Yevdokiya Davidovna Bershanskaya

Major Yevdokiya Bershanskaya was the commander of the 588th Night Bomber Regiment — the "Night Witches" — throughout the entire war. Under her leadership, the regiment flew over 24,000 combat sorties and 23 of its pilots received the Hero of the Soviet Union. She was the only woman to command a full aviation regiment. Her calm leadership and tactical brilliance kept casualties lower than comparable male-led units. A Cambridge researcher studying women in combat leadership registered her profile.