In  the  early  1930s young  people  in  this  country  were swept with  a passion for aviation. The  three  young women shared  this passion but each  took her own road  into the sky.

Daughter   of  one  of   the   first   Russian  pilots  and   aircraft designers, Valentina Grizodubova, first rose  into  the  sky, tight to her father with belts, and  at  the  age of two. Whatever the impressions of the child could be, when Valentina grew up she became a pilot and made aviation her lifetime occupation.

Polina Osipenko lived in an entirely different environment  and worked at a collective farm. Once a small sports airplane landed on the farm’s field. Little short of a miracle at the time, the airplane made the whole village come running to take a look. Polina gaped at the wonder with other farmers but it was the pilot that impressed her most - for it was a woman! This event became a turning point in her life.  She  made  up her mind to become a pilot too.  In the years before the Second World War Polina set five international records. Her photos in a helmet were never off the pages of newspapers.

As for Marina Raskova a young girl she dreamt of  becoming  an actress. But after school she worked as a draughtswoman at the Air Force  Academy.  Soon she was infected with the general passion for flying and took a course of training to become a navigator. 

Before they ventured to make the record - setting non-stop flight, the three women had had considerable flying experience to their credit.

In late September of 1938, the  two-engine  aircraft “Rodina” took off from an airfield near Moscow and  headed for the Far East. Valentina Grizodubova was commander of the crew, Polina Osipenko - second  pilot, Marina Raskova - navigator and radio operator.

The weather was bad. The heavy clouds forced the airplane to rise to a high altitude. The night was particularly difficult. The temperature in the cabin fell to minus 35 centigrade. This put all radio devices out of operation, breaking off all contact with earth. But Raskova managed to find their bearings in the emergency. At last when  they reached  the shores of  the Sea of Okhotsk in     the Far East, they realized they  had  run out of fuel and  the airplane could  not  have a  routine  landing  on an airfield. 

The commander decided to try to land in the thick forests along the sea coast. Landing like that, the airplane could get on its nose and crush the cabin. So the navigator Raskova was ordered to jump by parachute from an altitude of 2,000 meters. At a great risk for their lives the two women landed the airplane on a marsh.

Later Polina Osipenko recalled the days spent in the thick forests of the Far East. "We found ourselves on a large marshy ground with no signs of any human dwelling nearby. The first thought after we touched down was about Marina. To give her a signal as to our whereabouts we began shooting but there was no response. After two sunny days the weather changed for the worse.  The bad weather told on our spirits. Yet, we were sure people would find us.” 

Yes, they were lucky. Unlike Marina Raskova, who had a very hard time all alone in the impassable forest, without any food, except for two bars of chocolate. For ten days, in her heavy outfit she was looking for help.

The entire country rejoiced at the accomplishment of the courageous pilots.  The government gave them the title of Heroes of the Soviet Union.

The two of the three women were not fated to have a long and happy life. Polina Osipenko was killed in an accident during a routine flight when her airplane could not get out of a spin and crashed. Also tragic was the death of Marina Raskova who during the Second World War was commander of a women's air regiment and crashed while flying to the front.

Only Valentina Grizodubova lived to become an old woman. She died at the age of  83 living a long legendary life. 

10/13/05