Rank: Colonel. Type of troops: aviation. Division: 13th Bomber Aviation Division. The career soldier Ivan Fedorovich Gorokhov began the war on June 22 in Bobruisk. He headed the engineering service of the 13th Bomber Aviation Division, which was part of the Air Force of the Western Special Military District, which was the main target of the Germans. From the commander's recollections: "On the first day of the war, the Germans flew into the airfield three times. A big war began, and so it was unfortunate for us. On the very first day we lost dozens of bombers so absurdly. . They were supposed to be driven further, but for some reason they were detained. They stood on the outskirts of the airfield so as not to interfere with the flights. In the commotion we forgot about them and remembered only now. After all, there are about thirty of them. All new. Taxi and take off. And then I caught myself thinking: who should taxi? After all, neither I nor other pilots are familiar with this machine. " It turned out that the only person who knew how to fly the Pe-2 was I.F.Gorokhov. He was instructed to select the most experienced pilots and navigators and begin to master this machine with them. The study of the new aircraft took place under frequent enemy bombing. Enemy bombers will appear - pilots and navigators will immediately run for cover. The danger has passed - back. And yet, more than 20 aircraft were saved by June 27. On June 28, 1941, Bobruisk was commissioned. The retreat began. After the night crossing, the headquarters stopped near a small village in the forest. Several liaison aircraft landed in a clearing nearby. Ivan Fedorovich was instructed to personally check whether they forgot to evacuate in a hurry from the nearest airfields. And along the way to see on which roads and in which direction the tankers are moving. He took an engineer with him. They sat down in a triple Po-2 and went up into the sky. From the story of Ivan Fedorovich: "Somewhere over the Bryansk forests, a Me-110 attacked a small plane. The Nazis then snooped in all directions, haunted us day or night. Our pilot turned the plane abruptly and left the chase into the clouds. -that time he descended and landed in a forest clearing. I and the engineer helped the pilot hide the car under the crowns of trees. Twenty minutes passed. The German did not appear in the sky. Then Po-2 took off again, and (it must happen) emerged from the clouds The same Me-110. Having dived, he went into the tail of our plane and slashed at it with a long burst of machine-gun. The plane burst into flames. The pilot sent the car down and landed on the first landing site. I don't remember whether I was thrown out of the cockpit when I hit the ground, or, having gathered strength, he fell out himself. I only feel that I am burning. I started rolling on the grass to knock down the flames. I see the engineer running, blazing like a fire, and screaming wildly. He was apparently doused with gasoline. I confess: it was scary to look at this one is alive th torch. So he tripped over something, fell and froze. Burned out alive. Burned out, not having time to jump out of the cockpit, and the pilot. Consciousness left me. I woke up in the carriage. It turns out that someone, who was burned, picked me up, took me to the nearest station and put me on a passing ambulance train. "The division commander found a badly burned Ivan Fedorovich in Tambov, in a hospital. there, many months later, he got to his feet and continued his service.