Attack of the Airacobras : Soviet aces, American P-39's and the air war against Germany / Dimitriy Loza ; translated and edited by James F. Gebhardt ; with an introduction by Von Hardesty.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Loza, D. F. (Dmitriĭ Fedorovich)

Series:

Modern war studies

Language:

English

Russian

Subjects (All):

Soviet Union. Raboche-Krestʹi︠a︡nskai︠a︡ Krasnai︠a︡ Armii︠a︡. Fighter Division, 216th--History.

Soviet Union.

Soviet Union. Raboche-Krestʹi︠a︡nskai︠a︡ Krasnai︠a︡ Armii︠a︡. Fighter Division, 216th.

Airacobra (Fighter plane).

World War, 1939-1945--Aerial operations, Soviet.

World War, 1939-1945.

World War, 1939-1945--Regimental histories--Soviet Union.

History.

Physical Description:

xiii, 369 pages, 14 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm.

Place of Publication:

Lawrence, Kan. : University Press of Kansas, [2002]

Language Note:

Translated from the Russian.

Summary:

During its titanic military struggle with Germany, the Soviet Union received a major boost with the arrival and deployment of nearly 5,000 Bell p-39 Airacobra fighter planes, courtesy of America's Lend-Lease program. The impact was dramatic, as the Soviets quickly adapted the planes into a devastatingly lethal force. Dmitriy Loza's account, admirably translated and edited by James Gebhardt, vividly re-creates the battle campaigns of this odd coupling of capitalist planes and Marxist pilots and shines a bright light on a little known part of the air war on the Eastern Front.

The p-39 proved to be the right plane at the right time for a beleaguered Red Air Force. Built for short range and relatively low altitudes, the p-39 was equipped with a powerful engine and weapons that enabled it to out-duel and eventually dominate the Luftwaffe from the Caucasus foothills to Berlin.

Focusing on the combat operations and daily life of one unit -- the 9th Guards Fighter Division -- Loza refutes the myth that the p-39 was used mainly as a "tank buster" or "flying artillery." Instead, its primary mission was to protect Red Army operations from aerial attacks by the enemy. So despite the occasional strafing of trains, truck convoys, and troops, most p-39 operations involved attacks on Luftwaffe bombers and dogfights with their fighter escorts.

Center stage in Loza's story are the p-39 pilots and ground crews, including remarkable Captain Aleksandr Pokryshkin and Major Gregoriy Rechkalov, two of the Soviets' top four aces. In addition, Loza details the organization and operations of the unit's noncombat personnel, who refueled and maintained the aircraft, cleaned and reloaded the guns, packed the parachutes, treated the wounded, guarded the airfields, and commanded the squadrons and regiments.

Based on interviews with Soviet veterans and extensive access to squadron histories and logbooks, Loza provides a rare and insightful look at what it was like to live and fight in this victorious air unit.

Contents:

Part 1 August 1942 to May 1943

Transition Training 19

The Skies of the Kuban 25

On the Left Wing of the Soviet-German Front 34

First Air Battles 38

The New Methods Win Out 48

The Sky Was Ablaze 72

Wild Vadim 87

Pass the Experience Along 97

Combat Successes and Losses 101

First Priority

the Aircraft 117

Logistical Support 129

Command and Control of Fighters 140

Navigational Support 152

Part 2 August to December 1943

A Wingman's Feat 161

You Won't Get Away! 166

Over the Molochnaya River 171

Covering an Amphibious Landing 178

A Costly Mistake 187

Adjusting Artillery Fire 192

More Battles 197

Free Hunting 202

Over the Perekop 212

Relocation to New Airfields 221

The Airfield

the Aviators' Home 237

Documents Tell the Story 248

Part 3 May 1944 to May 1945

Three Years Later 259

He Flared Like a Comet 276

The Chase 280

Look, See, Find 284

At the Western Border 288

A Gift from the Bell Factory 299

Flights from the Autobahn 301

Mistletoe 312

The Airacobra as Shturmovik 316

The Last Combat Sorties 320

Appendix A Order of the People's Commissar of Defense 325

Appendix B Soviet Aces Who Flew the P-39 Airacobra 331

Appendix C Lineage of 216th (9th Guards) Fighter Division 335.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [337]-359) and index.

ISBN:

0700611401

OCLC:

47050135