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He is an unique ace from the [[9-ya Gvard. Kavalerii]]. [[Category:Steel Division II aces]] |
He is an unique ace from the [[9-ya Gvard. Kavalerii]]. [[Category:Steel Division II aces]] |
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==Background== |
==Background== |
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| + | One of the foremost Allied pilots of World War II, Ivan Kozhedub was born in 1920 in Ukraine during the Russian Civil War, the youngest of five children. After graduating the Shostka chemical technical school in 1940, Kozhedub joined the Soviet Army, attending the Chuguev Military Air School and graduating it in 1941, just as the German invasion of the Soviet Union began. |
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| + | Retained as an instructor, Kozhedub remained at the academy for two years before requesting a transfer to a frontline unit. As a senior sergeant, he joined one of the first units to receive the new Lavochkin La-5. By the end of the war, he flew 330 combat missions with 120 aerial engagements and 62 enemy aircraft shot down, including a victory against an Me 262, the first Jet Fighter. He claimed the highest number of victories among Allied aces, and a host of military awards, including three separate Hero of the Soviet Union awards. |
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| + | Graduating the Air Force Academy in 1949, he was later promoted to colonel in 1951 and given command over the 324th Fighter Air Division during the Korean War. Prohibited from participating in combat missions, Kozhedub focused on command and his division claimed 239 victories (including twelve B-29 Superfortresses), while losing only 27 MiG-15s and 9 pilots. He subsequently attended the High Command Academy, allowing him to reach the rank of general, and continued his career as a member of the Central Office of the Soviet Air Force (from 1971) and then the general inspection group of the Ministry of Defense from 1978. The rank of Aviation Marshal was the culmination of his career, achieved in 1945. |
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==Strategy== |
==Strategy== |
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{{strategy}} |
{{strategy}} |
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Revision as of 11:26, 25 June 2019
La-7 Kozhedub is a Soviet Union Air unit in Steel Division II.
He is an unique ace from the 9-ya Gvard. Kavalerii.
Background
One of the foremost Allied pilots of World War II, Ivan Kozhedub was born in 1920 in Ukraine during the Russian Civil War, the youngest of five children. After graduating the Shostka chemical technical school in 1940, Kozhedub joined the Soviet Army, attending the Chuguev Military Air School and graduating it in 1941, just as the German invasion of the Soviet Union began.
Retained as an instructor, Kozhedub remained at the academy for two years before requesting a transfer to a frontline unit. As a senior sergeant, he joined one of the first units to receive the new Lavochkin La-5. By the end of the war, he flew 330 combat missions with 120 aerial engagements and 62 enemy aircraft shot down, including a victory against an Me 262, the first Jet Fighter. He claimed the highest number of victories among Allied aces, and a host of military awards, including three separate Hero of the Soviet Union awards.
Graduating the Air Force Academy in 1949, he was later promoted to colonel in 1951 and given command over the 324th Fighter Air Division during the Korean War. Prohibited from participating in combat missions, Kozhedub focused on command and his division claimed 239 victories (including twelve B-29 Superfortresses), while losing only 27 MiG-15s and 9 pilots. He subsequently attended the High Command Academy, allowing him to reach the rank of general, and continued his career as a member of the Central Office of the Soviet Air Force (from 1971) and then the general inspection group of the Ministry of Defense from 1978. The rank of Aviation Marshal was the culmination of his career, achieved in 1945.