to open next chapter. - NASA's History Office

Rockets and People
four-engine Tupolev aircraft in the field of view exceeds 158, and there were probably
some that didn’t fit in the shot. Unfortunately, this photograph cannot be
considered a fake. The Russians have demonstrated not only the might of their
fleet of bombers but also the capabilities of their industry.”
In August 1933, by decree of the USSR TsIK Presidium, the factory was
awarded the Order of Lenin for mastering the construction of special heavy aircraft
and for the effective organization of factory operations. At that time this was a
great honor. Orders of Lenin and the Red Star were awarded to eighteen of the
most distinguished workers, including Gorbunov and Godovikov, who received
Orders of the Red Star, and Mitkevich, who received an Order of Lenin. A large
meeting was held in Fili Park for this event. RKKA Air Force Chief Ya. I.Alksnis
spoke at the meeting. 30 In their speeches Alksnis and Voroshilov both appealed to
the aircraft industry workers to produce aircraft and engines that were superior to
foreign ones. In 1933, the TB-3 had no equals in terms of carrying capacity. But
in terms of speed and altitude, it could have been much better were it not for the
lagging of our engine industry.
That same August 1933,Aviation Day was celebrated for the first time.This celebration
was used to the full extent to inspire young workers to new production
feats. At all of our mass events we said that the Land of the Soviets must have
airplanes that will fly “higher, faster and further than all others.” Factory No. 22, the
aircraft industry’s best factory, would bear direct responsibility for realizing this task.
The factory experienced a boom period. Traveling out to regional and
Moscow-area rallies and conferences, we always felt that a special respect was
shown to the delegates of Factory No. 22.The continuous, single-minded public
relations campaign was working.The new organization secretaries who joined the
Party leadership in the main shops, Mitkevich’s people, had created an atmosphere
of unity and a continuous, festive labor upsurge. During this period Gorbunov and
Mitkevich enjoyed deserved authority. For us in the Komsomol, they were teachers
and idols—models whose lives we should copy.
Unexpectedly, these idols struck a blow to their own authority. In the beginning,
whispered rumors had circulated about an intimate relationship between
the director and the Central Committee Party organizer. In Komsomol circles,
Gorbunov’s authority and cult of personality were so great that the first reaction
was,“Nonsense and gossip—it can’t be. Gorbunov has a young, beautiful wife, his
friend from Komsomol work in Zaraysk. Mitkevich is not so much a woman as a
Party commissar with a long record that predates the revolution. She is fourteen
years his senior. If he does something crazy, she should have enough self-control
and common sense not to give cause for all kinds of gossip.”
But the gossip and rumors turned out to be true. Gorbunov left his wife the
apartment in the factory settlement in Fili and moved in with Mitkevich, who
82
30. RKKA—Raboche-Krestyanskaya Krasnaya Armiya (Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army).