Alexander Otroshchenko

Alexander Ivanovich Otroshchenko is a Soviet and Russian military pilot and commander. He served as Commander of the 45th Army of the Northern Fleet's Air Force and Air Defense Forces (2015–2024) and as Commander of the Northern Fleet's Combined Aviation Corps (since 2024). He is a Distinguished Military Pilot of the Russian Federation, a military sniper pilot, and a Lieutenant General (2019).

He served as Chief of Naval Aviation of the Black Sea Fleet (2010–2013), and Chief of Naval Aviation of the Northern Fleet (2013–2015).

On April 2, 2026, information emerged that Otroshchenko was on board the An-26 that crashed over Crimea on March 31.

Biography

Born March 21, 1962, in Stavropol. He served his military service as a marine in the Baltic Fleet.

In 1981, he entered and graduated with honors from the Stavropol Higher Military Aviation School of Air Defense Pilots and Navigators in 1985.

After graduating, he served in flight command positions, rising through the ranks from senior pilot to deputy squadron commander.

In 1991, he entered and graduated with honors from the Marshal of the Soviet Union G.K. Zhukov Military Command Academy of Air Defense in 1994. He then served as an air squadron commander, deputy commander of an air defense fighter aviation regiment for flight training, commander of the 865th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the Pacific Fleet's naval aviation, and deputy commander of troops and forces in the Northeast for the Air Force and Air Defense (June 2005 – September 2010).

He graduated with honors from the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (2003-2005).

From September 2010 to March 2013, he served as Chief of Naval Aviation of the Black Sea Fleet.

On March 29, 2013, he was appointed Chief of Naval Aviation of the Northern Fleet.

In April 2015, he was appointed Commander of the 45th Army of the Northern Fleet Air Force and Air Defense Forces.

On February 22, 2019, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General.

On March 31, 2026, a Russian An-26 aircraft carrying Lieutenant General Otroshchenko crashed in temporarily occupied Crimea.

Otroshchenko was accompanied by six officers from the Northern Fleet headquarters. The aircraft was carrying 29 people – 23 passengers and six crew members. According to Russian media, all on board were killed.

Awards

• Order "For Merit to the Fatherland," 4th class with swords;
• Order "For Military Merit";
• Medal "70 Years of the USSR Armed Forces";
• Medal "For Distinguished Military Service" (Ministry of Defense), 1st and 2nd classes;
• Medal "To the Participant of the Military Operation in Syria";
• Medal "Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union S. G. Gorshkov";
• Medal "For Service in the Marine Corps";
• Medal "For Service in Naval Aviation";
• Medal "For Impeccable Service," 3rd class;
• Honorary Title "Honored Military Pilot of the Russian Federation" (February 19, 2008);
• Commemorative Badge "Air Defense of Russia";
• Qualification "Military Pilot-Sniper".
• Medals of the USSR;
• Medals of the Russian Federation.