On February 14, the Military history Museum of artillery, engineering and communications troops opened the exhibition "Return alive..." to the 30th anniversary of the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan.
The exhibition was created as part of the art and documentary project "My war", dedicated to the participants and veterans of the second half of the twentieth century. This series has held four exhibitions, two of which were on display in the Artillery Museum and has caused a wide public resonance. In particular, with the support of the Committee for external relations of St. Petersburg, an exhibition dedicated to the war in Vietnam was successfully held. A distinctive feature of all the activities of this project was the involvement of direct participants in the preparation of the events.
Alexander Balabanov addressed the organizers and guests of the exhibition on behalf of the Committee for external relations of St. Petersburg. He stressed that"the great value of the opening exhibition is that it presents not only paintings and drawings, but also documents – photographs, letters, as well as personal belongings of soldiers."
The military conflict in Afghanistan (1979-1989) became the largest armed conflict since 1945, in which Soviet soldiers and officers took part. For ten years in Afghanistan killed more than fifteen thousand Soviet soldiers (excluding those who died from wounds and diseases in hospitals in the USSR), more than six thousand were disabled, and about two hundred people are still missing.
The exhibition presents documents and photographs, some of which were made directly during the fighting in Afghanistan, awards of soldiers from a limited contingent of Soviet troops, ammunition and equipment, including trophy.
Visitors will be able to get acquainted with the equipment of the fighter of special units: pack commando (RD-54), holster for the pistol. In such a holster was put a gun, shoulder stop, as well as a device for silent shooting.
Also demonstrates a form of clothing worn by mujahedin or spooks, the national clothes of Afghanistan traditional headdress "pakol", which the Soviet soldiers called "a Pashtun". The subject range is supplemented by weapons samples that were in the hands of the warring parties. Among the captured weapons seized from the spooks are English rifles of the XIX century.
A special place is occupied by portraits of veterans of the Afghan war. There are also paintings and graphic works created by those who passed Jalalabad, Kabul, Kandahar.
In one of the showcases shows the parachute and the shape of the helicopter, transferred Lieutenant Colonel stock Boychenko VN. From September 1984 to December 1985, together with the crew of the MI-8MT helicopter, he fought in Afghanistan as part of a separate combat squadron and was awarded, among other things, the order of the Red Star.
A separate exhibition is dedicated to the memory of the fallen in battle, in particular, presents postcards with portraits of the Heroes of the Soviet Union who died in Afghanistan.
The exhibition "Return alive..." was prepared in conjunction with the St. Petersburg public organization of war veterans "Pass" will be open until April 2019.