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| Lilya Litvyak's Yakovlyev YaK-1 fighter "Yellow 44", of 296 IAP, Stalingrad, Spring 1943 |
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| Lilya Litvyak's Yakovlyev YaK-1b fighter "White 23", of 73 Gv.IAP, 1943 |
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Litvyak's YaK-1 being refuelled for her next sortie, late Spring of 1943. |
| A flight of Petlyakov Pe-2 bombers, the same type that the 587th Women's Day Bomber Regiment flew. |
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This is an example of the notorious Il-2M3 anti-tank and ground attack aircraft. Many Shturmoviks were crewed by women, and they enjoyed considerable success. The main difference between the Il-2M3 and the Il-2 is that the Il-2 had no second crewmember or rear machine gun. The Il2-M3 started coming to frontline squadrons in the Fall of 1942. |
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The Shturmovik was probably the most produced warplane of all time, with a record of 36,163 made! It was called by its crew "the Flying Bathtub", because of the very well-amroured fuselage where the pilot sat in. The Il-2 was very difficult to shoot down, because of its good protection. This made it an excellent ground attack plane, for it could withstand more ground fire, giving the pilots more time to aim correctly. It also could take more air-to-air damage and still keep flying. Naturally, it was well-liked by its pilots.
Rear gunners (in the Il-2M3 versions) were not so protected by armor as the pilots were, though. The combat life expectancy of a Shturmovik gunner was said to be 7 times less than that of the pilots or the plane itself. It is said that the plane was so heavy when taking off, that female pilots (presumably the weaker ones) had to be helped by their gunners in pulling back on the flight control stick in order for the plane to "unstick" (take off). The gunner would then sit in her normal position, of course. |
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| This is a Polikarpov Po-2 biplane similar to those used by the 588th Night Bomber Regiment. Most were unarmed except for their ordnance, but some carried a 7.62mm machine gun on a swivel-mount in the observer's position in the rear. |
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This is a photograph of the same Po-2 in flight near Moscow in 1942. This particular example was used for reconnaissance. |