Vladimir Ivanovich Chechetkin was born on July 10, 1911, in the city of Omsk. After completing his ten-year secondary education, he worked as a radio receiver tuner in clubs and residential buildings. He participated in one of the expeditions operating on the northern sea routes. Following advanced training courses in radio navigation, he worked in Sverdlovsk as a research scientist for ultrashort wave test communications.
Wartime Contributions
At the outset of the Great Patriotic War, Chechetkin was assigned to the Kyiv-Mirgorod region. His task was to organize the civil aviation communication service, which was responsible for evacuating wounded soldiers from the front lines to hospitals.
In late August 1941, he led a group of radio specialists to the Far East. His team, which included Aleshin, Kataenko, Kornaev, Sidorkin, and Sheenkov, prepared and installed radio stations, radio direction finders, and homing beacons in Anadyr, Ust-Belaya, and Markovo—the most remote parts of the Alaska-Krasnoyarsk route. He worked in this capacity until the end of the war.
Post-War Career and Honors
From 1945 until the end of 1971, Vladimir Chechetkin worked at the “Soyuzmorproekt” research institute. He was awarded medals such as “For Labor Distinction,” “For Valiant Labor in the Great Patriotic War,” and “300 Years of the Russian Fleet,” among many other honors. He held the titles of Honored Radio Operator and Honored Polar Explorer.
As of 2001, Vladimir Chechetkin was residing in Moscow.