People still have fresh memories of the tragedy in Beslan 13 years ago. There could have been much more victims of the tragedy if it were not for the courage, courage and valor of the Russian special forces. The souls of many of them remained forever in the walls of a long-suffering school … One of these heroes was Lieutenant Colonel Oleg Gennadievich Ilyin.
Childhood and youth
The future officer was born in Kyrgyzstan in 1967. This event occurred in the countryside - the village of Krasnooktyabrsky. Oleg's parents were simple working people without ranks and regalia.
Being a very agile child, the boy was engaged in all sports available to him. It was football, volleyball, athletics. But most of all Oleg loved to go camping.
Dreams of military duty came from a guy after he watched the movie "Officers" at the age of 9.
Study and service
The young man graduated from high school located in the Dnipropetrovsk region in 1985. Then he went to Ryazan to enter the Higher Military School of Communications.
After studying, the guy went to serve in the Airborne Forces. There he spent 6 years and became the commander of the first platoon, and then the company.
In 1994, representatives of the elite Vympel unit came to the military unit to recruit new personnel. The future Hero of Russia Oleg Gennadyevich Ilyin immediately decided to go through a tough selection. And among the units he coped with this task. After that, he became a full-fledged special forces soldier. When asked about the reason for his aspiration for Vympel, the fighter answered without hesitation: "I want to serve Russia at a high level!"
In those years, the “pennants” were going through hard times. After the October coup of 1993, the unit transferred to the Department of Internal Affairs. Chaos reigned everywhere. And only the loyal officers of the country remained to serve in special forces.
Such an officer was Oleg Gennadevich Ilyin. He brought to the end any work that he had begun; he devoted himself entirely to the service.
Interesting Facts
In the biography of the Hero of Russia Oleg Ilyin, the most pleasant moment is meeting your wife. This happened back in the days of service in the Airborne Forces. Oleg at that time was already married, but the relationship with his wife did not go well.
The only woman served in the unit. And she was also officially married. But can a heart be ordered not to love? Soon, their relationship was gossiped throughout the town. In order to stop gossip, Ilyin, with all the officers, announced his divorce. And that he wants to marry Anna. A few months later, young people were already living as a family. Ani had a son, George. Soon he began to call Oleg his father. And after 6 years, Seryozha was born - their common child.
Oleg and Anya lived 10 years of a happy life. Of these, 8 years they did not have permanent housing. And 2 years before the tragedy they were finally given their own apartment! But Oleg Gennadevich, the hero of the wars, was not destined to fully enjoy family happiness …
Character Features
Fighting friends gave Oleg the affectionate nickname Lighthouse. All because Ilyin caught fire with every new idea and did not back down until it came true. For example, he personally checked the ammunition of soldiers, standing in it under the stream of water. And then he bluntly stated to his superiors that "the uniform is not suitable, as it passes moisture." It was the same with the sleeping bag - Ilyin spent the whole night in it to experience …
It was with his arrival in the mining department of Vympel that economic and economic support improved significantly. Then he was transferred to another department. There, at the initiative of Ilyin, a group of freelance divers was formed.
But most of all my friends remembered the flights of the Lighthouse on a hang glider in the morning. So he himself tested the technique and figured out how best to use it.
Oleg's combat call sign in the squad is Rock. And this was caused not only by physical data, but also by the strength of character and fortitude. Friends recalled the case when a lieutenant colonel dragged a grenade launcher on himself for several kilometers in full combat gear.
In the family circle, Ilyin was always cheerful, invented a variety of leisure activities and never spoke about the operations in which he participated.
Friends had jokingly called gatherings with co-workers "Ilyinsky." At the party before the trip to Ossetia, the future Hero of the Russian Federation Oleg Gennadyevich Ilyin made a strange but prophetic toast, the meaning of which was to keep the weapon in battle until the last. In fact, it turned out that way …
Important operations
The first battle test of Oleg as part of Vympel was to be the operation to destroy a group of terrorists in Budennovsk. But the unit commander considered Ilyin a newcomer, and the ardent fighter had to stay home.
But after 6 months the hostage-taking took place in the village of Pervomaisky in the Kizlyar district. As part of a small group, Oleg went there. When trying to storm a sniper bullet passed a millimeter from the head of a young commando. He still thought then that he did not have time to die yet.
Then there were private business trips to Chechnya. There, Ilyin actively participated in both hostilities and operational work. Thanks to his efforts, many sorties ended only in negotiations, without bloodshed.
In 2002, Russia was shocked by a new nightmare. Terrorists took hostages in a theater building located on Dubrovka. One of the first to go there was Ilyin with his group. His confident actions contributed to the release of several dozen hostages.
Beslan
Before the tragedy in South Ossetia, the couple of Ilyina planned a long-awaited vacation. They were going to visit friends in Murmansk. It was planned fishing, hunting, mushrooms …
Oleg and his wife went to the office in order to get the required vacation pay. It was here that Ilyin learned about Beslan.
He was going quickly. In parting, Anya asked her husband to take care of herself. Oleg smiled strangely and replied that "he will try very hard."
Arriving at the center of events, the special forces initially underwent training on the created model of the school. This was necessary to understand the combat mission. Ilyin took care of his people here, he personally drove all stages with each of them. The commander left one of the fighters in reserve. The fact was that with this commando the wife was soon to give birth to the firstborn …
The last battle
The combat response detachment led by Ilyin consisted of 5 people. When there was an unexpected explosion in the school building, Oleg and his children were the first to rush there.
The soldiers saw how frightened people began to run out of the doors. The bandits opened aimed fire at them. Ilyin’s group literally defended the surviving hostages with their breasts.
At this time, the armored vehicles arrived. Chechens began to conduct indiscriminate fire on it. After such a shot from a grenade launcher, the lieutenant colonel received a shrapnel wound. His ward, Denis Pudovkin, was also wounded.
The head of the department insisted that the wounded return to the base, but Ilyin persuaded the leadership to leave him and Denis in service.
After a few minutes, the battle fell silent, and the special forces managed to get inside the premises. Already on the first floor, the bandits showed fierce resistance. But the specialists were able to destroy almost everyone. Only three managed to break through. This is where Ilyin’s group went.
The commander was ahead of everyone and around the corner he ran into a hiding terrorist. The machine guns of both shot almost simultaneously. The bandit was killed on the spot. But covering his comrades with his body, the Rock also died heroically …
Anya foresaw trouble, but hoped that her husband was injured. But when the staff officers came home, the woman understood everything without words.
Hero of Russia Ilyin Oleg Gennadievich was buried with honors on September 8, 2004. The Nikolo-Arkhangelskoye cemetery was designated the last refuge.
Achievements
The first medal “For Courage” was received by Ilyin for participating in the counter-terrorist operation in the village of Pervomaisky in 1995. It was then that Oleg first saw the cruel "face of war."
After participating in battles with Basayev’s fighters in Botlikh, Colonel Ilyin Oleg Gennadievich was awarded the Order of Courage.
The Nord-Ost operation led Lighthouse to receive the Order of Merit. He also became a holder of the Order of Merit to the Fatherland.
For the heroism shown in South Ossetia, Oleg Gennadievich Ilyin was posthumously awarded the most honorary military rank - Hero of Russia.
For 10 years of service in special units, Ilyin did not lose a single soldier. This achievement speaks of Oleg’s talent as a commander and of his human qualities.
