Background
Vera Belik was born on 12 June 1921 in Okhrimivka, Yakymivka Raion, Ukraine, Soviet Union. Belik was the oldest of six children of a master electrician.
Malaya Pirogovskaya Ulitsa, 1/1, Moscow, Russia, 119435
In 1939 Vera Belik enrolled at the Moscow State Pedagogical Institute, where she studied mathematics.
Malaya Pirogovskaya Ulitsa, 1/1, Moscow, Russia, 119435
In 1939 Vera Belik enrolled at the Moscow State Pedagogical Institute, where she studied mathematics.
Hero of the Soviet Union Valentina Grizodubova
Vera Belik was born on 12 June 1921 in Okhrimivka, Yakymivka Raion, Ukraine, Soviet Union. Belik was the oldest of six children of a master electrician.
Vera finished school № 17 in Kerch.
In 1939 Vera Belik enrolled at the Moscow State Pedagogical Institute, where she studied mathematics.
In October 1941, Vera Belik participated in the construction of defenses such as anti-tank ditches.
Vera began navigation training at Engels Military Aviation school after joining the women's aviation unit founded by Marina Raskova. Before the war, the navigation courses lasted three years, but due to the state of the war at the time, it only lasted six months. In May 1942 she was deployed to the front with the 588th Night Bomber Regiment, which was to the later redesignated the 46th Guards Regiment in 1943. She worked closely with Tatyana Makarova who served as pilot of the Po-2 they flew while she navigated. In December 1942, the regiment was expanded and Belik was promoted to the navigator of the second squadron. However, after Josef Kociok shot down four planes from the squadron on the night of 31 July-1 August, Makarova requested demotion back to flight commander, and Belik chose to request demotion too in order to stay with her friend. She flew in difficult sorties over Ukraine, the Kuban area of the North Caucasus, the Crimea, Belarus, and Poland. On 1 August 1944, she and Makarova flew the first bombing mission over East Prussia, becoming the first aircrew of the regiment to fight over German soil.
Berlik and Makarova died on 25 August 1944 when they were attacked by a German fighter near their home airfield in Poland. Their wood and canvas airplane caught fire, and like most Po-2 crews, they carried no parachutes; the aircraft went down in flames.
During the war, Vera Belik made 813 combat flights on a U-2 (Po-2) aircraft, dropped 106 tons of bombs on the enemy, causing 156 strong explosions, 143 fires, destroying 3 crossings, 3 anti-aircraft points, 2 searchlights, 2 ammunition depots, and over two infantry platoons.
In September 1942 she was included in the first group of women to be decorated in her regiment: Belik received the Order of the Red Star.
In 1942 Vera became a member of the Communist Party.
Vera's sound judgment, good memory, and ability to calculate quickly were noted after she had volunteered for service in her combat aviation regiment.
