Sigizmund Levanevsky
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Sigizmund Aleksandrovich Levanevsky (1902 - August 13, 1937) was a Soviet aircraft pilot and a Hero of the Soviet Union (1934).
Since 1933 he had been a pilot with "Glavsevmorput'" (Main Northern Maritime Route), and had accomplished several long distance flights. In April 1934 he took part in the successful Arctic aerial rescue operation saving people from the sunken steamship "Cheliuskin". He was awarded the title of the Hero of the Soviet Union for this deed.
In 1936, he flew from Los Angeles, USA to Moscow, Russia (former USSR) covering 19,000 kilometers (over 11,800 miles) on his way.
On August 12, 1937 a type N-209 aircraft with 6-men crew under captaincy of Levanevsky started its long distance flight from Moscow to the USA via the North Pole. The radiocommunications with the crew broke off the next day, on the 13th of August, at 17:58 Moscow time when the aircraft encountered adverse weather conditions. After the unsuccessful search attempts all the members of the crew were presumed dead.