Probably, there is no person in Novosibirsk who would not have heard about the passage under our Communal bridge. This act of different people causes different feelings. Some consider our “Siberian Chkalov” a hero, others a bully. Yes, and the then Minister of Defense of the USSR, Marshal Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky, forgave the pilot, ordering not to punish him, but to “let him rest.” Even the Communist Party was not expelled. He, of course, is an aviation hooligan, but after all, ours!
Photo collage on request
And although this story is absolutely true, it is already shrouded in a bunch of myths. This was also helped by the famous photo collage showing the very moment of the flight. But after all, in 1965 there was not a single one in each hand. mobile phones with cameras, no "instant" cameras, specially in an ambush no one sat and waited. This "photo" was made by order of the Museum of Novosibirsk, its designer Evgeny Sotsikhovsky. And deliberately with violations of proportions, so that no sane person could even think that this is a reality. The scale of the aircraft relative to the bridge is greatly increased, and the angle of flight suggests that it almost emerges from the water. And the embankment had not yet been built.
Nevertheless, some believed in photography, while for others, who were more attentive, the collage immediately evoked a feeling of untruth and the creation of another myth. But this real case, in contrast to the flight of Chkalov himself, allegedly invented for the film "Valery Chkalov". In any case, no such case was recorded in the ace's personal file. But during the filming of the film, pilot Yevgeny Borisenko actually made six takes of a flight under the Troitsky Bridge in Leningrad on a Sh-2 seaplane.
Tram number 13 and pilots under the bridges
But let's leave the dispute about Chkalov to Petersburgers. And our case was even recorded by the Soviet (!) press. We have two main legends in the city: avenging cars and pilots under bridges. In August 1965, the all-Union newspaper Izvestiya wrote in the article “They Stole a Tram”: “The incident in the tram depot really hurt the pride of the Novosibirsk aviators. “Why are we worse than trams!” they exclaimed. And soon, on one of the hot days ... ”- well, and further in the text ...
Air Force Captain Privalov is also already overgrown with legends. First, it is not entirely ours. Its part was stationed in the city of Kansk Krasnoyarsk Territory, and in Novosibirsk he was on a business trip. There is also some confusion about the date of the flight - they are called June 3, 4, and 14. The version about conquering the girl on the beach (or on the bridge) is also romantic.
But the main thing is that we still consider this flight under the bridge on a jet plane the only one in the world and has not yet been repeated. That's what I thought, and that's what I've told others. But with the help of a distant overseas friend Misha Yudanin, who was still living in Novosibirsk in the late 1980s, they managed to find out that, it turns out, there is life abroad, and there are also “reckless” pilots there.
And the first flight on a jet aircraft was made 6 years before ours, on April 24, 1959. True, it was not a fighter, but a jet bomber. This hooligan overflight was made by a successful, experienced US Air Force pilot, 39-year-old Captain John S. Lappo (John S. Lappo). And it happened in Michigan, under the Mackinac suspension bridge. Lappo was also getting ready. According to him, he planned to fly under the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, but another turned up.
Early in the morning, also returning to base after completing learning task, over Lake Michigan, Lappo dropped to a height of 23 meters and slipped on a reconnaissance bomber RB-47E Stratojet under the brand new Mackinac Bridge. A 60-ton aircraft was separated from the water and the span of the bridge by a couple of tens of meters.
The commander of the crew was given under a military tribunal. But the former military merits saved the captain from prison - 28 sorties in Korea on a B-29 bomber, four military awards, "Flight Cross" for several reconnaissance flights over the territory of the USSR. The court reprimanded Lappo and awarded a fine. At the same time, all American aircraft were prohibited from descending below 500 feet (153 m). John Lappo also received personal gratitude from the 1st Deputy Chief of Staff of the Air Force, Curtis LeMay: “I’m sorry that I don’t have a squadron of pilots like you,” but the hooligan could no longer sit at the helm of a military aircraft, although he still served in the Air Force 13 years old, having retired with the rank of lieutenant colonel.
The length of the main span of the Mackinac Bridge is 1158 m, the clearance from the carriageway to the water is 50 meters. The width of the span is 127 meters, the height is 30 meters. Agree that the eye of the needle is ten times smaller.
But the bomber has almost four times the wingspan - 35.4 meters against 9.83 MiGs. Almost 100 km higher stall speed -308 km/h against our 220-230. That is, it must fly faster, or it will fall, although cruising speed, of course, is a loser. But who is on the cruise and under the bridges!
"Subtle" English humor
Another jet overflight happened after ours in the heart of the old, good england. On the afternoon of April 5, 1968, an RAF pilot, regimental commander of the 1st Squadron, 32-year-old Alan Pollock flew a Hawker Hunter FGA.9 fighter at a speed of 300 miles per hour (483 km / h) under the top of the Tower Bridge . Before that, he separated from the led group of aircraft, went towards London, circled the Houses of Parliament three times with a thunderous roar and circled over the Royal Air Force memorial on the Victoria Embankment. The pilot did this to protest the decision of the Labor government not to hold an air parade over London in honor of the fiftieth anniversary of the RAF.
The width of the Tower Bridge is more than two times less than the Communal Bridge in Novosibirsk - 61 meters, and the height of the upper gallery above the main bridge is 42 meters. The pilot was not stopped by the fact that a double-decker bus was moving along the bridge, pedestrians were walking.
After landing, Pollock was arrested, and then, despite the support of his colleagues, was dismissed from the Air Force for health reasons without the right to appeal, which allowed him to avoid a military court.
For clarity, I have summarized the characteristics of aircraft and bridges that are most interesting to us in tables.
Of course, flight conditions also depend on many other conditions (wind, the actual weight of the aircraft, the skill of the pilot). But, whatever one may say, the risk is huge in all cases - a slight movement of the steering wheel - and you are in the bridge support or in the water, and in our case you still need to climb correctly, because ahead, after 950 meters, the next obstacle is the railway bridge across the Ob.
I must say that all three pilots were preparing in one way or another. The Englishman even made a preliminary map of his flight over London. All three are proud of their deed and colorfully describe it. But what was it like for ordinary people who were at the time of the heroic flight on the bridges. Didn't have time to understand? Maybe. A spokesman for the London Metropolitan Police concluded in 1968: “We do not see this as a joke, it could have serious consequences. There were pedestrians and vehicles on the bridge." Dry and sober.
In June 1965, a pilot from the air defense regiment, Valentin Privalov, flew a MiG-17 plane under the Communal Bridge across the Ob River in Novosibirsk ...
Before that, he himself swam examined the distance between the bridge supports. Moreover, Chkalov made a similar flight on a propeller-driven aircraft, and not a jet ...
He was arrested for air hooliganism, but Malinovsky, the then Minister of Defense, ordered the pilot to be allowed to fly.
I heard about this case in childhood, but I never saw a photo, so I found it on Facebook, searched for it, found more:
The arrest followed immediately - the very next day. The debriefing and, to put it mildly, the separation were not long in coming. However, no one wanted to take the final decision on the fate of the pilot. The then Minister of Defense of the USSR, Marshal R. Malinovsky, put an end to this matter. A telegram came from him to the unit: “Pilot Privalov should not be punished. Limit yourself to the activities that were carried out with him. If you haven't been on vacation, go on vacation. If there was, give ten days of rest at the unit " "Captain Valentin Privalov, nicknamed" Jack ".
Valentin was born in the Moscow region, his childhood fell on wartime. While still at school, he was involved in the flying club. After college, he served in naval aviation, in Kaliningrad and the Arctic, was awarded the Order of the Red Star. Later he was transferred to the city of Kansk, Krasnoyarsk Territory.
In June 1965, as part of a flight of 4 MiGs, Privalov was seconded to the exercises taking place in the Siberian Military District - anti-aircraft divisions conducted training firing at the training ground near Yurga. Returning from a mission in Tolmachevo, Valentine flew under the Communal Bridge. (For reference: the size of the arch is approximately 30 by 120 meters, the wingspan of the MiG-17 is 9.6 meters).
Recalls Anatoly Maksimovich Rybyakov, a retired aviation major:
“From the third turn, he descended and passed under the bridge. Speed - somewhere around 400 km / h. It was a clear, sunny day. People on the beach were swimming, sunbathing, and suddenly - a roar, and the plane soared up like a candle, avoiding a collision with a railway bridge. It was clear that this could not be hidden. Air Marshal Savitsky flew in and set up an investigation. They asked Privalov what his motives were. He replied that he wrote two reports about being sent to Vietnam, but they remained unanswered. That's why I decided to fly under the bridge to draw attention. This act was evaluated in different ways. Young pilots - like heroism, the older generation - like air hooliganism.
Meanwhile, there is a history of flights under the bridges: “According to a widely circulated legend, Chkalov flew under the Trinity Bridge in Leningrad. For the film “Valery Chkalov”, pilot Yevgeny Borisenko repeated this flight!
Rumors of a flight under the bridge quickly spread throughout the country, and following Valery Pavlovich during the armed conflict in the Sino-Eastern railway(CER) in 1929, pilot E. Lukht, three times awarded the Order of the Red Banner, personal combat weapons, gold watches and other insignia of those years, flew under the bridge over the Amur in Khabarovsk, followed by this seemingly useless and most dangerous trick, repeated the pilot of the same squadron A. Svyatogorov, as well as I.P. Mazuruk and M.V. Vodopyanov.
During the war, a similar trick was performed by the pilot Rozhnov. Avoiding pursuit in the sky, he flew under the railway bridge, saving the lives of himself and the crew.
The next day, June 5, 1965, all four pilots seconded from Kansk were in for a "surprise". According to a number of orders and instructions, the emergency was reported vertically, and soon everyone who was supposed to be in office learned about an incident unseen since the time of Valery Chkalov. Reported to the Minister of Defense of the USSR, Marshal Soviet Union R.Ya. Malinovsky.
Anticipating numerous thunders and lightnings from the General Staff Olympus and the near prospect of giving Privalov to the tribunal, the communists of the regiment hastily expelled the desperate pilot from the ranks of the CPSU. And that meant the end in those days. aviation biography even in the most favorable scenario.,
Privalov, without an airplane, but with a parachute (as it was supposed to be in form), went back to Kansk by train. He was threatened, if not by a tribunal, then by the end of his flying career. However, when the ace arrived in his native part, a telegram arrived there: “Pilot Privalov should not be punished. Limit yourself to the events that were carried out with him (meaning an educational conversation with the marshal. - Approx. ed.). If you haven't been on vacation, go on vacation. If there was, give ten days of rest at the unit. Minister of Defense of the USSR Marshal R. Malinovsky.
Apparently, the suicidal courage of the air hooligan subdued the marshal, who was familiar with both Chkalov and Pokryshkin. Which, by the way, were also not against demonstrating their aerial skills. And rightly so. Well, hide it, or what?
Now it is difficult to say why the Minister of Defense made an unexpected decision regarding Privalov. Maybe, the marshal realized that such pilots in the event of war would be very useful to native aviation, or maybe something else happened, but Captain Privalov was ordered not to punish, but to send him on vacation, and if he already had, then provide ten-day rest with parts! After that, the ex-communist was quickly returned to the ranks of the Leninist party, and the caliber of the stars on the shoulder straps of the desperate pilot soon changed. He became a squadron commander and even a deputy regiment commander, but not immediately.
They did not forget about the Chkalovsky follower in the capital either - in the early 70s, Major, and then Lieutenant Colonel Privalov, continued to serve in a training aviation regiment in the village of Savasleyka, Gorky Region. Soon, the training regiment became the 148th center for combat use and retraining of air defense aviation flight personnel. Only in 1977, a cardiovascular disease forced Valentin Vasilievich to leave the flight service. He could not and did not want to remain in the ranks of the army without his favorite job - he had to retire, although there was an option to serve for some time in a rear position. In the late 80s, he underwent surgery to implant an electrical pacemaker to the heart muscle. Currently, Valentin Vasilyevich Privalov lives in Moscow.
Local historian, historian, employee of the Museum of the city of Novosibirsk Konstantin Golodyaev spoke specifically for the site about the anniversary of the event in Novosibirsk, which became a "supermeme" in social networks after many years.
Friday, June 4, 1965 was cloudy but very warm. Some of the idle townspeople were sitting on the banks of the Ob, opening the beach season, some were driving along the Communal Bridge, and some were walking along it. And around noon, they all heard a terrible roar, and saw how waves grew from under this bridge (and, some argued, from under the water), a large silvery “something” emerged and swiftly rushed into the distance. A tsunami hit the coast.
By evening, almost the entire city was quietly discussing what had happened. No one doubted that the swift "something" was the plane. True, the stories diverged from the passenger Tu-104 that lost control (notorious for its accident rate) to the testing of the latest aviation weapons. Not without a favorite rumor "Cherchez la femme". The radio network remained silent, the newspapers the next day did not clarify anything either. But the owners of VHF receivers, through the crackle of jammers, managed to hear Western reflections on the future of strafing flights and hysterical Maoist cries about the development of new tactics by the Russians to destroy Chinese bridges and crossings. Only years later did the city learn that its Communal (officially Oktyabrsky) bridge is now neither more nor less, but a world landmark.
And it remains so to this day, because no one in the world has yet repeated the flight under the bridge on a JET.
Yes, the truth was that this “underwater” silver fireball turned out to be a MIG-17 jet fighter, on which, out of “boredom and hopelessness”, thirty-year-old captain of the Soviet Air Force Valentin Vasilyevich Privalov flew into the arch of the bridge. The authorities did not notice him, did not assign the next rank, the report on sending him on a business trip to help fraternal Vietnam was rejected twice. And he is a good pilot and his character is groovy - he is boiling, it is not for nothing that his colleagues called him "Jack". Here it is.
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A pilot was assigned in Kansk, and here four Krasnoyarsk fighters were located at the location of the 712th Guards Aviation Regiment in Tolmachevo. They arrived at the exercises of the district. And so, returning from the Yurga training ground, from working out the "conditional target" for anti-aircraft gunners, Privalov saw our handsome bridge in front of him. And it must be said that chance has nothing to do with it: the pilot was already eyeing him, having recently been with the guys on the beach.
Having risen in the river bed, Privalov extinguished the speed to 700 kilometers per hour, descended to the water, then slowed down again and directed the car into the central arch of the bridge.
The width of the arch is 120 meters, the wingspan is less than 10. Twelve-fold margin. But taking into account the height of the bridge of 30 meters, and most importantly, the speed of the aircraft at the time of passage, estimated by experts at 400 km / h, and the time for the subsequent maneuver, the flight was sniper. Immediately after the passage, from which, according to eyewitnesses who were on the bridge, the bottom of the river was exposed, the car began to sharply gain height. Between the Communal and railway bridges 950 meters. And the second one is higher. 400 km/h. 111 m/s Given the acceleration in stock less than 8-9 seconds. They say that the plane passed almost tightly over the trusses of the second bridge.
By and large, and by and large, Privalov's trick was criminal. It would be nice if he risked only his own life, which was already in his biography. It would be nice if he destroyed one of the bridges, stopped the Trans-Siberian. But there were people, cars, public transport on the Communal Bridge.
The incident was immediately reported to Moscow. The entire Kansk group of pilots was arrested.
Privalov is urgently expelled from the ranks of the CPSU. Sitting in the guardhouse, he is waiting for parting not only with the sky, but also with freedom. On the third day something "clicked". The pilot was released, handed over the documents for the train and ordered to immediately depart for Kansk, to the location of the unit. No convoy. A telegram from the Minister of Defense of the USSR, Marshal Malinovsky, is already arriving there: do not punish the pilot, give him a rest. Privalov is reinstated in the party, but still they put in a stricter with an entry.
And after a while he was transferred to the Gorky region, in educational part, then they assign a major, then a lieutenant colonel, appoint a squadron commander, deputy regiment commander. Valentin Vasilyevich himself was never imbued with the dubious value of his act. He said: "The bridge is just an accident. If it weren't for the bridge, it would be something else of the same kind."
The French opened the topic of flying under bridges. Even at the beginning of the last century.
Next we have Slavorossov, Fride, Gruzinov, Chkalov, Borisenko. The pilot Rozhnov went under the bridge from the persecution of the Nazis. Already in our time, we have repeatedly flown under bridges on a sports plane and a motor Yak. In Vilnius, even upside down. There is enough madness in the world, but no other pilot on the planet is in a hurry to repeat such a trick on a jet plane.
Naturally, there is no photograph of the incident. Yes, it couldn't be.
Nobody even had time to pick up a camera. But there is a widely disseminated collage, which a few years ago was made by an employee of the museum of our city, Yevgeny Sotsikhovsky. In my opinion, very skillfully, although mathematically incorrect.
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And Ace pilot Valentin Privalov
Memories of an old man
Valery Chkalov on a Fokker D.XI fighter flew under the Trinity Bridge in St. Petersburg, the motivation for the act is a woman. Whether this is so is not known for certain. On this topic:
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It is known for certain that in 1941, on the set of Mikhail Kalatozov’s film “Valery Chkalov”, pilot Yevgeny Borisenko had to repeat this trick six times to get the picture the filmmakers needed. He performed it on the Sh-2 amphibious aircraft, the wingspan of which is greater than that of the Chkalov fighter, so the flight was more difficult to make than the hero himself. During the war, Hero of the Soviet Union, pilot Nikolai Andreevich Rozhnov, after working out as an attack aircraft along the front line, began to return home, five Me-109s landed on his tail, he shot down one, leaving the rest, flew under the railway bridge on a strafing flight, left, fought until victory. The Pravda newspaper published an article about him: "The feat of the pilot Rozhnov." He was inspired to this maneuver by Chkalov's daring escapade.
Eyewitness account: “And so, when we were somewhere in the middle of the bridge, something happened that could not be imagined in the most terrible dream. Suddenly, a silvery silhouette of an airplane flashed from under the bridge and immediately soared into the sky at a large angle to the horizon, the bottom of the river was exposed for a second! A wave went to the beach, washing the clothes and shoes of careless bathers into the water. The man walking in front of me and I stopped and, as if spellbound, looked at the amazing action, and the corporal firmly pressed his cap to his head with both hands, fearing the loss of the official property.A little later, we smelled kerosene.
By evening, almost all of the Left Bank knew about what had happened, although there was a "damaged telephone effect." Instead of the MiG-17 fighter, the passenger Tu-104 has already appeared. They said that under the bridge a plane flew from the plant. Chkalov, who allegedly lost control during the tests.
The flight accident had a wide resonance not only in the USSR, but also abroad. After this flight, the pilot was arrested, they wanted to prosecute for air hooliganism, but the Minister of Defense of the USSR R. Ya. Malinovsky ordered V. Privalov to be allowed to fly again. In the future, Valentin Privalov continued to serve in the legendary squadron of aces in Kubinka near Moscow.
Valentin Privalov
The thirty-year-old captain Privalov did this act not on a dare and not because of a woman. The reason was different. He wanted to show that there are still pilots in the Armed Forces with capital letter that the ill-conceived dashing "cutting" of the native army during the Khrushchev thaw did not eradicate the Chkalovsky traditions and pilot dashing. In addition, it was also a kind of protest against the kholuy suppression of innovation, initiative, and the "rubbing out" of combat pilots.
But a dashing act for the sake of a woman - I also understand this.
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By the way, is the photo real? Of course not, here it is