Chkalov Transpolar Flight Monument

Chkalov Transpolar Flight Monument
	The monument in 2020
	45°37′27.1″N 122°39′25.6″W / 45.624194°N 122.657111°W
Location	Pearson Air Museum, Fort Vancouver National Historic Site, Vancouver, Washington, U.S.

The Chkalov Transpolar Flight Monument, or simply Chkalov Monument,^[1] is a monument located at Pearson Field, in Vancouver, Washington near the Fort Vancouver National Historic Site.^[2]^[3] The monument commemorates the 1937 first transpolar flight [ru],^[4] and was dedicated on June 20, 1975 with copilot Georgy Baidukov and navigator Alexander Belyakov in attendance; pilot Valery Chkalov was killed during a test flight in 1938, the year after the flight. The monument was the first ever erected in the United States to commemorate an achievement of the Soviet Union. The monument was originally located on the south side of the airfield, along Washington State Route 14. When SR 14 was widened and rebuilt in the 1980s, the monument was moved to its current location on the north side of the field, adjacent to the Pearson Air Museum on East 5th Street. ^[5]

References[edit]

^ "Everybody Has a Story: Toasting Chkalov Monument helped warm up the Cold War". The Columbian. Archived from the original on 2020-10-22. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
^ "Chkalov's 1937 flight celebrated at Pearson Air Museum". The Columbian. Archived from the original on 2020-10-24. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
^ "From Moscow To Pearson: Event marks Chkalov flight anniversary". The Columbian. Archived from the original on 2020-10-20. Retrieved 2021-02-12.
^ "Chkalov Transpolar Flight Monument". National Park Service. Archived from the original on October 21, 2020. Retrieved October 19, 2020.
^ Guerra, Kristine (2011-12-09). "Vancouver will honor 75th anniversary of flight". The Oregonian. Archived from the original on 2020-10-21. Retrieved 2021-02-12.

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