Icon: enlarge
Jelena Lyssenko in the driver's cab of the locomotive: from 2021 she will be one of the first female train drivers in Russia
Photo: Christina Hebel / DER SPIEGEL
When Jelena Lysenko sat down at the control panel for the first time, her pulse was racing, her hands were damp.
“You're driving today,” the engine driver had told her.
She pushed the drive lever forward and saw the train slowly start moving.
Lysenko steered the wagons from Moscow south to Kaluga, 188 kilometers away, and back.
The route is marked blue in the timetables, it is Lyssenko's favorite route.
Lyssenko wears her brown hair in a bob, the make-up is subtle.
She is 25 years old, 1.50 meters short, of petite stature, which also does not correspond to the popular image of a train driver.
"There are many colleagues who are small and slim," says Lyssenko.
She wears the dark blue uniform of the ZPPK, one of the largest local transport companies in Russia.
Three white stripes shine on the arms, the uniform was adapted for them.
Lysenko will be one of the first female train drivers in Russia from 2021.
In a few days, from January 1st, the law allows her to call herself a "machinist."
She will be the company's first female train driver among more than 700 male colleagues.
She will start work on New Year's Day on her favorite route, Kaluga and back.
Read more with Spiegel Plus
More perspectives, more understanding.
Your advantages with SPIEGEL +
Icon: Check
SPIEGEL as a magazine
as an app, e-paper and on the e-reader
Icon: Check
All articles on SPIEGEL.de
Exclusive texts for SPIEGEL + readers
Icon: Check
Try one month for free
Cancel anytime online
A price
only € 19.99 per month
One month for € 0.00
Try now for 0.00 € Buy nowArrow to the right
Already have a digital subscription? Register here
Restore iTunes subscription
SPIEGEL + is processed via your iTunes account and paid for with a purchase confirmation.
24 hours before it expires, the subscription is automatically renewed by one month at the current price of € 19.99.
You can cancel the subscription at any time in the settings of your iTunes account.
In order to use SPIEGEL + outside of this app, you must link the subscription to a SPIEGEL ID account immediately after purchase.
With the purchase you accept our general terms and conditions and privacy policy.