Mishkin Nikolai Timofeevich (10/15/1922 - 09/22/1944) - commander of the 2nd tank battalion of the 181st tank brigade of the 18th tank corps of the 53rd army of the 2nd Ukrainian front, senior lieutenant. For heroism and courage in the fight against the German invaders, he deserves the title of Hero of the Soviet Union (posthumous).
Biography
Nikolai Timofeevich Mishkin was born on October 15, 1922 in a village of Merkulevo, Bryansk region, in a peasant family. He graduated from seven classes of high school, and then, in the spring of 1941 - agricultural technical school. He worked in his native collective farm.
Nikolai was drafted into the army by the Bryansk RVK of the Oryol Region, where he ended up in the Oryol Armored School, which he graduated in 1942. However, Nikolai only got to the front in January 1944. He fought on the 2nd Ukrainian Front. Mishkin commanded a company of the 2nd Panzer Battalion of the 181st Panzer Brigade of the 18th Panzer Corps of the 53rd Army of the 2nd Ukrainian Front. From the first to the last battle days, Nikolai Mishkin fought courageously, bravely with the enemy. From the most difficult situations he was able to find a way out with the least losses.
Battle way
In the conditions of real hostilities, Nikolai immediately distinguished himself. Already in January-February 1944, together with his tank company, Lieutenant Mishkin took part in the Korsun-Shevchenkovsky offensive operation. His company was to destroy the enemy’s group, which was surrounded in the area of the village of Dzhurzhentsi, Lysyansky district, Cherkasy region.
Realizing that they would be surely killed in the event of defeat, the Nazis made desperate efforts to break through to their main forces and break through the encirclement. However, a company of tankers under the command of Mishkin did not allow the Germans to leave. The group, with up to 5, 000 enemy soldiers and officers, was destroyed. In addition, Soviet tankers destroyed 7 anti-tank guns, 6 enemy tanks, more than 60 vehicles and more than 700 German soldiers and officers. The commander - Lieutenant Mishkin was especially distinguished in battle. He destroyed more than 10 cars, 2 "tigers", and about 180 soldiers and officers of the enemy. For the courage and courage shown and the damage done to the enemy, Nikolai Timofeevich was awarded the Order of the Red Star.
Feat
In 1944, Senior Lieutenant Mishkin, with his company of tankers, participated in the liberation of Romania from the invaders. On September 22, the commander of the unit, Colonel Indeykin, set a task for the tank reconnaissance company under the command of Nikolai Mishkin: to raid behind enemy lines and break through the enemy defenses in the Paulim Pau area.
Under the town of Molnor, the Nazis tried to stop the tankers with the help of artillery and aircraft. But the soldiers, following the example of their commander, fought fiercely, preventing the enemy from gaining an advantage. Tankers destroyed 30 vehicles, 18 anti-tank guns, 50 wagons with military equipment and more than four hundred opponents. In the end, the company ran out of ammunition, and the Nazis rushed forward, trying to take the detachment into the ring.
Nikolai Timofeevich decided to lead the tank company in the attack.
Here is how the correspondent of the newspaper Desnyanskaya Pravda Vladimir Levin tells about this battle in his article: “According to F. Isaychikov, who studied the details of the battle, it was like this. Seeing that the gun’s trunk was peeking out from behind the hill, Mishkin realized that there’s an enemy’s battery. It must be destroyed. ”He turned his tank and, going behind enemy lines, went to the village.
The enemy’s position was opened. Nikolai stopped the tank and began to aim fire. Here one gun flew into the air, here the second, third, fourth was disabled. Enemy battery has ceased to exist
But then there was a roar from the garden, and immediately - a second shot. There were two more guns. Nikolai directs his tank at them. The enemy shoots at the Mishkin tank, but does not cause him noticeable harm. At this time, due to the turn of the road, a convoy of enemy vehicles appeared. There was no time to think. The company commander directed his tank toward rapprochement, and on the move shot into a closing car. The soldiers began to jump, and the tank stopped and crashed the car with aimed fire. Then he began to destroy others, to shoot infantry."
A shell hit the commander’s tank and the car caught fire. Mishkin did not leave the burning tank, but sent it to the enemy’s equipment. He destroyed 8 cars, 15 carts with military equipment, six guns, about forty soldiers and officers. The enemy’s resistance was broken — tankers provided the Soviet units with the opportunity to break through the German defenses.
Unfortunately, the hero himself was not able to escape. Senior Lieutenant Mishkin died in a burning tank, fighting to the last breath, to inflict maximum damage to the enemy and facilitate the breakthrough of German defense by comrades.
Nikolai Timofeevich was buried in Romania, near the city of Arad and the place where he took his last fight. And he won. He was 22 years old.
By decree of March 5, 1944, Nikolai Timofeevich Mishkin was awarded the Order of the Red Star; by decree of March 24, 1945, he was awarded the Order of Lenin. 03/24/1945 the senior lieutenant Mishkin was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union posthumously.
