Hero of Russia Gennady Petrovich Lyachin - commander of the submarine K-141 "Kursk"

Growing up in the Volgograd steppes, Gennady Petrovich Lyachin connected his life with the sea. The commander of the ultramodern submarine owes the whole life to the father of the future wife, a hereditary sailor who instilled love for the navy. He will give it to his son, forever remaining in the memory of his contemporaries captain of the tragically died in the waters of the Barents Sea on August 12, 2000 APRK "Kursk".

Biography pages

Gennady Lyachin's parents are ordinary workers who lived in the Sarpinsky state farm (now the territory of Kalmykia). In school, the boy went already in Volgograd (school number 85), being behind one desk with Irina Glebova, the love of which will carry through all life. Being the highest in the class, he enjoyed the attention of classmates, but from the very beginning he was serious and understanding what he wanted from life. He was fond of football, but he studied for four and five, choosing a profession in which he could truly prove himself.

Fascinated by the stories of his future father-in-law about the romance and traditions of the naval service, he went to the Navy, choosing the profession of a submariner for himself. To this end, he entered the naval school, famous Lenkom, having received in 1977 the shoulder straps of the lieutenant. Gennady Petrovich Lyachin spent his whole life dedicated to the Northern Fleet after living 23 years in the village of ZATO Vidyaevo (Murmansk region).

Commander of the submarine: stage of military career

The officer's service began on diesel submarines, where in the 1980s he will be promoted to the senior assistant commander after the completion of the Higher Officer Classes. In 1988, he will even be appointed commander of the B-478, but after the ship is written off, he will again be transferred as a senior aide, but already to the K-119 Voronezh nuclear-powered ship. This is practically a twin of the future "Kursk", requiring additional knowledge and skills. For a year and a half the whole crew sits at their desks, receiving special training in the capital of nuclear scientists Obninsk.

The study will not fail, the next three years, "Voronezh" will be the best in the division, and after the descent from the Severodvinsk berths in 1996, the underwater battleship "Kursk" Gennady Petrovich Lyachin will receive the rank of captain of the 1st rank and appointment as commander of a new vessel. It was a handsome man of 25 thousand tons displacement the size of a 9-porch 8-storey house. Atomic submarines were named in honor of hero cities, which in the difficult 90's were given as patronage.

Title of Hero of Russia

Becoming the commander of the APRK K-141 "Kursk", very soon Lyachin led the crew into the advanced, where the real seamen and officers tried to get. He was kindly called "One Hundred Fifth" for great weight, but this was a recognition that he became a true "bati" for professionals and sailors-conscripts. One of the best in the division crew consisted only of specialists of the 1st and 2nd classes and masters and performed tasks of any complexity, whether it was shooting or an autonomous campaign in August-October 1999 in the Atlantic Ocean.

1999 is a star year for a ship that carried out a top-secret mission, overseeing NATO exercises in the Mediterranean. In the conditions of the civil war in Yugoslavia, the Russian navy proved its ability to become a reliable shield for its country - the sea power number 1. For in the arsenal of the NATO countries there were no nuclear submarines capable of inflicting not only a nuclear but also a torpedo strike. The Russian ship disappeared from the exercise site through Gibraltar as imperceptibly as it appeared, which made Captain Lyachin a personal enemy of the Americans. Many NATO officers paid with their posts. And Gennady Petrovich was personally received by Vladimir Putin. He was introduced to the title of Hero of Russia, and 72 crew members - to the Order "For Courage". But no one was prepared to receive a reward in life.

Submarine Kursk: the history of the tragedy

In July 2000, on its professional holiday, APRK proudly took part in the parade of the Northern Fleet in Severodvinsk. In August, they were waiting for planned three-day exercises with training torpedoes. Nothing foretold troubles, when on Saturday morning, August 12, the commander reported on the imposition of a conditional strike on the enemy. On board was the commander of the division, Vladimir Bagryantsev, an experienced sailor who led the march. At 11-30, a torpedo attack was assigned, but the Kursk was silent and no longer contacted.

After the flight of helicopters and the absence of the fact of the ship's ascent, measures began to search for and rescue the submarine. In 4-36 from the cruiser Peter the Great came the report that the APRK was found lying at the bottom of the sea at a depth of 108 meters. A week weather conditions did not allow to go down and get inside, and when the Norwegian divers were able to do this, there was not a single person on board alive. This year marks the 15th anniversary of the success of an unprecedented operation to raise a sunken ship from the depths of the sea and to voice the official version of the tragedy that has occurred.

Due to the leakage of hydrogen, the training torpedo detonated, which caused another explosion of five torpedoes. Fortunately, the nuclear reactor, which the crew thought first of all, did not suffer, otherwise the scale of the tragedy could be much more serious. The motherland lost 118 real men, the pride of the Navy, - the personnel of the ship, led by the commander. In the 9th compartment, the last 23 people survived for some time, not having managed to rise to the surface through a spare hatch due to carbon monoxide poisoning.

Afterword

The submarine Kursk became a symbol of man's courage and strength of mind. The whole country sobbed over the farewell lines left by the individual sailors to the command and relatives. They do not have fear and insult to fate. The crew simply did their duty. These letters have been destroyed, and all the records have been classified for 50 years, which does not allow to believe in the official version of the tragedy in the Barents Sea to the end. When Attorney General Ustinov first landed on a ship raised from the seabed, his motor boat was ruled by Lieutenant Gleb Lyachin, the only son of the deceased hero. Today he continues his father's business.

And Gennady also had a daughter Daria and wife Irina, who devoted her time to politics. She ran for a candidate in the State Duma, and then became an assistant to the chairman of the Federation Council. In the team of Sergei Mironov dealt with the issues of social protection of servicemen. Relatives meet together on the anniversary of the crew's death, supporting each other and giving a debt to the memory of sailors. Gennady Petrovich Lyachin did not live up to his 47th birthday, after receiving the title of Hero of Russia posthumously.