The role of the Far Eastern Osoaviakhim in preparing the civilians for the protection of the motherland in the 1930s-1941

The paper discusses the activities of the Far Eastern branch of Osoviakhim in the 1930s and in the first months of World War II. The structure of the mass defense-sports society that has developed in the Far East of the USSR is examined; the main directions and forms of its activity are disclosed. The quantitative and qualitative results of Osoviakhim’s activities in the Far East, reflecting the number of units and graduates who have mastered the programs in them, were analyzed. Documents from the funds of the Far Eastern archives, some of which are published for the first time, have been put into scientific circulation. The author found that the structure of the Far Eastern Council of Osoviakhim repeated the structure of allied associations. It helped in solving the tasks set by the state before the defense society and was represented in all major settlements of the region. Most of the Far Eastern youth passed through the system of clubs and departments of Osoviakhim. The result of the activities of Osoviakhim was the readiness of the Far East of the USSR for possible hostilities in the World War II.