As a lieutenant he quickly mastered piloting the new aircraft and began making sorties on the Southern Front in June 1941, bombing a Romanian naval base, enemy tanks, and advancing troops. By 20 September 1941 he had made 65 sorties, and in the following winter, he distinguished himself after making 20 bombing sorties in the span of several days, for which he was awarded the Order of the Red Banner on 7 January 1942. Due to the precision of his bombing attacks, he was able to destroy ten tanks, five anti-aircraft guns, twenty-seven cars, and kill over 100 enemy infantrymen. On 14 January 1942 he was killed in action during a bombing mission and his funeral was held on 24 January. He was nominated for the title Hero of the Soviet Union twice, but due to the Aardakh he was not awarded the title since Ingush people, including war veterans, were collectively branded as traitors and considered ineligible for the title. After the collapse of the Soviet Union he was declared a Hero of the Russian Federation in 1995.