Photo credit: Angus Forbes / Courtesy of Anna Belorusova
A monument to Soviet pilots was erected in the Scottish city of Errol, TASS reports. It commemorates the pilots from the Moscow Special Purpose Air Group (MSPAG), who were stationed in Scotland during the Second World War.
The opening ceremony of the monument was timed to the Day of Remembrance of the Fallen Participants of the Wars. In the UK and the countries of the Commonwealth of Nations, according to a tradition that has existed since the First World War, it is celebrated on November 11.
A block of Shoksha stone with a memorial plaque became a monument. This unique crimson quartzite, which is located in Karelia, was used in the decoration of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
The head of the Perth and Kinross region, Dennis Melloy, expressed gratitude to the granddaughter of the MSPAG crew commander, Peter Kolesnikov, Anna Belorusova, for perpetuating the memory of the heroes. According to him, the monument will become a symbol of the fact that the connection existing between the countries will continue in the future.
Russian Ambassador Andrei Kelin called the new monument the result of the efforts of the people of both countries. The diplomat has no doubt that they unselfishly and voluntarily strive to preserve this memory for future generations.
The famous Karelian sculptor Alexander Kim worked on the creation of the monument. The memorial plaque designed by Ivan Yudinkov, the grandson of one of the pilots, was made by the Petrozavodskmash foundry, founded in the 18th century by the Scottish metallurgist Charles Gascoigne.
MSPAG is a military transport aviation unit formed at the beginning of the war from the most experienced pilots. They carried out the most important tasks: they delivered food to besieged Leningrad, supplied the surrounded troops with ammunition, threw scouts behind enemy lines, and brought aid to the partisans.
Russkiy Mir
