Background
Ivan Yerashov was born on September 26, 1911 in the city of Lepel in a large family, in which there were three girls and four boys. Of the four sons, three became pilots.
Ivan Yerashov was born on September 26, 1911 in the city of Lepel in a large family, in which there were three girls and four boys. Of the four sons, three became pilots.
In 1929 Ivan studied at Village school of Kamen, Lepelsky district of the Vitebsk region.
From1931 he studied at Lepel Pedagogical College in Vitebsk.
In 1933 he graduated from the Communist Academy.
Since 1939 he studied at Air Force Academy.
In 1931 Ivan graduated from Lepel Pedagogical College, after which he worked as a teacher in Polotsk.
In August, 1933, Yerashov was drafted to serve in the Red Army.
In 1936, he graduated from the Stalingrad Military Aviation School, after which he served as an instructor pilot and the head of the training and flying department.
In April 1941, he was appointed to the position of deputy commander of the 275th near-bomber air regiment.
In 1943, he graduated from the Air Force Academy. Since May of the same year he was sent to the fronts of the Great Patriotic War. Took part in the battles on the South-Western and 3rd Ukrainian fronts. Participated in the Battle of Kursk, Barvenkovo-Lozovskaya, Dnepropetrovsk, Nikopol-Krivoy Rog, Odessa operations.
By December 1943, Major Ivan Yerashov commanded the 672nd assault aviation regiment of the 306th Assault Air Division, the 9th mixed Air Corps of the 17th Air Army, the 3rd Ukrainian Front. By that time he had made 94 combat flights, inflicting heavy losses on the enemy in combat equipment and manpower, took part in a number of air battles, knocking down four enemy aircraft.
In just 10 months of active participation in the war, Yerashov performed 129 flights, participated in 7 air battles, personally shot down 4 enemy aircraft. He has been brought himself down 3 times.
In December 1943 - January 1944, the regiment participated in the Krivoy Rog operation. By mid-January 1944, Major Yerashov carried out 106 flights to bombard and attack enemy manpower and equipment. At the same time, he destroyed: 40 vehicles, 12 tanks, 4 batteries of field artillery, 2 ammunition depots, 1 warehouse with fuel, 1 bulk railway train, 1 ferry, 30 covered wagons, 2 enemy infantry platoons, 8 aircraft on the ground and 4 in the air; damaged the bridge across the Dnieper River and 5 railway echelons. For these successes, Yerasov was awarded the second Order of the Red Banner.
In March 1944, the Odessa offensive operation of the Soviet troops began, which was the last battle for Yerashov: March 23, in the air battle, he was shot down and found dead.
However, Yerasov was wounded in battle, and when the plane fell onto a forest patch, he lost consciousness from a blow to the ground, and woke up already in captivity. After being held at the post office, in a group of prisoners of war Yerashov was driven to Poland, where he stayed in the camp until October 1944.
All this time he, participating in slave labor camp, nurtured an escape plan. In October 1944 a group of prisoners of war, including Yerashov, escaped. But in November he was captured again and sent to the department of the Gestapo of the city of Shroda. After a close "communication" with the Gestapo, he went to the hospital for prisoners of war in the city of Wolshtein.
On February 25, 1945, together with other prisoners of war, Yerashov was liberated by Soviet troops.
After treatment in the filtration hospital, Major Yerashov returned to his service in the army. Yerasov served as the head of the airborne rifle service of the 11th Attack Air Division of the Baltic Fleet Air Force, the inspector of the 10th Assault Aircraft Corps on the technique of piloting in Chkalov (now Orenburg).
In November 1947, Yerashov was retired due to illness.
He died on May 8, 1948, and was buried in Novocherkassk.
He was the member of the CPSU.