Air force

Soviet soldiers inspect the first downed Heinkel He 111 aircraft near Odessa, July 1941

Assault on Sapun-Gory, Crimea, May 1944 Photo by Yevgeny Khaldei/TASS

Fak Fedor Kuzmich (1913-1974) Second lieutenant. Born in Dubovsky hamlet. By January 1942, he participates in 204 flights (101 of them at night), destroyed 39 tanks, 97 vehicles, several enemy depots, and a large number of enemy manpower with bomb strikes. He died in 1974 in Putivl, Sumskiy region.

Maksimenko Mikhail Isaevich was born in 1924 in Novo – Ivanovka village, Maisky district. He studied well and dreamed to become a pilot from childhood. In 1940 he entered the Nalchik flying club. Together with other flying club participants, he volunteered for the front. He participated in the battles on the Don and Volga. On January 16, 1944 he was awarded of the Order of the Red Banner. According to the award lis, he made 33 successful flights. Participated in 12 air battles. He shot down 2 enemy aircraft personally and one aircraft in the group. On January 10, 1944 he shot down one Ju-87 in the area of Cape Tarkhan. On January 11, 1944 he was shot down Me-109 in the area of Russian mother.

Peaceful citizens camouflaging Soviet military aircraft on an air-field

Flight leader of 907th Special fighter aviation regiment junior lieutenant Nikonay Kiselev near the ninth German plane shot down by him

Вид из кабины самолета на Севастополь, освобожденный от немецких захватчиков

Debris of German plane on the field during the first sowing after the liberation of Orel region from the invaders

Naval pilots of the 63rd Long-range Heavy Bomber Aviation Brigade under the command of Major Genreal, Hero of the Soviet Union Nikolai Tokarev have a meal on an airfield, 1943.

Penza Komsomol members transfer military aircraft built on personal money funds of Penza district youth to the fellow countryman-pilot V.A. Kazichkin. 1943. From holdings of Penza region State archive (GAPO)

Shot down enemy bomber aircraft

Pilot. Senior Lieutenant. Native of Krasnaya Pustyn village, Sergach District. Fought in the Baltics."

On the reverse side of the photo written: "Multinational crew of the "Spotter Plane" ("Korrektirovshchik") aircraft. Novinko, Dubolazov, Nikitin, Bukdeev, Deiko, Garanin, Kobyakov, Kromen. August, 1942

Ryabushchenko Nikolay Petrovich started his battle way near Moscow in November 1941 when he was only eighteen years old. After graduating from the aviation school he got a diploma of air navigator. He flew on the biplane Po-2 to the front line to bomb enemy massing troops and equipment. He brought to the squadron headquarters military information about the location of the enemy troops. Delivered clothing, food and ammunition to our troops surrounded by the enemy. Six months later the air regiment where Nikolay Petrovich served was disbanded and the air navigator was sent to the short-term courses to learn how to pilot a high-speed aircraft - a dive-bomber.

Ekaterina Krasnikova, Atmospheric sounder aerologist of Tbilisi airport by machines after high-altitude flight