Syzran Higher Military Aviation School

The Syzran Higher Military Aviation School (Сызранское высшее военное авиационное училище лётчиков) is a military academy of the Russian Air Force, responsible for training airman of the Russian Armed Forces.It is a branch of the Zhukovsky – Gagarin Air Force Academy.

History
The school originate from the Saratov Military Aviation School of Pilots (SVAShP), formed in March 1940. In 1941, after the outbreak of WW2, the pilot school was transformed into a glider school. After the end of the war, the school was transferred to Pugachev in the Saratov region and was renamed the Airborne Glider Airborne School. In 1952, the school received the name of the 160th Military School of Pilots and from 1953 passed to the development of a fundamentally new aircraft technology - a helicopter. Since 1960, the school is located in Syzran, Samara region, and since 1963 is named Syzran Military Aviation School for pilots. In 1966 the school was transferred to the status of a higher school. In 1998, the school was reorganized into the Syzran Military Aviation Institute. Graduates of the school have taken part in the UN peacekeeping operations in Vietnam, Angola, Tajikistan, Yugoslavia, Sier Leone, Sudan and other countries.

Commanders
The following officers commanded the school:
 * Yakov Utkin (1940-1942)
 * Mikhail Odintsov (1942-1946)
 * Mikhail Sitkin (1947-1953)
 * Dmitri Makarov (1953-1958)
 * Ivan Kulichev (June 1958-April 1961)
 * Fyodor Kissel (1961-1969)
 * Valentin Alexentsev (1970-1977)
 * Alexey Didyk (1977-1986)
 * Alexey Bazarov (1986-1999)
 * Alexey Pishenin (1999-2004)
 * Viktor Ukolov (2004-2009)
 * Nikolai Yartsev (2009-2013)
 * Alexander Asanov (2013-Present)

Notable Graduates

 * Alexey Bazarov
 * Ivan Zhukov
 * Viktor Ivanov