Born on February 22, 1917 at the Kochkar goldfields of the Orenburg province (now Plast, Chelyabinsk region). After graduating from four classes, he worked in the workshop for the repair of mining equipment for six years, and then a year - at the mine. Frunze. After graduating from the workers' faculty, in 1936, on a Komsomol ticket, Mikhail was sent to the Voroshilovgrad flight school. A career soldier. Participant in the "winter" war against Finland and the Great Patriotic War. He participated in the battles of the Great Patriotic War since July 1941 on the Southern, South-Western and Volkhov fronts. Rank: Captain. Position: Flight Commander of the 4th Squadron of the 4th Fighter Regiment of the 20th Mixed Air Division. From his youth, Mikhail Galkin dreamed of becoming a fighter pilot. After graduating from the Voroshilovgrad flight school, already in 1939, M. Galkin took part in the war against Finland. Skillful conduct of the battle (he made 82 sorties) and their effectiveness bring him the award - the Order of the Red Star. The Great Patriotic War began for M. Galkin on the Southern Front as part of the 4th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the 20th Mixed Air Division under the command of Hero of the Soviet Union A.S. Osipenko. Already on the fortieth day of the war, M.P. Galkin was nominated for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. From the award list: "Since the beginning of the hostilities of the Red Army against the German fascists, M. Galkin made 58 sorties. ... During the hostilities he participated in 18 air battles, of which more than half of the battles he fought with a superior number of enemy fighters. In battles, he shot down two Junkers-88 bombers, two Messerschmidt Me-109 fighters and one PZL-43 reconnaissance aircraft. In air battles for our Motherland, he proved himself to be a courageous and brave warrior. July 27, 1941 Lieutenant Galkin While carrying out a combat mission, he met an enemy reconnaissance aircraft, which was scouting the concentration of our units, Lieutenant Galkin decided to destroy the reconnaissance officer. When the aircraft approached, the enemy turned away, trying to escape to his territory. Lieutenant Galkin began to pursue, overtook the enemy aircraft and set it on fire. the plane and the pilot burned down, the fascist failed to deliver the collected information to his headquarters. " The title of Hero of the Soviet Union was awarded by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on March 27, 1942. After being seriously wounded in September 1941, the medical commission gave a conclusion about his unsuitability for flying, suggesting staff or training work. However, Galkin was not going to leave the plane for a long time. He achieved that, as part of the 283rd Fighter Aviation Regiment, he was sent to the Volkhov Front - Gremyachevo airfield in the Leningrad region. At this time, German aircraft dominated the Leningrad sky. The situation changed with the arrival of the 283rd Aviation Regiment, which in just two days of fighting shot down nine enemy aircraft. July 21, 1942, according to the recollections of the aviation technician of the regiment N. Chechel, was tense. Six of our patrolling fighters with half-empty tanks were returning to their airfield. They met 26 German aircraft - 20 bombers and 6 fighters. An unequal battle ensued. Five German aircraft were destroyed. The rest, having dropped the load, turned back. In this battle, M.P. Galkin shot down one bomber, but he himself did not return from the battle. He landed his downed plane in no-man's land; when landing on pines, both legs were broken. He died of blood loss. Only 64 flying days participated in the hostilities of M.P. Galkin, for which he destroyed 23 enemy aircraft, a lot of ground equipment and enemy manpower. Buried M.P. Galkin at the memorial cemetery in the village of Budogoshch, Kirishsky District, Leningrad Region. Materials about the military valor of M.P. Galkin are kept in the Victory Museum in St. Petersburg and in the Museum of the Armed Forces in Moscow, in the Aviation Museum in Monino (Central Museum of the Russian Air Force in the Moscow Region). One of the streets of Plast is named in honor of the Hero, and secondary school №10 bears his name; his bust is installed in the central square of the city. He was awarded the Order of Lenin, the Red Banner.