Any war is a terrible grief for any people that it affects in one way or another. Throughout its history, humanity has experienced many wars, two of which were world wars. The First World War almost completely destroyed Europe and led to the fall of some major empires, such as the Russian and Austro-Hungarian ones. But even more terrible in its scale was the Second World War, in which many countries from almost all over the world were involved. Millions of people died, and many more were left homeless. This terrible event still affects modern man in one way or another. Its echoes can be found everywhere in our lives. This tragedy left behind many mysteries, disputes over which have not subsided for decades. The heaviest burden was assumed in this life-and-death battle by the Soviet Union, which was not yet fully strengthened from the revolution and civil wars and was only expanding its military and peaceful industry. An irreconcilable rage and desire to fight the invaders who encroached on the territorial integrity and freedom of the proletarian state settled in the hearts of people. Many went to the front voluntarily. At the same time, the evacuated industrial facilities were reorganized to produce products for the needs of the front. The struggle has assumed a truly national scale. That is why it is called the Great Patriotic War.
Who are the aces?
Both the German and Soviet armies were well trained and equipped with equipment, aircraft and other weapons. The personnel numbered in the millions. The collision of such two war machines gave birth to its heroes and its traitors. Some of those who can rightfully be considered heroes are the aces of World War II. Who are they and why are they so famous? An ace can be considered a person who has achieved heights in his field of activity that few others have managed to conquer. And even in such a dangerous and terrible matter as the military, there have always been their professionals. Both the USSR and the Allied forces, and Nazi Germany had people who showed the best results in terms of the number of enemy equipment or manpower destroyed. This article will tell about these heroes.
The list of World War II aces is extensive and includes many individuals famous for their exploits. They were an example for an entire people, they were adored and admired.
Aviation is without a doubt one of the most romantic, but at the same time dangerous branches of the military. Since any equipment can fail at any time, the job of a pilot is considered very honorable. It requires iron endurance, discipline, and the ability to control oneself in any situation. Therefore, aviation aces were treated with great respect. After all, to be able to show good results in such conditions when your life depends not only on technology, but also on yourself is the highest degree of military art. So, who are these ace pilots of World War II, and why are their exploits so famous?
One of the most successful Soviet ace pilots was Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub. Officially, during his service on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War, he shot down 62 German planes, and he is also credited with 2 American fighters, which he destroyed at the end of the war. This record-breaking pilot served in the 176th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment and flew a La-7 aircraft.
The second most productive during the war was Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin (who was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union three times). He fought in Southern Ukraine, in the Black Sea region, and liberated Europe from the Nazis. During his service he shot down 59 enemy aircraft. He did not stop flying even when he was appointed commander of the 9th Guards Aviation Division, and won some of his aerial victories while already in this position.
Nikolai Dmitrievich Gulaev is one of the most famous military pilots, who set a record of 4 flights per destroyed aircraft. In total, during his military service he destroyed 57 enemy aircraft. Twice awarded the honorary title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
He also had a high result. He shot down 55 German aircraft. Kozhedub, who happened to serve for some time with Evstigneev in the same regiment, spoke very respectfully of this pilot.
But, despite the fact that the tank forces were one of the most numerous in the Soviet army, for some reason the USSR did not have any tank aces of the Second World War. Why this is so is unknown. It is logical to assume that many personal scores were deliberately inflated or underestimated, so it is not possible to name the exact number of victories of the above-mentioned masters of tank combat.
German tank aces
But the German tank aces of World War II have a much longer track record. This is largely due to the pedantry of the Germans, who strictly documented everything, and they had much more time to fight than their Soviet “colleagues.” The German army began active operations back in 1939.
German tanker No. 1 is Hauptsturmführer Michael Wittmann. He fought with many tanks (Stug III, Tiger I) and destroyed 138 vehicles throughout the war, as well as 132 self-propelled artillery installations from various enemy countries. For his successes he was repeatedly awarded various orders and badges of the Third Reich. Killed in action in 1944 in France.
You can also highlight such a tank ace as For those who are in one way or another interested in the history of the development of the tank forces of the Third Reich, the book of his memoirs “Tigers in the Mud” will be very useful. During the war years, this man destroyed 150 Soviet and American self-propelled guns and tanks.
Kurt Knispel is another record-breaking tanker. During his military service, he knocked out 168 enemy tanks and self-propelled guns. About 30 cars are unconfirmed, which prevents him from matching Wittmann's results. Knispel died in battle near the village of Vostits in Czechoslovakia in 1945.
In addition, Karl Bromann had good results - 66 tanks and self-propelled guns, Ernst Barkmann - 66 tanks and self-propelled guns, Erich Mausberg - 53 tanks and self-propelled guns.
As can be seen from these results, both Soviet and German tank aces of World War II knew how to fight. Of course, the quantity and quality of Soviet combat vehicles was an order of magnitude higher than that of the Germans, however, as practice has shown, both were used quite successfully and became the basis for some post-war tank models.
But the list of military branches in which their masters distinguished themselves does not end there. Let's talk a little about submarine aces.
Masters of Submarine Warfare
Just as in the case of aircraft and tanks, the most successful are the German sailors. Over the years of its existence, Kriegsmarine submariners sank 2,603 ships of allied countries, the total displacement of which reaches 13.5 million tons. This is a truly impressive figure. And the German submarine aces of World War II could also boast of impressive personal accounts.
The most successful German submariner is Otto Kretschmer, who has 44 ships, including 1 destroyer. The total displacement of the ships sunk by him is 266,629 tons.
In second place is Wolfgang Lüth, who sent 43 enemy ships to the bottom (and according to other sources - 47) with a total displacement of 225,712 tons.
He was also a famous naval ace who even managed to sink the British battleship Royal Oak. This was one of the first officers to receive oak leaves; Prien destroyed 30 ships. Killed in 1941 during an attack on a British convoy. He was so popular that his death was hidden from the people for two months. And on the day of his funeral, mourning was declared throughout the country.
Such successes of German sailors are also quite understandable. The fact is that Germany began a naval war back in 1940, with a blockade of Britain, thus hoping to undermine its naval greatness and, taking advantage of this, to successfully capture the islands. However, very soon the plans of the Nazis were thwarted, as America entered the war with its large and powerful fleet.
The most famous Soviet submarine sailor is Alexander Marinesko. He sank only 4 ships, but what ones! The heavy passenger liner "Wilhelm Gustloff", the transport "General von Steuben", as well as 2 units of the heavy floating battery "Helene" and "Siegfried". For his exploits, Hitler added the sailor to his list of personal enemies. But Marinesko’s fate did not work out well. He fell out of favor with the Soviet regime and died, and people stopped talking about his exploits. The great sailor received the Hero of the Soviet Union award only posthumously in 1990. Unfortunately, many USSR aces of World War II ended their lives in a similar way.
Also famous submariners of the Soviet Union are Ivan Travkin - he sank 13 ships, Nikolai Lunin - also 13 ships, Valentin Starikov - 14 ships. But Marinesko topped the list of the best submariners of the Soviet Union, as he caused the greatest damage to the German navy.
Accuracy and stealth
Well, how can we not remember such famous fighters as snipers? Here the Soviet Union takes the well-deserved palm from Germany. Soviet sniper aces of World War II had a very high track record. In many ways, such results were achieved thanks to massive government training of the civilian population in shooting from various weapons. About 9 million people were awarded the Voroshilov Shooter badge. So, what are the most famous snipers?
The name of Vasily Zaitsev frightened the Germans and inspired courage in Soviet soldiers. This ordinary guy, a hunter, killed 225 Wehrmacht soldiers with his Mosin rifle in just a month of fighting at Stalingrad. Among the outstanding sniper names are Fyodor Okhlopkov, who (during the entire war) accounted for about a thousand Nazis; Semyon Nomokonov, who killed 368 enemy soldiers. There were also women among the snipers. An example of this is the famous Lyudmila Pavlichenko, who fought near Odessa and Sevastopol.
German snipers are less known, although several sniper schools have existed in Germany since 1942, which provided professional training. Among the most successful German shooters are Matthias Hetzenauer (345 killed), (257 killed), Bruno Sutkus (209 soldiers shot). Also a famous sniper from the countries of the Hitler bloc is Simo Haiha - this Finn killed 504 Red Army soldiers during the war years (according to unconfirmed reports).
Thus, the sniper training of the Soviet Union was immeasurably higher than that of the German troops, which allowed Soviet soldiers to bear the proud title of aces of the Second World War.
How did you become aces?
So, the concept of “ace of World War II” is quite broad. As already mentioned, these people achieved truly impressive results in their business. This was achieved not only through good army training, but also through outstanding personal qualities. After all, for a pilot, for example, coordination and quick reaction are very important, for a sniper - the ability to wait for the right moment to sometimes fire a single shot.
Accordingly, it is impossible to determine who had the best aces of World War II. Both sides performed unparalleled heroism, which made it possible to single out individual people from the general mass. But it was possible to become a master only by training hard and improving your combat skills, since war does not tolerate weakness. Of course, dry statistics will not be able to convey to modern people all the hardships and adversities that war professionals experienced during their rise to the honorary pedestal.
We, the generation that lives without knowing such terrible things, should not forget about the exploits of our predecessors. They can become an inspiration, a reminder, a memory. And we must try to do everything to ensure that such terrible events as the past wars do not happen again.
On November 13, 1985, Air Marshal Alexander Pokryshkin passed away. During World War II he was one of the most successful Soviet pilots - according to various sources, Pokryshkin personally shot down from 46 to 59 enemy aircraft. For his exploits, he was awarded the “Golden Star” of the Hero of the Soviet Union three times. LJ magazine has several interesting stories about Pokryshkin and other air aces who fought in the skies over the USSR and occupied Europe.
At the end of the war, Pokryshkin was not only the most famous pilot in the world, but also the most authoritative figure in Soviet aviation, writes andrey_ka23
, who in 2013 attended the celebrations in honor of the 100th anniversary of the Soviet ace:
“Achtung! Achtung! Pokryshkin is in the air! - the German warning posts shouted, urgently warning - the famous Russian ace was in the air. Which meant - to increase caution, to get out of protracted air battles, for the “hunters” to gain altitude, for young people to return to the airfields.Generous rewards awaited the one who brought down the Russian ace. There was no shortage of people who wanted to distinguish themselves, but this task turned out to be too tough for the enemy. And it wasn’t just Pokryshkin’s exceptional skill. It is appropriate to remember that in his squadron, and then in the regiment and division, such aces as Rechkalov and the Glinka brothers, Klubov and Babak, Fedorov and Fadeev took place. When such a group fought, it was, at least, imprudent to expect to defeat its commander. And today pilots continue the glorious traditions of the aces of the Great Patriotic War.
The Germans undoubtedly shot down more: Erich Hartmann (352 enemy aircraft shot down), Johan Steinhoff (176), Werner Mölders (115), Adolf Galland (103). Even if you divide it into two, it’s still more. Another thing is that these are hunters whose goal is precisely the maximum number of people shot down. Ours professed a different strategy, which turned out to be more effective and efficient. This allowed us to gain air supremacy. It is worth adding that Hartman shot down not only Soviet planes, but also 7 American ones.As for quantity, here are a few facts.
Just a few days and heroic victories. Are you winning?
Summer 1944. June 1 6 aircraft shot down (5 Lags and 1 Airacobra). June 2 - 2 Airacobras, June 3 - 4 aircraft (two Lags and two Airacobras each). June 4 - 7 aircraft (all but one are Airacobras). June 5 - 7 aircraft (3 of them “Laga”). And finally, on June 6 - 5 aircraft (2 of them “Lag”). In total, in 6 days of fighting, 32 Soviet aircraft were shot down. And on August 24 of the same year there were 11 planes at once.But here’s what’s strange: Eric Hartmann shot down 32 planes in the first six days of June, and the entire Luftwaffe by day: 1st - 21, 2nd - 27, 3rd - 33, 4th - 45, 5th - 43, 6th - 12. Total - 181 aircraft. Or an average of more than 30 aircraft per day. How much were the Luftwaffe's losses? Official figures for June 1944 are 312 aircraft, or just over 10 per day. It turns out that our losses are 3 times greater? And if you consider that German losses also include planes shot down by our anti-aircraft artillery, then the loss ratio is even greater!
But it’s not 1941. Plausible?
Let's assume that everything is true. And let’s compare two pilots - the same Hartmann and three times Hero of the Soviet Union Ivan Kozhedub. Hartmann flew 1,404 sorties and shot down 352 aircraft, an average of about 4 sorties per aircraft; Kozhedub’s figures are as follows: 330 sorties and 62 enemy aircraft, an average of 5.3 sorties. In terms of numbers, everything seems to correspond...
How were downed planes counted? Below is an excerpt from the book by American researchers R. Toliver and T. Constable about Hartmann:
“The rest of the squadron pilots dragged the happy Blonde Knight into the mess hall. The party was in full swing when Hartmann's technician burst in. The expression on his face instantly extinguished the jubilation of those gathered.
- What happened, Bimmel? - asked Erich.
- Gunsmith, Herr Lieutenant.
- Is there something wrong?
- No, everything is okay. It's just that you only fired 120 shots at 3 downed planes. I think you need to know this.
Whispers of admiration ran through the pilots, and the schnapps flowed like a river again.”Plausible? If anyone thinks yes, a little information. Hartmann's aircraft (Messerschmitt Bf.109) is equipped with MG-17 machine guns and a 20-mm MG 151/20 cannon. The rate of fire for machine guns is 1200 rounds per minute, for cannons - 700-800 per minute (depending on the type of projectile). Thus, 53 charges are consumed per second. Hartman used up 120 in 2.26 seconds. And he shot down THREE planes. Still plausible?
But we are not talking about bookcases or even plywood Yaks. All three shot down were IL-2.
The most successful fighter pilot of all countries participating in World War II, with the exception of Germany, is considered to be the Finn - Eino Ilmari Juutilainen, who shot down 94 Soviet aircraft. His story is summarized merelana :
Yesterday this name came up by chance - in a conversation about who is from our area and who is not from ours. Eino Ilmari Juutilainen is one of our kind. He spent most of his childhood in Sortavala, beginning his military service at an airfield near Viipuri - while Viipuri was still on the Finnish side.
Eino Ilmari Juutilainen is an ace pilot, one of the best in the Second World War, which the Finns say they call “continental” or “long”, as opposed to the winter one, which is also “short”.
During the Winter War, he conducted 115 combat missions - and there were only two victories. And during the “ongoing” war, he scored 92 victories. With almost five hundred sorties. And none of his planes received a single damage.Fierce air battles took place not only in the European theater of operations. From the blog litvinenko_ai You can learn about the ace pilots of the Imperial Japanese Navy:
The main feature of the Japanese is their collectivism. For many centuries, the main source of food for the Japanese was rice. To grow rice, it had to be constantly watered. In the mountainous regions of the country it is impossible to water rice alone; here people acted as one team. The crop could be grown either by everyone together or by no one. The Japanese had no room for error. There will be no rice, famine will begin. Hence the collectivism of the Japanese. There is a Japanese proverb that goes something like this: “The nail that sticks out gets hammered in first.” That is, don’t stick your head out, don’t stand out from the crowd—the Japanese don’t tolerate white crows. From early childhood, Japanese children were instilled with the skills of collectivism and the desire not to stand out from the rest. This feature of Japanese culture was also reflected in naval aviation pilots during the Great Pacific War or, as we commonly call it, World War II. Instructors at flight schools taught cadets as a whole, without singling out any of them; there was no individual approach at all. In parts of the incentive or penalty, the entire unit usually also received.
Japanese pilots fought in the skies over China long before the start of the Pacific War, they gained experience and became outstanding combat pilots. Japanese pilots swept away everything over Pearl Harbor and spread death over the Philippines, New Guinea and the Pacific Islands. They were aces. The French word as means ace, the first in his field is a master of air combat, it appeared during the First World War and referred to military pilots who were fluent in the art of piloting and air combat and who shot down at least five enemy aircraft. There were aces in World War II, for example, the best Soviet pilot Ivan Kozhedub shot down 62 enemy aircraft, the Finn was credited Eino Ilmari Juutilainen 94 Soviet aircraft. The best pilots of the Imperial Japanese Navy - Hiroyoshi Nishizawa, Saburo Sakai And Shioki Sugita were also aces. For example, Hiroyoshi Nishizawa reported to his family about 147 downed planes, some sources mention 102, according to other sources - 87 planes, which is still much more than the American and British aces, who shot down at most 30 planes.
Representatives of the Soviet air force made a huge contribution to the defeat of the Nazi invaders. Many pilots gave their lives for the freedom and independence of our Motherland, many became Heroes of the Soviet Union. Some of them forever entered the elite of the Russian Air Force, the illustrious cohort of Soviet aces - the threat of the Luftwaffe. Today we remember the 10 most successful Soviet fighter pilots, who accounted for the most enemy aircraft shot down in air battles.
On February 4, 1944, the outstanding Soviet fighter pilot Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub was awarded the first star of the Hero of the Soviet Union. By the end of the Great Patriotic War, he was already three times Hero of the Soviet Union. During the war years, only one more Soviet pilot was able to repeat this achievement - it was Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin. But the history of Soviet fighter aviation during the war does not end with these two most famous aces. During the war, another 25 pilots were twice nominated for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, not to mention those who were once awarded this highest military award in the country of those years.
Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub
During the war, Ivan Kozhedub made 330 combat missions, conducted 120 air battles and personally shot down 64 enemy aircraft. He flew on La-5, La-5FN and La-7 aircraft.
Official Soviet historiography listed 62 downed enemy aircraft, but archival research showed that Kozhedub shot down 64 aircraft (for some reason, two air victories were missing - April 11, 1944 - PZL P.24 and June 8, 1944 - Me 109) . Among the trophies of the Soviet ace pilot were 39 fighters (21 Fw-190, 17 Me-109 and 1 PZL P.24), 17 dive bombers (Ju-87), 4 bombers (2 Ju-88 and 2 He-111), 3 attack aircraft (Hs-129) and one Me-262 jet fighter. In addition, in his autobiography, he indicated that in 1945 he shot down two American P-51 Mustang fighters, which attacked him from a long distance, mistaking him for a German plane.
In all likelihood, if Ivan Kozhedub (1920-1991) had started the war in 1941, his count of downed aircraft could have been even higher. However, his debut came only in 1943, and the future ace shot down his first plane in the battle of Kursk. On July 6, during a combat mission, he shot down a German Ju-87 dive bomber. Thus, the pilot’s performance is truly amazing; in just two war years he managed to bring his victories to a record in the Soviet Air Force.
At the same time, Kozhedub was never shot down during the entire war, although he returned to the airfield several times in a heavily damaged fighter. But the last could have been his first air battle, which took place on March 26, 1943. His La-5 was damaged by a burst from a German fighter; the armored back saved the pilot from an incendiary shell. And upon returning home, his plane was fired upon by its own air defense, and the car received two hits. Despite this, Kozhedub managed to land the plane, which could no longer be fully restored.
The future best Soviet ace took his first steps in aviation while studying at the Shotkinsky flying club. At the beginning of 1940, he was drafted into the Red Army and in the fall of the same year he graduated from the Chuguev Military Aviation School of Pilots, after which he continued to serve in this school as an instructor. With the beginning of the war, the school was evacuated to Kazakhstan. The war itself began for him in November 1942, when Kozhedub was seconded to the 240th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the 302nd Fighter Aviation Division. The formation of the division was completed only in March 1943, after which it flew to the front. As mentioned above, he won his first victory only on July 6, 1943, but a start had been made.
Already on February 4, 1944, Senior Lieutenant Ivan Kozhedub was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, at that time he managed to fly 146 combat missions and shoot down 20 enemy aircraft in air battles. He received his second star in the same year. He was presented for the award on August 19, 1944 for 256 combat missions and 48 downed enemy aircraft. At that time, as a captain, he served as deputy commander of the 176th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment.
In air battles, Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub was distinguished by fearlessness, composure and automatic piloting, which he brought to perfection. Perhaps the fact that before being sent to the front he spent several years as an instructor played a very large role in his future successes in the sky. Kozhedub could easily conduct aimed fire at the enemy at any position of the aircraft in the air, and also easily performed complex aerobatics. Being an excellent sniper, he preferred to conduct air combat at a distance of 200-300 meters.
Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub won his last victory in the Great Patriotic War on April 17, 1945 in the skies over Berlin, in this battle he shot down two German FW-190 fighters. The future air marshal (title awarded on May 6, 1985), Major Kozhedub, became a three-time Hero of the Soviet Union on August 18, 1945. After the war, he continued to serve in the country's Air Force and went through a very serious career path, bringing many more benefits to the country. The legendary pilot died on August 8, 1991, and was buried at the Novodevichy cemetery in Moscow.
Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin
Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshki fought from the very first day of the war to the last. During this time, he made 650 combat missions, in which he conducted 156 air battles and officially personally shot down 59 enemy aircraft and 6 aircraft in the group. He is the second most successful ace of the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition after Ivan Kozhedub. During the war he flew MiG-3, Yak-1 and American P-39 Airacobra aircraft.
The number of aircraft shot down is very arbitrary. Quite often, Alexander Pokryshkin made deep raids behind enemy lines, where he also managed to win victories. However, only those that could be confirmed by ground services were counted, that is, if possible, over their territory. He could have had 8 such unaccounted victories in 1941 alone. Moreover, they accumulated throughout the war. Also, Alexander Pokryshkin often gave the planes he shot down at the expense of his subordinates (mostly wingmen), thus stimulating them. In those years this was quite common.
Already during the first weeks of the war, Pokryshkin was able to understand that the tactics of the Soviet Air Force were outdated. Then he began to write down his notes on this matter in a notebook. He kept a careful record of the air battles in which he and his friends took part, after which he made a detailed analysis of what he had written. Moreover, at that time he had to fight in very difficult conditions of constant retreat of Soviet troops. He later said: “Those who did not fight in 1941-1942 do not know the real war.”
After the collapse of the Soviet Union and massive criticism of everything that was associated with that period, some authors began to “cut down” the number of Pokryshkin’s victories. This was also due to the fact that at the end of 1944, official Soviet propaganda finally made the pilot “a bright image of a hero, the main fighter of the war.” In order not to lose the hero in a random battle, it was ordered to limit the flights of Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin, who by that time already commanded the regiment. On August 19, 1944, after 550 combat missions and 53 officially won victories, he became a three-time Hero of the Soviet Union, the first in history.
The wave of “revelations” that washed over him after the 1990s also affected him because after the war he managed to take the post of Commander-in-Chief of the country’s air defense forces, that is, he became a “major Soviet official.” If we talk about the low ratio of victories to sorties, it can be noted that for a long time at the beginning of the war, Pokryshkin flew on his MiG-3, and then the Yak-1, to attack enemy ground forces or perform reconnaissance flights. For example, by mid-November 1941, the pilot had already completed 190 combat missions, but the vast majority of them - 144 - were to attack enemy ground forces.
Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin was not only a cold-blooded, brave and virtuoso Soviet pilot, but also a thinking pilot. He was not afraid to criticize the existing tactics of using fighter aircraft and advocated its replacement. Discussions on this matter with the regiment commander in 1942 led to the fact that the ace pilot was even expelled from the party and the case was sent to the tribunal. The pilot was saved by the intercession of the regiment commissar and higher command. The case against him was dropped and he was reinstated in the party. After the war, Pokryshkin had a long conflict with Vasily Stalin, which had a detrimental effect on his career. Everything changed only in 1953 after the death of Joseph Stalin. Subsequently, he managed to rise to the rank of air marshal, which was awarded to him in 1972. The famous ace pilot died on November 13, 1985 at the age of 72 in Moscow.
Grigory Andreevich Rechkalov
Grigory Andreevich Rechkalov fought from the very first day of the Great Patriotic War. Twice Hero of the Soviet Union. During the war he flew more than 450 combat missions, shooting down 56 enemy aircraft personally and 6 in a group in 122 air battles. According to other sources, the number of his personal aerial victories could exceed 60. During the war, he flew on I-153 “Chaika”, I-16, Yak-1, P-39 “Airacobra” aircraft.
Probably no other Soviet fighter pilot had such a variety of downed enemy vehicles as Grigory Rechkalov. Among his trophies were Me-110, Me-109, Fw-190 fighters, Ju-88, He-111 bombers, Ju-87 dive bomber, Hs-129 attack aircraft, Fw-189 and Hs-126 reconnaissance aircraft, as well as such a rare car as the Italian Savoy and the Polish PZL-24 fighter, which was used by the Romanian Air Force.
Surprisingly, the day before the start of the Great Patriotic War, Rechkalov was suspended from flying by decision of the medical flight commission; he was diagnosed with color blindness. But upon returning to his unit with this diagnosis, he was still cleared to fly. The beginning of the war forced the authorities to simply turn a blind eye to this diagnosis, simply ignoring it. At the same time, he served in the 55th Fighter Aviation Regiment since 1939 together with Pokryshkin.
This brilliant military pilot had a very contradictory and uneven character. Showing an example of determination, courage and discipline in one mission, in another he could be distracted from the main task and just as decisively begin the pursuit of a random enemy, trying to increase the score of his victories. His combat fate in the war was closely intertwined with the fate of Alexander Pokryshkin. He flew with him in the same group, replacing him as squadron commander and regiment commander. Pokryshkin himself considered frankness and directness to be the best qualities of Grigory Rechkalov.
Rechkalov, like Pokryshkin, fought since June 22, 1941, but with a forced break of almost two years. In the first month of fighting, he managed to shoot down three enemy aircraft in his outdated I-153 biplane fighter. He also managed to fly on the I-16 fighter. On July 26, 1941, during a combat mission near Dubossary, he was wounded in the head and leg by fire from the ground, but managed to bring his plane to the airfield. After this injury, he spent 9 months in the hospital, during which time the pilot underwent three operations. And once again the medical commission tried to put an insurmountable obstacle on the path of the future famous ace. Grigory Rechkalov was sent to serve in the reserve regiment, which was equipped with U-2 aircraft. The future twice Hero of the Soviet Union took this direction as a personal insult. At the district Air Force headquarters, he managed to ensure that he was returned to his regiment, which at that time was called the 17th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment. But very soon the regiment was recalled from the front to be re-equipped with new American Airacobra fighters, which were sent to the USSR as part of the Lend-Lease program. For these reasons, Rechkalov began to beat the enemy again only in April 1943.
Grigory Rechkalov, being one of the domestic stars of fighter aviation, was perfectly able to interact with other pilots, guessing their intentions and working together as a group. Even during the war years, a conflict arose between him and Pokryshkin, but he never sought to throw out any negativity about this or blame his opponent. On the contrary, in his memoirs he spoke well of Pokryshkin, noting that they managed to unravel the tactics of the German pilots, after which they began to use new techniques: they began to fly in pairs rather than in flights, it was better to use radio for guidance and communication, and echeloned their machines with the so-called “ bookcase."
Grigory Rechkalov won 44 victories in the Airacobra, more than other Soviet pilots. After the end of the war, someone asked the famous pilot what he valued most in the Airacobra fighter, on which so many victories were won: the power of the fire salvo, speed, visibility, reliability of the engine? To this question, the ace pilot replied that all of the above, of course, mattered; these were the obvious advantages of the aircraft. But the main thing, according to him, was the radio. The Airacobra had excellent radio communication, rare in those years. Thanks to this connection, pilots in battle could communicate with each other, as if on the phone. Someone saw something - immediately all members of the group are aware. Therefore, we did not have any surprises during combat missions.
After the end of the war, Grigory Rechkalov continued his service in the Air Force. True, not as long as other Soviet aces. Already in 1959, he retired to the reserve with the rank of major general. After which he lived and worked in Moscow. He died in Moscow on December 20, 1990 at the age of 70.
Nikolay Dmitrievich Gulaev
Nikolai Dmitrievich Gulaev found himself on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War in August 1942. In total, during the war years he made 250 sorties, conducted 49 air battles, in which he personally destroyed 55 enemy aircraft and 5 more aircraft in the group. Such statistics make Gulaev the most effective Soviet ace. For every 4 missions he had a plane shot down, or on average more than one plane for every air battle. During the war, he flew I-16, Yak-1, P-39 Airacobra fighters; most of his victories, like Pokryshkin and Rechkalov, he won on Airacobra.
Twice Hero of the Soviet Union Nikolai Dmitrievich Gulaev shot down not much fewer planes than Alexander Pokryshkin. But in terms of effectiveness of fights, he far surpassed both him and Kozhedub. Moreover, he fought for less than two years. At first, in the deep Soviet rear, as part of the air defense forces, he was engaged in the protection of important industrial facilities, protecting them from enemy air raids. And in September 1944, he was almost forcibly sent to study at the Air Force Academy.
The Soviet pilot performed his most effective battle on May 30, 1944. In one air battle over Skuleni, he managed to shoot down 5 enemy aircraft at once: two Me-109, Hs-129, Ju-87 and Ju-88. During the battle, he himself was seriously wounded in his right arm, but concentrating all his strength and will, he was able to bring his fighter to the airfield, bleeding, landed and, having taxied to the parking lot, lost consciousness. The pilot only came to his senses in the hospital after the operation, and here he learned that he had been awarded the second title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
The entire time Gulaev was at the front, he fought desperately. During this time, he managed to make two successful rams, after which he managed to land his damaged plane. He was wounded several times during this time, but after being wounded he invariably returned back to duty. At the beginning of September 1944, the ace pilot was forcibly sent to study. At that moment, the outcome of the war was already clear to everyone and they tried to protect the famous Soviet aces by ordering them to the Air Force Academy. Thus, the war ended unexpectedly for our hero.
Nikolai Gulaev was called the brightest representative of the “romantic school” of air combat. Often the pilot dared to commit “irrational actions” that shocked the German pilots, but helped him win victories. Even among other far from ordinary Soviet fighter pilots, the figure of Nikolai Gulaev stood out for its colorfulness. Only such a person, possessing unparalleled courage, would be able to conduct 10 super-effective air battles, recording two of his victories by successfully ramming enemy aircraft. Gulaev’s modesty in public and in his self-esteem was dissonant with his exceptionally aggressive and persistent manner of conducting air combat, and he managed to carry openness and honesty with boyish spontaneity throughout his life, retaining some youthful prejudices until the end of his life, which did not prevent him from rising to the rank of rank of Colonel General of Aviation. The famous pilot died on September 27, 1985 in Moscow.
Kirill Alekseevich Evstigneev
Kirill Alekseevich Evstigneev twice Hero of the Soviet Union. Like Kozhedub, he began his military career relatively late, only in 1943. During the war years, he made 296 combat missions, conducted 120 air battles, personally shooting down 53 enemy aircraft and 3 in the group. He flew La-5 and La-5FN fighters.
The almost two-year “delay” in appearing at the front was due to the fact that the fighter pilot suffered from a stomach ulcer, and with this disease he was not allowed to go to the front. Since the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, he worked as an instructor at a flight school, and after that he drove Lend-Lease Airacobras. Working as an instructor gave him a lot, as did another Soviet ace Kozhedub. At the same time, Evstigneev did not stop writing reports to the command with a request to send him to the front, as a result they were nevertheless satisfied. Kirill Evstigneev received his baptism of fire in March 1943. Like Kozhedub, he fought as part of the 240th Fighter Aviation Regiment and flew the La-5 fighter. On his first combat mission, on March 28, 1943, he scored two victories.
During the entire war, the enemy never managed to shoot down Kirill Evstigneev. But he got it twice from his own people. The first time the Yak-1 pilot, carried away by air combat, crashed into his plane from above. The Yak-1 pilot immediately jumped out of the plane, which had lost one wing, with a parachute. But Evstigneev’s La-5 suffered less damage, and he managed to bring the plane to the positions of his troops, landing the fighter next to the trenches. The second incident, more mysterious and dramatic, occurred over our territory in the absence of enemy aircraft in the air. The fuselage of his plane was pierced by a burst, damaging Evstigneev’s legs, the car caught fire and went into a dive, and the pilot had to jump out of the plane with a parachute. At the hospital, doctors were inclined to amputate the pilot’s foot, but he filled them with such fear that they abandoned their idea. And after 9 days, the pilot escaped from the hospital and with crutches reached the location of his native unit 35 kilometers.
Kirill Evstigneev constantly increased the number of his aerial victories. Until 1945, the pilot was ahead of Kozhedub. At the same time, the unit doctor periodically sent him to the hospital to treat an ulcer and a wounded leg, which the ace pilot terribly resisted. Kirill Alekseevich was seriously ill since pre-war times; in his life he underwent 13 surgical operations. Very often the famous Soviet pilot flew, overcoming physical pain. Evstigneev, as they say, was obsessed with flying. In his free time, he tried to train young fighter pilots. He was the initiator of training air battles. For the most part, his opponent in them was Kozhedub. At the same time, Evstigneev was completely devoid of any sense of fear, even at the very end of the war he calmly launched a frontal attack on the six-gun Fokkers, winning victories over them. Kozhedub spoke of his comrade in arms like this: “Flint pilot.”
Captain Kirill Evstigneev ended the Guard War as a navigator of the 178th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment. The pilot spent his last battle in the skies of Hungary on March 26, 1945, on his fifth La-5 fighter of the war. After the war, he continued to serve in the USSR Air Force, retired in 1972 with the rank of major general, and lived in Moscow. He died on August 29, 1996 at the age of 79, and was buried at the Kuntsevo cemetery in the capital.
Information sources:
http://svpressa.ru
http://airaces.narod.ru
http://www.warheroes.ru
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When people talk about aces of World War II, they usually mean pilots, but the role of armored vehicles and tank forces in this conflict also cannot be underestimated. There were also aces among the tank crews.
Kurt Knispel
Kurt Kniepsel is considered the most successful tank ace of World War II. He has almost 170 tanks to his name, but not all of his victories have been confirmed so far. During the war years, he destroyed 126 tanks as a gunner (20 unconfirmed), and as a heavy tank commander - 42 enemy tanks (10 unconfirmed).
Knipsel was nominated for the Knight's Cross four times, but never received this award. The tanker's biographers attribute this to his difficult character. The historian Franz Kurowski, in his book about Knipsel, writes about several incidents in which he showed far from the best discipline. In particular, he stood up for a beaten Soviet soldier and got into a fight with a German officer.
Kurt Knipsel died on April 28, 1945, after being wounded in a battle with Soviet troops near the Czech town of Vostice. In this battle, Knipsel destroyed his 168th officially registered tank.
Michael Wittmann
It was convenient to make Michael Wittmann, unlike Kurt Knipsel, a hero of the Reich, even though not everything in his “heroic” biography was pure. Thus, he claimed that during the winter battles in Ukraine in 1943-1944 he destroyed 70 Soviet tanks. For this, on January 14, 1944, he received an extraordinary rank and was awarded the Knight's Cross and oak leaves, but after some time it became clear that in this section of the front the Red Army did not have tanks at all, and Wittmann destroyed two "thirty-fours" captured by the Germans and served in the Wehrmacht. In the darkness, Wittmann’s crew did not see the identification marks on the tank turrets and mistook them for Soviet ones. However, the German command decided not to advertise this story.
Wittmann took part in the battles on the Kursk Bulge, where, according to him, he destroyed 28 Soviet self-propelled guns and about 30 tanks.
According to German sources, as of August 8, 1944, Michael Wittmann had 138 enemy tanks and self-propelled guns and 132 artillery pieces destroyed.
Zinoviy Kolobanov
The feat of tanker Zinovy Kolobanov was included in the Guinness Book of Records. On August 20, 1941, 5 tanks of the company of Senior Lieutenant Kolobanov destroyed 43 German tanks, 22 of them were knocked out within half an hour.
Kolobanov competently built a defensive position.
Kolobanov's camouflaged tanks met the German tank column with volleys. The 3 lead tanks were immediately stopped, then the gun commander Usov transferred fire to the tail of the column. The Germans were deprived of the opportunity to maneuver and were unable to leave the firing range.
Kolobanov's tank came under massive fire. During the battle, it withstood more than 150 direct hits, but the KV-1's strong armor held out.
For their feat, Kolobanov’s crew members were nominated for the title of Heroes of the Soviet Union, but the award again did not find the hero. On September 15, 1941, Zinoviy Kalabanov was seriously wounded (his spine and head were damaged) when a German shell exploded near the KV-1 while refueling the tank and loading ammunition. However, in the summer of 1945, Kolobanov returned to duty and served in the Soviet army for another 13 years.
Dmitry Lavrinenko
Dmitry Lavrinenko was the most successful Soviet tank ace of World War II. In just 2.5 months, from October to December 1941, he destroyed or disabled 52 two German tanks. Lavrinenko's success can be attributed to his determination and combat savvy. Fighting in the minority against superior enemy forces, Lavrinenko managed to get out of almost hopeless situations. In total, he had the opportunity to participate in 28 tank battles, and was burned in a tank three times.
On October 19, 1941, Lavrinenko’s tank defended Serpukhov from the German invasion. His T-34 single-handedly destroyed a motorized enemy column that was advancing along the highway from Maloyaroslavets to Serpukhov. In that battle, Lavrinenko, in addition to war trophies, managed to obtain important documents.
On December 5, 1941, the Soviet tank ace was nominated for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Even then, he had 47 destroyed tanks to his name. But the tanker was awarded only the Order of Lenin. However, by the time the award ceremony was supposed to take place, he was no longer alive.
The title of Hero of the Soviet Union was awarded to Dmitry Lavrinenko only in 1990.
Creighton Abrams
It must be said that masters of tank combat were not only in the German and Soviet troops. The allies also had their own “aces”. Among them we can mention Creighton Abrams. His name has been preserved in history; the famous American M1 tank is named after him.
Abrams was the one who organized the tank breakthrough from the Normandy coast to the Moselle River. Creighton Abrams' tank units reached the Rhine and, with infantry support, saved the landing group surrounded by the Germans in the German rear.
Abrams' units have about 300 units of equipment, although most of them are not tanks, but supply trucks, armored personnel carriers and other auxiliary equipment. The number of destroyed tanks among the “trophies” of Abrams’ units is small - approximately 15, of which 6 are personally credited to the commander.
Abrams's main merit was that his units managed to cut off enemy communications on a large section of the front, which significantly complicated the position of the German troops, leaving them without supplies.
Our ace pilots terrified the Germans during the Great Patriotic War. The exclamation “Akhtung! Akhtung! Pokryshkin is in the sky!” became widely known. But Alexander Pokryshkin was not the only Soviet ace. We remembered the most productive ones.
Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub
Ivan Kozhedub was born in 1920 in the Chernigov province. He is considered the most successful Russian fighter pilot in personal combat, with 64 aircraft shot down. The start of the famous pilot’s career was unsuccessful; in the very first battle, his plane was seriously damaged by an enemy Messerschmitt, and upon returning to base, he was mistakenly fired upon by Russian anti-aircraft gunners, and only by a miracle did he manage to land. The plane could not be restored, and they even wanted to repurpose the unlucky newcomer, but the regiment commander stood up for him. Only during his 40th combat mission on the Kursk Bulge, Kozhedub, having already become a “father” - deputy squadron commander, shot down his first “laptezhnik”, as ours called the German “Junkers”. After that, the count went to tens.
Kozhedub fought his last battle in the Great Patriotic War, in which he shot down 2 FW-190s, in the skies over Berlin. In addition, Kozhedub also has two American Mustang planes shot down in 1945, which attacked him, mistaking his fighter for a German plane. The Soviet ace acted according to the principle that he professed even when working with cadets - “any unknown aircraft is an enemy.” Throughout the war, Kozhedub was never shot down, although his plane often received very serious damage.
Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin
Pokryshkin is one of the most famous aces of Russian aviation. Born in 1913 in Novosibirsk. He won his first victory on the second day of the war, shooting down a German Messerschmitt. In total, he has 59 planes shot down personally and 6 in a group. However, this is only official statistics, since, as the commander of an air regiment, and then an air division, Pokryshkin sometimes gave downed planes to young pilots in order to encourage them in this way.
His notebook, entitled “Fighter Tactics in Combat,” became a veritable manual for air warfare. They say that the Germans warned about the appearance of the Russian ace with the phrase: “Akhtung! Achtung! Pokryshkin in the air." The one who shot down Pokryshkin was promised a big reward, but the Russian pilot turned out to be too tough for the Germans. Pokryshkin is considered the inventor of the “Kuban whatnot” - a tactical method of air combat; the Germans nicknamed him the “Kuban escalator”, since the planes arranged in pairs resembled a giant staircase. In the battle, German planes leaving the first stage came under attack from the second, and then the third stage. His other favorite techniques were the falcon kick and the high-speed swing. It is worth noting that Pokryshkin won most of his victories in the first years of the war, when the Germans had a significant superiority in the air.
Nikolay Dmitrievich Gulaev
Born in 1918 in the village of Aksayskaya near Rostov. His first battle is reminiscent of the feat of the Grasshopper from the movie “Only Old Men Go to Battle”: without an order, for the first time in his life, taking off at night under the howl of an air raid on his Yak, he managed to shoot down a German Heinkel night fighter. For such self-will, he was punished and presented with a reward.
Subsequently, Gulaev usually did not limit himself to one downed plane per mission; three times he scored four victories in a day, twice destroyed three planes, and made a double in seven battles. In total, he shot down 57 aircraft personally and 3 in a group. Gulaev rammed one enemy plane when it ran out of ammunition, after which he himself got into a tailspin and barely had time to eject. His risky style of fighting became a symbol of the romantic trend in the art of aerial combat.
Grigory Andreevich Rechkalov
Born in 1920 in the Perm province. On the eve of the war, a slight degree of color blindness was discovered at the medical flight commission, but the regiment commander did not even look at the medical report - pilots were very much needed. He won his first victory on the outdated I-153 biplane number 13, which was unlucky for the Germans, as he joked. Then he ended up in Pokryshkin’s group and was trained on the Airacobra, an American fighter that became famous for its tough temperament - it very easily went into a tailspin at the slightest mistake by the pilot; the Americans themselves were reluctant to fly such aircraft. In total, he shot down 56 aircraft personally and 6 in a group. Perhaps no other ace on his personal account has such a variety of types of downed aircraft as Rechkalov, these include bombers, attack aircraft, reconnaissance aircraft, fighters, transport aircraft, and relatively rare trophies - “Savoy” and PZL -24.
Georgy Dmitrievich Kostylev
Born in Oranienbaum, present-day Lomonosov, in 1914. He began his flight practice in Moscow at the legendary Tushinsky airfield, where the Spartak stadium is now being built. The legendary Baltic ace, who covered the skies over Leningrad and won the largest number of victories in naval aviation, personally shot down at least 20 enemy aircraft and 34 in the group.
He shot down his first Messerschmitt on July 15, 1941. He fought on a British Hurricane, received under lend-lease, on the left side of which there was a large inscription “For Rus'!” In February 1943, he ended up in a penal battalion for causing destruction in the house of a major in the quartermaster service. Kostylev was amazed by the abundance of dishes with which he treated his guests, and could not restrain himself, since he knew first-hand what was happening in the besieged city. He was deprived of his awards, demoted to the Red Army and sent to the Oranienbaum bridgehead, to the places where he spent his childhood. The penalty officers saved the hero, and already in April he again takes his fighter into the air and wins victory over the enemy. Later he was reinstated in rank and his awards were returned, but he never received the second Hero Star.
Maresyev Alexey Petrovich
A legendary man, who became the prototype of the hero of Boris Polevoy’s story “The Tale of a Real Man,” a symbol of the courage and perseverance of the Russian warrior. Born in 1916 in the city of Kamyshin, Saratov province. In a battle with the Germans, his plane was shot down, and the pilot, wounded in the legs, managed to land on territory occupied by the Germans. After which he crawled to his people for 18 days, in the hospital both legs were amputated. But Maresyev managed to return to duty, he learned to walk on prosthetics and took to the skies again. At first they didn’t trust him; anything can happen in battle, but Maresyev proved that he could fight no worse than others. As a result, to the 4 German planes shot down before the injury, 7 more were added. Polevoy’s story about Maresyev was allowed to be published only after the war, so that the Germans, God forbid, would not think that there was no one to fight in the Soviet army, they had to send disabled people.
Popkov Vitaly Ivanovich
This pilot also cannot be ignored, because it was he who became one of the most famous incarnations of an ace pilot in cinema - the prototype of the famous Maestro from the film “Only Old Men Go to Battle.” The “Singing Squadron” actually existed in the 5th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment, where Popkov served, it had its own choir, and two aircraft were given to it by Leonid Utesov himself.
Popkov was born in Moscow in 1922. He won his first victory in June 1942 over the city of Kholm. He took part in battles on the Kalinin Front, on the Don and the Kursk Bulge. In total, he flew 475 combat missions, conducted 117 air battles, and personally shot down 41 enemy aircraft plus 1 in the group. On the last day of the war, Popkov, in the sky over Brno, shot down the legendary German Hartmann, the most successful ace of World War II, but he managed to land and survive, however, this still did not save him from captivity. Popkov's popularity was so great that a monument was erected to him during his lifetime in Moscow.
