Aleksandr Kazakov

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Aleksandr Kazakov

Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Kazakov (or Kozakov) (Russian: Александр Александрович Казаков) (15 January 1889 - 1 August 1919) was the most successful Russian flying ace and fighter pilot during the First World War.

Born in a Russian noble family in Kherson province, Kazakov graduated from Yelizavetgrad cavalry school in 1908. In 1913 he began formal training as a pilot and graduated at the beginning of World War I from Gatchina military aviation school.

Aleksander Kazakov flew on Morane-Saulnier, Spad – SА2, Nieuport 11 and Nieuport 17 planes and is alleged to have the largest number of victories over enemy aircraft among Imperial Russian Air Force pilots. Unofficially he shot down 32 German and Austro-Hungarian planes, although his official tally is only 17 because only planes crashed in Russian-held territory were counted. Russian military aviation tradition during World War I was different from that of its Western allies and rivals and the individual scores of pilots were considered to be of lesser value compared to their contribution to the overall war effort.

On 19 March 1915 Aleksandr Kazakov successfully repeated the ramming attack first attempted by Pyotr Nesterov. Between 1915 and 1917 he fought on the Russian front as well as in Romania and participated in the Brusilov Offensive as a commander of 1st Combat Air Group.

Aleksandr Kazakov was awarded 18 medals including the British Distinguished Service Order and Military Cross and the French Légion d'honneur order.

During the Russian Civil War Kazakov joined the Slavo-British Allied Legion in Arkhangelsk and fought against the Bolshevik Red Army airforce. On 1 August 1918 Kazakov became a major in the Royal Air Force and was appointed to be commanding officer in charge of an aviation squadron of the Slavo-British Allied Legion made up of Sopwith Camel planes. After the British withdrawal from Russia which left the Russian White Army in a desperate situation, Kazakov died in a plane crash during an air show on 1 August 1919 which was performed to boost the morale of the Russian anti-Bolshevik troops. Most witnesses of the incident thought Kazakov committed suicide.