Soviet aces on Lend-Lease fighters. Part of 5. Mustangs, Thunderbolts and Douglas
The British in May 1942 sent the Mustang I 4 to the Soviet Union for military trials. From England, the 14 aircraft arrived in May and in the fall, at the end of serious tests at the Research Institute of the Air Force, the 3 aircraft was transferred to the 5 Guards Fighter Wing. The leading pilots of the regiment flew on these planes, but no victories were won.
The planes brought in the so-called "Fedorov Group". There is little information about the combat activity of these machines, but two documents can be cited. The first document is 209 Fighter Aviation Division, Red Aerodrome, 13.09.42. Departure to the Mikheevo area to escort attack aircraft. The direct cover group is five LaGG-3, pilots: Golovanov, Borodin, Balaluyev from the 21 Fighter Aviation Regiment; Charming group - two Mustangs and Yak-5. Mustang pilots: Morozov and Mamayev; Yak-1: Devil's and Kutovoy (OSHZ). Note: After the departure, the two Mustangs didn’t follow the target area, took a course to your airfield. The reasons are not known. " The second document - "Fedorov 1 Group made 26.09.1942 with / in. During the day there was one air battle, in which participated before 21 U-18 and 88 Me-14. From our side - 109 Mustang, 2 Yak-2 and 1 Mustang No downed aircraft were observed; Lieutenant Kutovoy, a Yak-2 pilot, did not return from a combat mission. Basement of the Fedorov group at the Bosharovo airfield as part of 1 Mustang, 1 Yak-2, 7 Yak-3. "
The first 3 P-47D-1 in the USSR were sent to 1943 by Alsib (although some domestic researchers say that this is a fiction and all Thunderbolts were delivered exclusively through Iran). A hundred fighter aircraft modifications P-1944D-47-RE, P-22D-47-RE were sent through Iran in 27 year. There are other, different data - for example, William Green in his work "Warplanes of the Second World War" writes about 203 "Thunderbolts" of modifications P-47D-22-RE, P-47D-27-RE sent to the USSR from the United States According to Green, 196 aircraft reached the recipient. The data from the archive of the General Staff of the air forces of the Soviet Army is not very different - in the 1944 year the X-NUMX fighters of the P-190 were received and in the 47 year - in the 1945. Probably, the Soviet archive does not take into account another fighter - the P-5D-47-RE with the serial number 10-42, which was bought with funds collected by US senators, and received a proper name - "Knight of Pythias". It was he who was tested at LII and NII VVS in the middle of 75202 of the year.
The first fighters "Thunderbolt" on the airfield of the 11 of the 2nd Bomber Aviation Regiment arrived on August 24 of the year 1944. On the regiment that day they gave order No. 30, in which it was said that the regiment was armed with two P-47D-22-RE fighters with R-2800-59 engines. Large-scale deliveries began later. In accordance with orders No. 36, 38 and 39 from 22.12.1944, the X-NUMX aircraft of the P-62D-47-RE modification was supplied to the unit. At the same time, 22 fighters of the P-47D-47-RE modification were adopted. 27 th reserve bomber regiment in total received 11 "Thunderbolts".
The 11 th reserve bomber air regiment received Thunderbolts twice during the 1945 of the year: April 21 - X-NUMX fighter P-2D-47 produced by the factory in Fairmigdale and April 27 - 27 similar fighter.
Until the end of hostilities in Europe, fighter R-47s did not appear on the armament of the front units of the air forces of the Red Army. Almost all Thunderbolts were handed over to fighter aviation regiments of the Southwestern air defense district. This powerful aviation group was formed on 24.12.1944/1/2 to cover the routes of communication of the 3st, 4nd, XNUMXrd and XNUMXth Ukrainian fronts in Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Romania.
Fighter R-47 in service with the air defense units of the USSR did not remain for long. Under the Lend-Lease Agreement, many planes were returned to the Americans. The Thunderbolts were concentrated at the Stryi airfield, where they were handed over to the representatives of the United States. The Americans considered it economically inexpedient to lead back fighter jets that had become unnecessary. It was decided to bring the aircraft into an unsuitable state for flights, they chose the tool for this work Tanks. Thunderbolts were destroyed throughout the winter of 1945-46. R-47 fighters in naval aviation fleet The USSR received the 255th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the Air Force of the Northern Fleet.
However, the command of the air forces of the Federation Council was not up to the development of new technology. Operation West was being prepared, the main purpose of which was to defeat the Nazi group in the Arctic. Almost every day, as the weather conditions improved, new aviation units arrived to take part in the upcoming battles. Technique literally scored airfields. In this regard, "Thunderbolts" transferred under the Arkhangelsk to the island Yagodnik, where the reserve air force of the Northern Fleet was located.
In the Arctic, the new fighters returned after the Victory Day. The 255 th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the Air Force of the Northern Fleet as of 20.06.1945 had Thunderbolt 63, including the defective 2. They were driven to the North from Iran by pilots of the 65 th ferry regiment of the Navy.
5 November 1945, Captain Bogdanov, a naval aviation inspector, began troop testing, the purpose of which was to determine the combat capabilities of the Thunderbolt. The flights were successful. Takeoff / landing was carried out from the concrete path and from the ground. In flight, the engine and turbocharger were tested under various conditions. They practiced methods of bombing when diving, with horizontal flight and top mast method. During the tests, it turned out that during a dive and at the time it was taken out of it, the plane turned to the right and considerable physical effort was required in order to avoid it. Therefore, the combat pilots who later mastered the Thunderbolts were forbidden to dive at angles of more than 30 degrees. With regard to combat use, it was noted that the Thunderbolt allowed the bombing of 2-I FAB-250, which are suspended under the wing, from a dive at angles up to 50 degrees from a height of at least 3 km. With horizontal flight bombing two FAB-500 or three FAB-250. With the top mast method, a good overview and transparency of the lamp allows you to accurately estimate the distance to the water surface. According to the test results, the following conclusion was made: the Thunderbolt aircraft can be used from the airfields of the Far North.
In the 255 air regiment, combat use was not practiced. The pilots had a small Thunderbolt raid, and was no more than 10 hours. About a year later, the units were again transferred to the Aero Cobra, and the Thunderbolts were transferred to conservation. Subsequently, they were destroyed by a tractor right on the airfield.
In the Baltic, where the "Thunderbolts" hit a little later, combat missions took place. Thus, the 15 th separate reconnaissance aviation regiment, which had five P-47D-22, provided cover for long-range reconnaissance aircraft. Thunderbolts arrived in the Baltics in November 1944. Originally, they were used by the 29 long-range reconnaissance air squadron based in Palanga. At the same time, similar vehicles began to be sent to the air force of the Black Sea Fleet, where there were five P-01.11.1944 units for the 47. However, with the entry of Romania and Bulgaria into the war against Germany on the Black Sea, the fighting ceased. Thunderbolts did not enter the Pacific.
Naval aviation, the majority of US heavy fighters concentrated in educational institutions and spare shelves, but there they served not long. Aircraft passed from one place to another. Behind the school to them. Stalin was listed 30 "Thunderbolts", for the highest officer courses - 20. In the end, almost all of the P-47 concentrated in the north, where they were subsequently destroyed. Some copies of Р-47 until the middle of 1950 were textbooks at the MAI in Moscow, VVIA them. Zhukovsky and Leningrad VVIA them. Mozhaisky.
The last fighter shipped to the USSR from the United States during the Second World War was the Kingcobra P-XNUMHA / S. During the war years, the Soviet Union received 63 serial P-2397 (more than 63 / 2 from 3 machines). All fighters were sent by ALSIB (Alaska - Siberia) on their own. The path of the aircraft began at the company's factories in Niagara Falls and Buffalo, where the Kingcobras were taken over by pilots from the third fermentation air group, which then flew to Great Falls (Montana). Here the aircraft were checked, modified, prepared for operation at low temperatures. After the overflight, the planes were taken over by the seventh aviation group, which overtook them in Ladd Field, Alaska. Before the transfer to the Soviet side, the last technical inspection was carried out and, if necessary, repairs.
However, before the Kingcobras arrived at their destination, they had to overcome a difficult path several thousand kilometers long. The fighters were overtaken by groups that were led by the Mitchell B-25 bombers. The King Cobra had a relatively short range, so the route was divided into several stages. The path between Fairbanks and Krasnoyarsk (6,5 thousand km), had to be divided into 5 stages. By American pilots, aircraft from factories were distilled across Canada’s territory to Alaska in Fairbanks, where the Kingcobras were taken over by the Soviet military mission. After that, the fighters were transferred to the first distillery regiment. The 1 th PAP was to overtake the planes through the Bering Strait to Uelkal - the airfield on the coast of the Anadyr Bay (1560 km). In Uelkal, there was a base of the 2-th ferry regiment, the task of which was to provide flight over the most difficult section to Seymchan, over Chukotka and the Kolyma Range (1450 km). The segment to Yakutsk (1200 km) was also not an easy one. Here the planes were overtaken by pilots of the 3-th ferry regiment. The section to Kirensk (1340 km), and to Krasnoyarsk (920 km), served the 4 and 5 sub-ferry regiments, respectively.
The P-63A-9 10.09.1944 fighter was the 5000 American machine, which flew along the northern route to the USSR. By the end of 1944, the Kingcoop went more than the P-39 along this route. Lend-Lease-arrived bombers from Krasnoyarsk went to the front on their own, but fighters on railway platforms.
P-63 from the spring of the year 1945 come to the air defense units. This decision was not accidental: at altitudes above 7,5 thousand meters, the King Cobra overtook the Soviet La 7 and the British Spitfire LF IXE. "Kingkobrami" primarily replenished parts that were previously armed with the P-39. So, for example, by August, the 17 and 21 air defense regiments received 10 vehicles. And the first unit that received the Kingcobra was the 28 th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the air defense, based at the Vnukovo airfield near Moscow. Several cars got into the next 39-th air regiment. This happened at the end of 1944.
The introduction of new fighters in the air force began in the summer, but the Kingtabram was no longer able to fight the Germans. Priority was given to the Far Eastern air armies, which were preparing for hostilities with Japan. The usual direction of movement on "Alsibu" changed. Some cars went to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, and the route of distillation from Krasnoyarsk lasted until Ukkureya (through Chita in Transbaikalia) - to re-equip parts of the Twelfth Air Army. Some planes flew here straight from Yakutsk.
Apparently, the first fighter aircraft of the P-63A were equipped with the 190-I Fighter Division under the command of Major General V. V. Fokin, who in June 1945 was relocated in Transbaikalia. From June 24, the division began to receive Kingcob and completed retraining by August 2. During the fighting in Manchuria, the 190 Fighter Aviation Division flew from two airfields: Leningrad and Ural over the city of Choibalsan (Mongolia). After the war, this division was based for some time under Ulan-Ude. Also, on the Trans-Baikal front, as part of the 12 th air army, the 245 fighter aviation division was fighting, its two regiments (940 and 781) were equipped with P-63. The first "Kingcobras" in the 128-th mixed aircraft division, based in Kamchatka, arrived in July-August. These aircraft armed 888 th Fighter Wing and 410 th Attack Wing (later became a fighter). P-63 also entered the 9 th and 10 th air army.
For these armies, the pilots of the First ferry aviation division laid a route to Khabarovsk. By the beginning of the fighting, there were 97 P-63, which did not have time to distribute the regiments. During the campaign in the Far East, the Kingcobras were used to escort reconnaissance aircraft and bombers, to cover ships and troops from the air, to bombard and attack Japanese positions. 40 IL-4, covered with 50 P-63, on the second day of the offensive carried out a bombardment of the Chuzhou fortified area, from where Japanese troops fired on the Soviet city of Iman. The 190-I and 245-I divisions supported the advancing Mongolian and Soviet troops, acting mainly as attack aircraft and fighter-bombers. In addition, they provided cover for transport aircraft delivering fuel to advanced mechanized and tank units. Soviet bombs used - FAB-100. For this, the bomb racks were remade. The underwing large-caliber machine guns on some P-63 were usually not installed. The 410-th and 888-th aviation regiments attacked the Japanese bases located on the Kuril Islands, and then were engaged to ensure the landing of assault forces on them.
The Japanese aviation practically did not render serious opposition, therefore it was not possible to check the Kingcobra in aerial combat. The only successful battle of the P-63 was conducted by Junior Lieutenant Miroshnichenko I.F. from the 17 Fighter Regiment (190 Fighter Aviation Division). He 15 August, along with his leading Sirotin, Hero of the Soviet Union, attacked a pair of Japanese fighters who attacked transport planes approaching the landing in the Vanemyao area. One Japanese plane was shot down, the second hid among the hills. Different documents indicate different types of Japanese cars: "I-97" ("Nakajima" Ki. 27), or "Oscar" (Ki.43). However, both types were obsolete, so the outcome of the battle was predetermined from the very beginning. The Kingcob in the summer of 1945 got into the naval aviation. The 7-I fighter air division of the air force of the Pacific Fleet at the time of the declaration of war get 10 P-63, and a few dozen more during August. However, they did not have time to enter into a combat system and they did not accept participation in the war.
The surrender of the Soviet mission in Fairbanks fighters stopped immediately after the surrender of Japan. By this time, 2400 Kingboxes from 2450, ordered by the USSR under IV protocol, had been received. 2397 of them flew through Alaska, and only 3 was brought via Murmansk by sea. However, the movement on Alsibu continued after the surrender. The last "Kingcob" in Yelizovo (Kamchatka) was delivered on September 29 1945. By September, in Ukkurei and Krasnoyarsk, such a large number of P-63 fighters had accumulated that the pilots of the combat units before the autumn of 1946 took them and drove them all over the Far East. "Kingcobra" spread in the European part of the USSR. They were replenished 5-I Guards Fighter Division in the Baltic States and 269-I Fighter Division in Armenia (the regiments of the division stood in Hoktemberyan, Leninakan and Yerevan). In 1946, the P-63 equipped the 101 th Guards Fighter Regiment in Siberia. The Kingcobras did not return to the United States. After the war, this most modern fighter "Lend-Lease" took a strong place in the Soviet aviation, becoming the most massive imported machine. On Р-63 in 1946, the 6 th guards fighter air division in Ukraine was re-armed, the Kingkras were first mastered by the 20 th guards fighter air regiment stationed in Zeltsy.
The "Kingcobras" were also sent to units that were based abroad - in Austria, Germany, and China. P-63 received parts of the 1-th Guards Fighter Division, located in Neuhausen, as well as the 83-th Fighter Air Corps, located in Port Arthur. Acquisition of new equipment and retraining of personnel was provided by 4-th and 6-th reserve aircraft brigades. Sea pilots also flew P-63. In the Baltic, for example, 314 (ex 21) and 246 guards fighter regiments were equipped with them.
In the Soviet Union, double training "Kingcobras" were made, according to a scheme similar to the double "Air Cobra". For 3-th Air Army, rework was carried out by a repair base in Šiauliai. There in 1946-1947. 25 training P-63U was released (TATushin S.Ya. tested them all). A similar modification under the designation P-63В was also made by aircraft workshops in Tbilisi.
At least one aircraft was artisanally converted into a two-seater in the 6 th Fighter Division (Tiraspol). In pilots, this machine has received the nickname: "Shed failures and defects." Part "Kingcoop" wanted to use for "peaceful purposes." These high-speed cars were supposed to deliver matrixes of central newspapers to other cities. Groups of pilots were formed. In the formation of "Kingcobry" remained until the adoption of jet fighters. The replacement of the P-63 began in the 1950 year. Finally, they were used during the mass retraining of pilots for jet fighters - MiG-9 and MiG-15.
After the decommissioning of the combat units, the P-63 had for a long time been available as transition vehicles in flight schools; in some places they even met in the second half of the 1950s.
Completely these aircraft from combatant regiments were removed by the end of 1953. In May, the 1951, the 246-th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment, re-equipped the MiG-15, and in May, the 1952, which was re-equipped in the 314-th aviation regiment. In March, 1950, 5-th GvRAP in the Far East replaced the "Kingcobra" on La-11. Until 1951, they served on the Kuriles in the 307- and 308-m fighter regiments. Later, American fighters were surrendered fighter regiments of the Air Force of the Pacific Fleet. There they captured the beginning of the war in Korea, when all the aviation of the USSR was in combat readiness. At that time, the possibility that the Kingcobras would engage in combat with American aircraft was not excluded. However, the change of generations of aircraft occurred quickly, and the P-63 fighters were out of work.
American fighter-bombers in 1952 either mistakenly or deliberately stormed the dry airfield near the airfield. As a result, they damaged eight P-63 no longer flying, which stood on the edge of the site with a ruler.
It is also worth mentioning the use in the USSR of American Douglas A-20G bombers as fighters. In the Soviet aviation during the war years, about 3 thousand of these twin-engined bombers served - various modifications from DB-7 to A-20J. In this case, the most massive was the model "G" - 1441 pcs.
As a rule, these aircraft were used as scouts, torpedo bombers and front-line bombers. However, some naval aviation pilots used the Douglas as a fighter. The powerful armament installed in the nose (two machine guns and four guns of caliber 20 mm) made it possible to successfully deal with transport Yu-52 and flying boats.
An interesting fact is that several pilots who flew the A-20G became the aces. The most productive was Shamanov Ivan. In 1928, he graduated from the flight school, before the war he flew in civil aviation, then he was drafted into the army. Shaman 1943 carried out 129 sorties by September, knocking down 8 aircraft and sinking 4 of the enemy ship. January 22 1944 was honored with the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for these successes. In the field, several A-20G-1 were upgraded to night fighters. In September, the 173 Bomber Aviation Regiment 1943 was re-armed to A-20G-1 from the Pe-2, transforming it into an 112-th Special Aviation Regiment. In the same way, the 45 th Bomber Aviation Regiment, which became the special purpose 113 air regiment, was transformed. These two regiments were part of the 56-th Air Division, where he took part in the hunt for enemy aircraft and night attacks on objects in German territory.
Both 10 regiments of January 1944 received the status of guards, becoming the 26 and 27 of the guards aviation regiments of long-range fighter aircraft. Most of the A-20G was equipped with the primitive Soviet radar Gneiss-3. These aircraft also received additional armament: in the bomb bay they installed two guns of the caliber 20 mm and two machine guns of the caliber 12,7 mm.
The modernized pilots spent most of their time in training and took part in just 3 air battles. Captain Kazanov shot down the 2 Non-111, and Lieutenant Shesterikov shot one glider DFS 230. These results were very modest; therefore, further rearmament was considered inexpedient.
The planes brought in the so-called "Fedorov Group". There is little information about the combat activity of these machines, but two documents can be cited. The first document is 209 Fighter Aviation Division, Red Aerodrome, 13.09.42. Departure to the Mikheevo area to escort attack aircraft. The direct cover group is five LaGG-3, pilots: Golovanov, Borodin, Balaluyev from the 21 Fighter Aviation Regiment; Charming group - two Mustangs and Yak-5. Mustang pilots: Morozov and Mamayev; Yak-1: Devil's and Kutovoy (OSHZ). Note: After the departure, the two Mustangs didn’t follow the target area, took a course to your airfield. The reasons are not known. " The second document - "Fedorov 1 Group made 26.09.1942 with / in. During the day there was one air battle, in which participated before 21 U-18 and 88 Me-14. From our side - 109 Mustang, 2 Yak-2 and 1 Mustang No downed aircraft were observed; Lieutenant Kutovoy, a Yak-2 pilot, did not return from a combat mission. Basement of the Fedorov group at the Bosharovo airfield as part of 1 Mustang, 1 Yak-2, 7 Yak-3. "
Knight of Pythias is the first Thunderbolt to hit the Soviet Union. This car passed the estimated flight tests in LII
The first 3 P-47D-1 in the USSR were sent to 1943 by Alsib (although some domestic researchers say that this is a fiction and all Thunderbolts were delivered exclusively through Iran). A hundred fighter aircraft modifications P-1944D-47-RE, P-22D-47-RE were sent through Iran in 27 year. There are other, different data - for example, William Green in his work "Warplanes of the Second World War" writes about 203 "Thunderbolts" of modifications P-47D-22-RE, P-47D-27-RE sent to the USSR from the United States According to Green, 196 aircraft reached the recipient. The data from the archive of the General Staff of the air forces of the Soviet Army is not very different - in the 1944 year the X-NUMX fighters of the P-190 were received and in the 47 year - in the 1945. Probably, the Soviet archive does not take into account another fighter - the P-5D-47-RE with the serial number 10-42, which was bought with funds collected by US senators, and received a proper name - "Knight of Pythias". It was he who was tested at LII and NII VVS in the middle of 75202 of the year.
The first fighters "Thunderbolt" on the airfield of the 11 of the 2nd Bomber Aviation Regiment arrived on August 24 of the year 1944. On the regiment that day they gave order No. 30, in which it was said that the regiment was armed with two P-47D-22-RE fighters with R-2800-59 engines. Large-scale deliveries began later. In accordance with orders No. 36, 38 and 39 from 22.12.1944, the X-NUMX aircraft of the P-62D-47-RE modification was supplied to the unit. At the same time, 22 fighters of the P-47D-47-RE modification were adopted. 27 th reserve bomber regiment in total received 11 "Thunderbolts".
The 11 th reserve bomber air regiment received Thunderbolts twice during the 1945 of the year: April 21 - X-NUMX fighter P-2D-47 produced by the factory in Fairmigdale and April 27 - 27 similar fighter.
Until the end of hostilities in Europe, fighter R-47s did not appear on the armament of the front units of the air forces of the Red Army. Almost all Thunderbolts were handed over to fighter aviation regiments of the Southwestern air defense district. This powerful aviation group was formed on 24.12.1944/1/2 to cover the routes of communication of the 3st, 4nd, XNUMXrd and XNUMXth Ukrainian fronts in Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Romania.
Fighter R-47 in service with the air defense units of the USSR did not remain for long. Under the Lend-Lease Agreement, many planes were returned to the Americans. The Thunderbolts were concentrated at the Stryi airfield, where they were handed over to the representatives of the United States. The Americans considered it economically inexpedient to lead back fighter jets that had become unnecessary. It was decided to bring the aircraft into an unsuitable state for flights, they chose the tool for this work Tanks. Thunderbolts were destroyed throughout the winter of 1945-46. R-47 fighters in naval aviation fleet The USSR received the 255th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the Air Force of the Northern Fleet.
However, the command of the air forces of the Federation Council was not up to the development of new technology. Operation West was being prepared, the main purpose of which was to defeat the Nazi group in the Arctic. Almost every day, as the weather conditions improved, new aviation units arrived to take part in the upcoming battles. Technique literally scored airfields. In this regard, "Thunderbolts" transferred under the Arkhangelsk to the island Yagodnik, where the reserve air force of the Northern Fleet was located.
In the Arctic, the new fighters returned after the Victory Day. The 255 th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the Air Force of the Northern Fleet as of 20.06.1945 had Thunderbolt 63, including the defective 2. They were driven to the North from Iran by pilots of the 65 th ferry regiment of the Navy.
5 November 1945, Captain Bogdanov, a naval aviation inspector, began troop testing, the purpose of which was to determine the combat capabilities of the Thunderbolt. The flights were successful. Takeoff / landing was carried out from the concrete path and from the ground. In flight, the engine and turbocharger were tested under various conditions. They practiced methods of bombing when diving, with horizontal flight and top mast method. During the tests, it turned out that during a dive and at the time it was taken out of it, the plane turned to the right and considerable physical effort was required in order to avoid it. Therefore, the combat pilots who later mastered the Thunderbolts were forbidden to dive at angles of more than 30 degrees. With regard to combat use, it was noted that the Thunderbolt allowed the bombing of 2-I FAB-250, which are suspended under the wing, from a dive at angles up to 50 degrees from a height of at least 3 km. With horizontal flight bombing two FAB-500 or three FAB-250. With the top mast method, a good overview and transparency of the lamp allows you to accurately estimate the distance to the water surface. According to the test results, the following conclusion was made: the Thunderbolt aircraft can be used from the airfields of the Far North.
In the 255 air regiment, combat use was not practiced. The pilots had a small Thunderbolt raid, and was no more than 10 hours. About a year later, the units were again transferred to the Aero Cobra, and the Thunderbolts were transferred to conservation. Subsequently, they were destroyed by a tractor right on the airfield.
In the Baltic, where the "Thunderbolts" hit a little later, combat missions took place. Thus, the 15 th separate reconnaissance aviation regiment, which had five P-47D-22, provided cover for long-range reconnaissance aircraft. Thunderbolts arrived in the Baltics in November 1944. Originally, they were used by the 29 long-range reconnaissance air squadron based in Palanga. At the same time, similar vehicles began to be sent to the air force of the Black Sea Fleet, where there were five P-01.11.1944 units for the 47. However, with the entry of Romania and Bulgaria into the war against Germany on the Black Sea, the fighting ceased. Thunderbolts did not enter the Pacific.
Naval aviation, the majority of US heavy fighters concentrated in educational institutions and spare shelves, but there they served not long. Aircraft passed from one place to another. Behind the school to them. Stalin was listed 30 "Thunderbolts", for the highest officer courses - 20. In the end, almost all of the P-47 concentrated in the north, where they were subsequently destroyed. Some copies of Р-47 until the middle of 1950 were textbooks at the MAI in Moscow, VVIA them. Zhukovsky and Leningrad VVIA them. Mozhaisky.
The last fighter shipped to the USSR from the United States during the Second World War was the Kingcobra P-XNUMHA / S. During the war years, the Soviet Union received 63 serial P-2397 (more than 63 / 2 from 3 machines). All fighters were sent by ALSIB (Alaska - Siberia) on their own. The path of the aircraft began at the company's factories in Niagara Falls and Buffalo, where the Kingcobras were taken over by pilots from the third fermentation air group, which then flew to Great Falls (Montana). Here the aircraft were checked, modified, prepared for operation at low temperatures. After the overflight, the planes were taken over by the seventh aviation group, which overtook them in Ladd Field, Alaska. Before the transfer to the Soviet side, the last technical inspection was carried out and, if necessary, repairs.
However, before the Kingcobras arrived at their destination, they had to overcome a difficult path several thousand kilometers long. The fighters were overtaken by groups that were led by the Mitchell B-25 bombers. The King Cobra had a relatively short range, so the route was divided into several stages. The path between Fairbanks and Krasnoyarsk (6,5 thousand km), had to be divided into 5 stages. By American pilots, aircraft from factories were distilled across Canada’s territory to Alaska in Fairbanks, where the Kingcobras were taken over by the Soviet military mission. After that, the fighters were transferred to the first distillery regiment. The 1 th PAP was to overtake the planes through the Bering Strait to Uelkal - the airfield on the coast of the Anadyr Bay (1560 km). In Uelkal, there was a base of the 2-th ferry regiment, the task of which was to provide flight over the most difficult section to Seymchan, over Chukotka and the Kolyma Range (1450 km). The segment to Yakutsk (1200 km) was also not an easy one. Here the planes were overtaken by pilots of the 3-th ferry regiment. The section to Kirensk (1340 km), and to Krasnoyarsk (920 km), served the 4 and 5 sub-ferry regiments, respectively.
The P-63A-9 10.09.1944 fighter was the 5000 American machine, which flew along the northern route to the USSR. By the end of 1944, the Kingcoop went more than the P-39 along this route. Lend-Lease-arrived bombers from Krasnoyarsk went to the front on their own, but fighters on railway platforms.
P-63 from the spring of the year 1945 come to the air defense units. This decision was not accidental: at altitudes above 7,5 thousand meters, the King Cobra overtook the Soviet La 7 and the British Spitfire LF IXE. "Kingkobrami" primarily replenished parts that were previously armed with the P-39. So, for example, by August, the 17 and 21 air defense regiments received 10 vehicles. And the first unit that received the Kingcobra was the 28 th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the air defense, based at the Vnukovo airfield near Moscow. Several cars got into the next 39-th air regiment. This happened at the end of 1944.
The introduction of new fighters in the air force began in the summer, but the Kingtabram was no longer able to fight the Germans. Priority was given to the Far Eastern air armies, which were preparing for hostilities with Japan. The usual direction of movement on "Alsibu" changed. Some cars went to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, and the route of distillation from Krasnoyarsk lasted until Ukkureya (through Chita in Transbaikalia) - to re-equip parts of the Twelfth Air Army. Some planes flew here straight from Yakutsk.
Apparently, the first fighter aircraft of the P-63A were equipped with the 190-I Fighter Division under the command of Major General V. V. Fokin, who in June 1945 was relocated in Transbaikalia. From June 24, the division began to receive Kingcob and completed retraining by August 2. During the fighting in Manchuria, the 190 Fighter Aviation Division flew from two airfields: Leningrad and Ural over the city of Choibalsan (Mongolia). After the war, this division was based for some time under Ulan-Ude. Also, on the Trans-Baikal front, as part of the 12 th air army, the 245 fighter aviation division was fighting, its two regiments (940 and 781) were equipped with P-63. The first "Kingcobras" in the 128-th mixed aircraft division, based in Kamchatka, arrived in July-August. These aircraft armed 888 th Fighter Wing and 410 th Attack Wing (later became a fighter). P-63 also entered the 9 th and 10 th air army.
For these armies, the pilots of the First ferry aviation division laid a route to Khabarovsk. By the beginning of the fighting, there were 97 P-63, which did not have time to distribute the regiments. During the campaign in the Far East, the Kingcobras were used to escort reconnaissance aircraft and bombers, to cover ships and troops from the air, to bombard and attack Japanese positions. 40 IL-4, covered with 50 P-63, on the second day of the offensive carried out a bombardment of the Chuzhou fortified area, from where Japanese troops fired on the Soviet city of Iman. The 190-I and 245-I divisions supported the advancing Mongolian and Soviet troops, acting mainly as attack aircraft and fighter-bombers. In addition, they provided cover for transport aircraft delivering fuel to advanced mechanized and tank units. Soviet bombs used - FAB-100. For this, the bomb racks were remade. The underwing large-caliber machine guns on some P-63 were usually not installed. The 410-th and 888-th aviation regiments attacked the Japanese bases located on the Kuril Islands, and then were engaged to ensure the landing of assault forces on them.
The Japanese aviation practically did not render serious opposition, therefore it was not possible to check the Kingcobra in aerial combat. The only successful battle of the P-63 was conducted by Junior Lieutenant Miroshnichenko I.F. from the 17 Fighter Regiment (190 Fighter Aviation Division). He 15 August, along with his leading Sirotin, Hero of the Soviet Union, attacked a pair of Japanese fighters who attacked transport planes approaching the landing in the Vanemyao area. One Japanese plane was shot down, the second hid among the hills. Different documents indicate different types of Japanese cars: "I-97" ("Nakajima" Ki. 27), or "Oscar" (Ki.43). However, both types were obsolete, so the outcome of the battle was predetermined from the very beginning. The Kingcob in the summer of 1945 got into the naval aviation. The 7-I fighter air division of the air force of the Pacific Fleet at the time of the declaration of war get 10 P-63, and a few dozen more during August. However, they did not have time to enter into a combat system and they did not accept participation in the war.
The surrender of the Soviet mission in Fairbanks fighters stopped immediately after the surrender of Japan. By this time, 2400 Kingboxes from 2450, ordered by the USSR under IV protocol, had been received. 2397 of them flew through Alaska, and only 3 was brought via Murmansk by sea. However, the movement on Alsibu continued after the surrender. The last "Kingcob" in Yelizovo (Kamchatka) was delivered on September 29 1945. By September, in Ukkurei and Krasnoyarsk, such a large number of P-63 fighters had accumulated that the pilots of the combat units before the autumn of 1946 took them and drove them all over the Far East. "Kingcobra" spread in the European part of the USSR. They were replenished 5-I Guards Fighter Division in the Baltic States and 269-I Fighter Division in Armenia (the regiments of the division stood in Hoktemberyan, Leninakan and Yerevan). In 1946, the P-63 equipped the 101 th Guards Fighter Regiment in Siberia. The Kingcobras did not return to the United States. After the war, this most modern fighter "Lend-Lease" took a strong place in the Soviet aviation, becoming the most massive imported machine. On Р-63 in 1946, the 6 th guards fighter air division in Ukraine was re-armed, the Kingkras were first mastered by the 20 th guards fighter air regiment stationed in Zeltsy.
The "Kingcobras" were also sent to units that were based abroad - in Austria, Germany, and China. P-63 received parts of the 1-th Guards Fighter Division, located in Neuhausen, as well as the 83-th Fighter Air Corps, located in Port Arthur. Acquisition of new equipment and retraining of personnel was provided by 4-th and 6-th reserve aircraft brigades. Sea pilots also flew P-63. In the Baltic, for example, 314 (ex 21) and 246 guards fighter regiments were equipped with them.
In the Soviet Union, double training "Kingcobras" were made, according to a scheme similar to the double "Air Cobra". For 3-th Air Army, rework was carried out by a repair base in Šiauliai. There in 1946-1947. 25 training P-63U was released (TATushin S.Ya. tested them all). A similar modification under the designation P-63В was also made by aircraft workshops in Tbilisi.
At least one aircraft was artisanally converted into a two-seater in the 6 th Fighter Division (Tiraspol). In pilots, this machine has received the nickname: "Shed failures and defects." Part "Kingcoop" wanted to use for "peaceful purposes." These high-speed cars were supposed to deliver matrixes of central newspapers to other cities. Groups of pilots were formed. In the formation of "Kingcobry" remained until the adoption of jet fighters. The replacement of the P-63 began in the 1950 year. Finally, they were used during the mass retraining of pilots for jet fighters - MiG-9 and MiG-15.
After the decommissioning of the combat units, the P-63 had for a long time been available as transition vehicles in flight schools; in some places they even met in the second half of the 1950s.
Completely these aircraft from combatant regiments were removed by the end of 1953. In May, the 1951, the 246-th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment, re-equipped the MiG-15, and in May, the 1952, which was re-equipped in the 314-th aviation regiment. In March, 1950, 5-th GvRAP in the Far East replaced the "Kingcobra" on La-11. Until 1951, they served on the Kuriles in the 307- and 308-m fighter regiments. Later, American fighters were surrendered fighter regiments of the Air Force of the Pacific Fleet. There they captured the beginning of the war in Korea, when all the aviation of the USSR was in combat readiness. At that time, the possibility that the Kingcobras would engage in combat with American aircraft was not excluded. However, the change of generations of aircraft occurred quickly, and the P-63 fighters were out of work.
American fighter-bombers in 1952 either mistakenly or deliberately stormed the dry airfield near the airfield. As a result, they damaged eight P-63 no longer flying, which stood on the edge of the site with a ruler.
A-20B with the Soviet turret UTK-1
It is also worth mentioning the use in the USSR of American Douglas A-20G bombers as fighters. In the Soviet aviation during the war years, about 3 thousand of these twin-engined bombers served - various modifications from DB-7 to A-20J. In this case, the most massive was the model "G" - 1441 pcs.
As a rule, these aircraft were used as scouts, torpedo bombers and front-line bombers. However, some naval aviation pilots used the Douglas as a fighter. The powerful armament installed in the nose (two machine guns and four guns of caliber 20 mm) made it possible to successfully deal with transport Yu-52 and flying boats.
An interesting fact is that several pilots who flew the A-20G became the aces. The most productive was Shamanov Ivan. In 1928, he graduated from the flight school, before the war he flew in civil aviation, then he was drafted into the army. Shaman 1943 carried out 129 sorties by September, knocking down 8 aircraft and sinking 4 of the enemy ship. January 22 1944 was honored with the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for these successes. In the field, several A-20G-1 were upgraded to night fighters. In September, the 173 Bomber Aviation Regiment 1943 was re-armed to A-20G-1 from the Pe-2, transforming it into an 112-th Special Aviation Regiment. In the same way, the 45 th Bomber Aviation Regiment, which became the special purpose 113 air regiment, was transformed. These two regiments were part of the 56-th Air Division, where he took part in the hunt for enemy aircraft and night attacks on objects in German territory.
Both 10 regiments of January 1944 received the status of guards, becoming the 26 and 27 of the guards aviation regiments of long-range fighter aircraft. Most of the A-20G was equipped with the primitive Soviet radar Gneiss-3. These aircraft also received additional armament: in the bomb bay they installed two guns of the caliber 20 mm and two machine guns of the caliber 12,7 mm.
The modernized pilots spent most of their time in training and took part in just 3 air battles. Captain Kazanov shot down the 2 Non-111, and Lieutenant Shesterikov shot one glider DFS 230. These results were very modest; therefore, further rearmament was considered inexpedient.
- Soviet aces on Lend-Lease fighters. Part of 1. "Hurricanes"
Soviet aces on Lend-Lease fighters. Part of 2. "Tomahawks" and "Kittyhawks"
Soviet aces on Lend-Lease fighters. Part Z. "Cobra"
Soviet aces on Lend-Lease fighters. Part of 4. "Spitfire"
Soviet aces on Lend-Lease fighters. Part of 5. Mustangs, Thunderbolts and Douglas
Information