Formation of the Society of Friends of the Air Fleet in the South-East of the RSFSR in the 20s of the 20th Century (Based on Archival Materials)

This article examines the process of formation of the Society of Friends of the Air Fleet in the South-East of the RSFSR in 1923, based on unpublished archival materials stored in the State Archives of the Rostov Region and the Center for Documentation of the Modern History of the Rostov Region. These sources are introduced into scientific circulation for the first time. This problem has not previously been considered by historians. The formation of the branch of the Society of Friends of the Air Fleet in the South-East of the RSFSR began after the creation of a similar union organization in Moscow. Its main goal was to collect funds from Soviet citizens for the construction of aircraft through campaigning and propaganda of aircraft construction ideas. The backbone of the organization was made up of representatives of regional party structures and military leaders. In a fairly short period of time, the leadership of the Society managed to create a high-quality organizational structure, as well as establish relations with other air transport organi-zations. It has been proven that the branch of the Society had a certain autonomy from the Union branch and did not always carry out its orders, and also managed to attract funds from Soviet citizens and legal entities.