Historical Experience of the USSR Local Air Defence Service Activities during the Great Patriotic War, 1941-1945

Abstract. The aim of the study is to reconstruct the main stages of formation and development of medical and sanitary service of the USSR local air defense, to generalize the experience and to analyze the contribution of medical and sanitary service of the USSR local air defense to organization and rendering of medical aid in the Soviet rear during the Great Patriotic War.

Materials and research methods. The sources for the study were the documents of the Russian State Military Archives: orders, statistical reports, normative documents etc. Application of problem-chronological method allowed to reveal stages, factors and problems of development of the medical and sanitary service of the USSR local air defense of the Ministry of Defense, to reveal changes in its structure, as well as its qualitative and quantitative composition during the stated period.

Research results and their analysis. The research results showed that the period of the Great Patriotic War 1941-1945 was the main stage of formation of the medical and sanitary service of the USSR local air defense as a leading state system of medical and sanitary defense.