Order of the Red Star, # 1775835, coxswain Minesweeper No. 350, Baltic Fleet
Red Star awarded May 1945 to senior sailor Nikolaj Ivanovich Sivtsov, coxswain on minesweeper 350 of the Baltic Fleet (5th Motorboat Minesweeper Squadron, 3th Minesweeper Brigade, Island Naval Defence Area of the Baltic Fleet). Sivtsov was born in 1920 in the Ukraine, joined the Navy in 1940. He was further awarded the medal for the defence of Leningrad in December 1942.
The citation:
”Senior sailor SIVTSOV Nikolaj Ivanovich has been serving on the motorboat minesweeper №350 as a coxswain since the very beginning of the Patriotic war until present day. He served on many vessels and participated in many combat operations.
In 1941, during a minesweeping mission, the boat was attack by the enemy aviation. Comrade SIVTSOV sustained a contusion after a close bomb explosion. This injury affected his speech abilities.
In 1942-1943, senior sailor SIVTSOV participated in minesweeping missions on motorboats as well as in the patrol missions.
In 1944, comrade SIVTSOVs motorboat was undertaking a minesweeping mission in the Narva bay. The enemy aviation attacked. A bomb explosion damaged the boats steering mechanism. Sailor SIVTSOV, neglecting danger, went overboard and fixed the damage, which allowed the boat to continue its mission.
In July 1944, participating in the landing operation on the Viborg bay, the coxswain SIVTSOV steered his boat to the enemy coast more than 10 times under heavy enemy artillery and mortar fire, allowing the marines to disembark on the enemy coast. As a motorboat minesweeper has only one coxswain, comrade SIVTSOV had to hold 14-16 hour shifts at the steering post. Such intensity mission can be sustained only by strong and courageous sailors.
The boat steered by Sr. sailor SIVTSOV covered many miles. Only the military campaign of 1944, his motorboat covered 6000 miles.
He is disciplined and devoted to the case of party of Lenin-Stalin and the Socialistic Motherland. For courage and bravery exhibited in the struggle against the German invaders, he is worthy of a state award - order Red Star.
Commander of 5 motorboat minesweeper squadron Lieutenant Commander signature /LAKHOVSKY/
16 May 1945”
