In 1920 he volunteered to join the ranks of the Red Army where he served as a commander of an engineer company.
In the mid 1920's Khrunichev worked in the militia of Lugansk city (there is a Khrunichev Street in modern day Lugansk).
While occupying the position of Deputy Managing Director of an industrial plant in what was then Voroshilovgrad (now Lugansk), he studied at the Ukranian Industrial Academy and the All-Russian Institute of Economic Planners for Heavy Industry.
M V Khrunichev married Ludmila Myshkova in 1925, they had three sons (Victor 1926-1985, Valentine 1937-1939 and Valeriy 1941 - )
In the 1930's he moved into the Defence Industry. During that period M V Khrunichev led two different plants and his main task was to convert a shipbuilding plant into a munitions factory. The production of ammunition increased three fold in one year (1936-1937) due to Khrunichev's enthusiastic support for the introduction of new machinery and new technologies.
In 1937 M V Khrunichev was called to Moscow to take up the post of Deputy Head of the Defence Industry and in 1939 he became Deputy Minister of Aviation.
In 1942, during the Second World War, many defence plants in Russia were evacuated and relocated. Some time was needed to get the production of munitions going again. Munitions resources were hugely depleted. Orders for the production of shells/mines/aeroplane bombs were piling up. That is when M V Khrunichev was appointed First Deputy Minister of Munitions and together with the Minister of Munitions, Vannikov, took charge of rectifying the situation. M V Khrunichev's organizational talent, planning skills, shrewd estimate of the situation and effective distribution of human resources won him the high appraisal of the Government and the people. In 1945 he was awarded the title of "Hero of the Socialist Labour" for his efforts to increase the production of planes and munitions, the introduction of new military technology and the uninterrupted provision of the Red Army and the Navy with ammunition.
In 1946 M V Khrunichev was appointed the Minister of Aviation. One of his main responsibilities was to adapt plane building plants to the production of new types of civil aircraft.
In 1953 he became First Deputy-Minister of Medium Machine Building.
In 1955 - Deputy Chairman of the USSR Council of Ministers.
1956 - Minister of the USSR and First Deputy Chairman of the USSR State Planning Committee (Gosplan).
In 1961 - Chairman of the State Committee for coordination of scientific research. He also served as a Deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.
M V Khrunichev is the holder of 6 orders of Lenin, the Order of the Red Banner, the Order of Suvorov (2nd degree) and 6 other medals.
M V Khrunichev passed away on 2 July 1961 and was buried in the Kremlin wall in the Red Square - a sign of great respect and recognition of all his hard work and dedication.
