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(U) n. CYTPIHR, 2005

hZPMPL OEVB. 2005 (uftboygb: dbfb NPDJYLBGYY:)

Finnish Air Force

Carl-Fredrik GEUST*, translated by I. KUDISHIN

INTRODUCTION - HISTORICAL FLASHBACK

Finnish Air Force. as a separate branch of the military, were formed during the Finnish War of Independence, which then turned into a civil war, in 1918. Thus, the Finnish Air Force is one of the oldest in the world.

The first aircraft of the Finnish Air Force, the Moran Parasol, produced at the Swedish factory Tulin, was presented to Finland by the Swedish Count Erik Fyn Rosen. The day of the official presentation of the aircraft to the Supreme Commander of the Finnish White Army, General Carl Gustav Emil Mannerheim, March 6, 1918, has since been celebrated in Finland as a national holiday, Air Force Day. By the way, the plane donated by Count von Rosen carried on board his heraldic symbol good luck - a blue swastika, which became the official designation of the Finnish Air Force until April 1, 1945, when a round blue and white cockade was introduced instead, which has survived to this day.

During the war, which lasted from January 28 to May 16, 1918, Finnish aviation did little, sending aircraft mainly for reconnaissance and bombing, since both conflicting parties were armed with a very limited number of different types of obsolete aircraft. These included devices received from Germany and Sweden, as well as the "legacy" left over from air units Russian Empire. The Finnish Red Guard used only aircraft received from Russia.

In the 20s - 30s. a number of sometimes conflicting doctrines for the development of the Finnish Air Force were put forward. Due to the lack of own aviation personnel, several German and British advisers were invited. According to the officially approved doctrines, aviation development programs were developed. The reputation of the Finnish Air Force at that time was badly tarnished due to a number of tragic accidents and disasters, showing the lack of professionalism among the pilots and the obsolescence of the material.

Such incidents led to constant changes in the leadership of the Air Force until, in 1932, Colonel J. F. Lundqvist, who led the Finnish aviation until 1945, took the place of the Commander of the Air Force, who led Finnish aviation until 1945. The fact that the new commander had to be invited from another branch of the military - Lundqvist served in the artillery before his appointment - once again demonstrating the difficult situation in the Finnish Air Force at that time.

With the tremendous growth of the economic and military power The Soviet Union, the closest neighbor of Finland, in the 30s, which was the result of the first five-year plans, the command of the Finnish Air Force faced the urgent task of organizing a well-thought-out air defense system of the country. Wherein, budget financing military aviation was carried out at an extremely low level, as politicians were confident that in the foreseeable future Finland would not have to participate in serious military conflicts.

In the 20s - early 30s. The development of hydroaviation, as the most appropriate topography of Finland - the "Country of a Thousand Lakes" - type of Air Force, was given the closest attention. The construction of seaplane bases on the coast of the Baltic Sea and on the lakes was recognized as the most optimal and inexpensive solution to the problem of expanding the airfield network. For winter operation, seaplanes were equipped with skis. The difference in performance between seaplanes and land vehicles was simply not taken into account.

But in the 30s, fast development military aviation, the growth of international tension and, in particular, the experience of numerous local wars: Ethiopian, Spanish, Czechoslovak crisis, clearly demonstrated the advantages in flight characteristics of land vehicles over hydroaviation. As you know, it was during this period that views were formed around the world on the use of bomber aircraft as the basis of the air power of the state. But at the same time, in Finland, the Douai doctrine was never recognized as official. Much more attention than in the neighboring USSR and Sweden was paid to the creation of formations of fighter-interceptors.

In 1931 the Council National Defense under the chairmanship of General Mannerheim, who provided all possible assistance to aviation, despite his belonging to the cavalry, met to discuss a long-term plan for the development of Finland's defense capability.

* - Carl Geust - aviation historian from Finland, well known to Russian readers as one of the authors of the book "Red Stars**.

The first plane of the Finnish Air Force - "Moran-parasol" Swedish assembly

Heritage of the Russian Empire - flying boat Grigorovich M-9 (1922)

A group of Finnish pilots at Grigorovich's seaplane, M-16

Mannerheim very energetically took up the solution of this problem - after all, according to the secret decision of the Defense Council, he became Supreme Commander in case of war

- and made a series of visits to Germany, England and France in the 30s. in order to get acquainted with the air forces of these countries and their aviation industry. Under the leadership of Mannerheim, several programs for the development and improvement of the Finnish Air Force were adopted, in particular, the program adopted in 1932 for increasing the quantitative composition of the Air Force to 17 squadrons - 3 fighter, 5 - support for ground forces, 3 - support for the fleet and 6 - long range, a total of 221 combat aircraft. It should be noted that by the time the program was adopted, the Finnish Air Force had only 7 partially completed squadrons, a total of 81 aircraft.

Due to economic difficulties, by 1934 the program was cut to 12 squadrons, which were to be a) legalized by 1938. Five new squadrons were to be completed - 2 - ground support, 1 - fighter, 1 - light long-range and 1 - heavy long-range. But even this truncated plan was not carried out. But still, in 1936-38. licenses were acquired for the production of the Fokker D-21 fighter and the Fokker C.X dive bomber (Holland), the Bristol "Blenheim" bomber (England) and the Bristol "Mercury" engine (England) as standard for these aircraft. As part of the licenses, the Air Force development program was implemented as follows: the Air Force received 99 Fokker D-21-7 fighters, which were delivered from Holland in 1936, the rest were manufactured in Finland, 39 Fokker C.X. direct support and reconnaissance aircraft (4 were delivered from Holland in 1936, the rest were made in Finland), and 97 Bristol Blenheim strategic bombers and reconnaissance aircraft (18 were delivered by England in 1937-38, 55 were assembled in Finland and another 24 were delivered from England during winter war).

The first small batches of aircraft were delivered to Finland, but most of them were produced at the Finnish State Aviation Enterprise. Although the purchase of these licenses has been strongly criticized in Finland in post-war years, in particular, the low combat data of the Fokker fighters with fixed landing gear, the general obsolescence of the Fokker C.X biplane already at the time of entry into service and high price"Blenheim", instead of which several fighters could be purchased, the total contribution of licensed production to the construction of the Finnish Air Force and aviation industry huge. If the choice of aircraft for licensed production and the negotiation process had been delayed by only a couple of months, Finland would have met the attack of the USSR on November 30, 1939 without a single Fokker D-21 fighter and Blenheim bomber.

The training and education programs for all these categories of aviation personnel have been significantly improved. For fighter aviation, special tactical principles were specially developed in relation to the specifics of Finland - huge territories, which needed to be protected by a small number of aircraft - in particular, already in 1935 new types of aircraft formation, an open line of links and "fingertips" were developed.

Seaplane Hansa-Brandenburg W.33 - one of the machines of the interwar

period of development of the Finnish Air Force

The main planes of the Finnish Air Force during the Soviet-Finnish conflict of 1940 - Bristol "Blenheim" -! (top) and Fokker D-2J (bottom)

The combat skills of the pilots were systematically improved through constant training. The main attention was paid to aerial shooting - in particular, fighter pilots were trained not only to shoot at enemy aircraft, but to hit first of all its most vulnerable points. All flight pilots had great tactical freedom, in particular, the wingman not only had to cover the tail of his leader, but also attack on his own, if given the opportunity, using the principle "first saw - first shot", which contributed to a reduction in reaction time. It should be noted here that the Fokker D-21 was a very stable gun platform and in the hands of an experienced pilot became a powerful weapon to fight Soviet bombers during the Winter War.

The main principle was the conquest and retention of tactical initiative - to attack in any balance of power. At the same time, to minimize losses, Finnish pilots were trained to leave the battle in critical situation, for example, a vertical dive almost to the ground.

The preparation of licensed production also required the modernization of the capacities of the State Aviation Plant. In a few years, from a small workshop, it turned into the only modern high-tech plant in Finland at the start of the Winter War with qualified engineering and technical personnel and the ability to manufacture, maintain and repair aircraft. The experience of maintenance and repair, accumulated by the workers of the plant, was very soon transferred to the technical staff of the Air Force, after which field maintenance and repair were assigned to aviation technicians, which was especially important in the difficult front-line conditions of the Winter War.

EXPERIENCE OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR

Winter War 1939-40 November 30, 1939 Finland was attacked by the USSR. The ground forces of the LenVO fired on the Finnish fortifications and crossed the border on a long front. SB and DB-3 bombers bombed Helsinki. The winter war, which became an unprecedented tragedy for the Finnish people, was unleashed. Despite the unequivocal warning received by the Finnish side in the form of an "invitation to specific negotiations in Moscow" a few weeks before the start of the war (before that, similar negotiations were held with the Baltic states, after which the Soviet military appeared on their territory, including aviation - bases), no one in Finland believed that Stalin would use military force to solve the problem of "Leningrad's security". Finnish politicians naively relied on the security system of the League of Nations, not realizing the change in the international situation after the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact on August 23, 1939, which paved the way for the occupation of Poland by Germany and the USSR in September 1939 and the deployment of Soviet military bases in the Baltic countries.

"Gladiator" I Swedish volunteers, March 30, 1940 after the Soviet-Finnish conflict before returning to Sweden. Pay attention to the absence of signs of state affiliation

Fiat G.50 delivered from Italy during the "Winter War" -

"Blenheim" - / V, provided by the British

Despite Finland's seemingly hopeless military situation, the Finnish Air Force did not hesitate to concentrate its limited fighter forces in southeastern Finland to repel Soviet attacks. Unfortunately, this maneuver led to the fact that the Finnish rear and secondary fronts in the area north of Lake Ladoga were left without fighter cover.

It should be noted that since January 12, 1940, the Swedish F-19 volunteer air regiment (in fact, a squadron) fought on the Finnish side, which was armed with 12 Gloucester Gladiator aircraft and 4 Hawker Hart light bombers. The regiment was responsible for the air defense of half of the geographical territory of Finland.

Against this handful of aircraft, of which only 36 Fokker fighters and 17 Blenheims could be called modern, the Red Army Air Force fielded no less than 1,600 combat aircraft. Most of them belonged to the 7th Army (644 aircraft), which formed the core of the LenVO. This air armada struck in the general direction - Viipuri (Vyborg) on ​​the Karelian Isthmus. The Air Force of the Baltic Fleet had 450 aircraft. Aviation of the 8th, 9th, 14th armies and Northern Fleet attacked the northern section of the border, from Lake Ladoga to the Arctic regions. They were much weaker, each numbering only about a hundred aircraft, which, however, corresponded to the strength of all the Finnish Air Force! In addition, the 1st Army special purpose(AON), numbering 200 DB-3 and TB-3 aircraft and based in the Novgorod-Pskov region, bombed Finnish territory. Soviet fighter aircraft consisted mainly of I-15, I-153 and I-16 aircraft, bomber aircraft - of SB and DB-3, whose characteristics approximately corresponded to the Fokker D-21 fighter and the Bristol Blenheim bomber.

The military situation in Finland deteriorated sharply after the USSR gained access to Estonian airfields and a large number of aircraft, mainly from the 7th Army and the Baltic Fleet, were relocated to them. As a result, all the big cities of Finland along the shores of the Gulf of Finland and in the south-west of the country were under attack from these aviation units.

But at the same time, the concentration of forces in accordance with a clearly formulated air defense scheme was not slow to bring good results even with the small number of aircraft that Finland had at its disposal. About the highest quality of training of Finnish pilots, achieved in the second half of the 30s. and passed the combat test in the Winter War, is evidenced by the following excerpt from the report on the actions of the Baltic Fleet aviation in the Winter War. The report, in a highly abridged form, was published in 1945 and has only recently become available in unabridged form.

Enemy fighters operate in groups of three to ten vehicles. Due to their apparently small numbers, they did not engage the escort fighters, concentrating their efforts on surprise attacks on their main target - the bombers. Their favorite tactic was based on the fact that it is very difficult for a bomber to notice an aircraft flying below it against a background of wooded and snow-covered terrain. The enemy approached the bombers from behind - from below and opened fire from a distance of 50-80 m from all barrels simultaneously. Even a strong fighter escort did not always guarantee the safety of the bombers in the event that such tactics were used, since the cover did not always detect the appearance of enemy fighters in time.

Interned Non-115 "friendly" Norway

And these are Dorns * Do 22K1 went to the Finns from the unrealized order of the Latvian Air Force

The huge losses of the Red Army Air Force required the urgent involvement of reserves from fresh Air Force units. based in Belarus, Ukraine and in the interior regions of the USSR. Aviation of the Baltic Fleet received reinforcements from the Black Sea and even from the Pacific Ocean! A large percentage of losses included losses on the haul, as well as flight accidents resulting from loss of orientation in the Arctic conditions and as a result of poor weather conditions in the Finnish winter.

Losses of the Red Army Air Force and KBF aviation during Finnish war amounted to at least 744 aircraft (the exact number, most likely, even more, since the exact lists of losses of the Red Army Air Force have not yet been declassified. The casualties of the Red Army Air Force amounted to about 1000 people killed and wounded (of which 126 people were from the Air Force of the Baltic Fleet).The number of prisoners was 100 people (including 6 people from the Air Force of the Baltic Fleet).

The Finnish Air Force reported the downing of 190 Soviet aircraft, anti-aircraft gunners - the destruction of another 300 aircraft. The 129 aircraft lost by the Soviet side are divided in proportion between fighters and anti-aircraft gunners, and the figures have minimal discrepancies with Finnish data, which, in general, is not surprising - most of the air battles took place over Finnish territory and the vast majority of aircraft fell there and were found. In addition to this, a significant number of Soviet vehicles lost for "other reasons" crashed on the way to their bases, being damaged by Finnish aircraft or anti-aircraft fire. In Soviet sources, the loss of an aircraft in this way does not apply to "combat losses". This also clearly illustrates the fact that Finnish fighters concentrated their efforts on intercepting bombers, avoiding air battles with Soviet fighters in every possible way to minimize their own losses. The relatively large percentage of Soviet fighters shot down by anti-aircraft fire is explained by the fact that they were involved in attacking the Finnish troops, especially in the last days of the Winter War, while long-range DB-3 bombers approached the target and carried out bombing from greater heights than SB bombers, which explains the difference in the number of aircraft of each of these types shot down by Finnish anti-aircraft fire.

On the other hand, in Shumilin's book "History of the Soviet Air Force", published in 1986, it is indicated that the Red Army Air Force destroyed 362 Finnish aircraft during the Finnish War (at the Air Power conference held in August 1996 in Link- niche, the Russian professor announced an even larger figure - 400 aircraft!) The Finnish Air Force, by the way, never in its history and had such or even a close number of aircraft in service, actually lost only 68 aircraft during the Winter War, of which 47 combat reasons, and 72 people of the flight crew died or went missing.

The main fighter of the Finnish Air Force in the initial period of the "long" war is the Brewster "Buffalo". The picture shows BW-352 from 2/LeLv of the Finnish ace E. Kinunen (22.5 victories in 300 sorties). On the same plane he will be shot down on April 21, 1943

For an explanation of such "highest" achievements Soviet side you can refer to the same report on the actions of the Baltic Fleet Air Force in the Winter War:

*The result of air combat could not always be established with accuracy. Some of our crews, seeing how the enemy plane leaves the battle in a steep dive or maneuvers resembling a disorderly fall, considered it shot down and indicated this in their reports.

The decisive factor that ensured the superiority of the Finnish pilots in the air was the skill and understanding of the main task achieved as a result of long training, as well as confidence in their capabilities. These qualities more than compensated for the lack of material resources. As a result of low losses in the Winter War and supplies from abroad (mainly from England, France and Italy) during the conflict, the Finnish Air Force at the end of the Winter War was even stronger than at its beginning! High level training of pilots made it possible to introduce new types of aircraft - Moran-Saulnier 406 (30 pieces were delivered during the Winter War, another 57 were received later from Germany, which captured the aircraft during the occupation of France), Fiat G.50 (35 pieces were delivered during the Winter War ), Hawker "Hurricane" (12 delivered during the Winter War), Brewster "Buffalo" (44 delivered at the very end of the war) and others immediately upon receipt, without the usual familiarization and retraining procedure.

The ineffectiveness of the offensive was discouraging news for ruling circles The USSR and they began to look for opportunities for negotiations. On the other hand, with the hostile attitude of Germany (which strictly observed the terms of the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact towards Finland), the strictly neutral position of the official Swedish authorities and the weak support from England and France, Finland did not have the resources to continue the war alone. The peace treaty was signed on March 13, 1940 in Moscow.

"LONG WAR**

1941 - 1944 [Initial phase. In 1941 Baltic countries already fully incorporated into the USSR, a separate Baltic military district was created. The military aviation based at the airfields of the PribVO was much superior to those forces that were based at the airfields of the Baltic States during the Winter War. The Red Army Air Force quickly made up for the losses of the Winter War, in addition, mass production of modern MiG, Yak and LaGG fighters, Pe-2 dive bombers and Il-2 attack aircraft was launched. Were intensively studied the strategic and tactical lessons of the Winter War?)

Of the 3260 combat aircraft based in the north-west of the USSR, about half - 1592 aircraft, of which 849 fighters and 561 bombers, were based in the immediate vicinity of the Finnish border, on the Karelian Isthmus, in eastern Karelia, in the Murmansk region and on the southern coast of the Finnish bay, from where, during the Winter War, attacks on Finland were carried out. It is especially worth noting that in the immediate vicinity of the new Soviet-Finnish border, on the former Finnish airfields Suulajärvi and Kekisalmi (Kensholm, now Pri-Ozersk), 7 and 153 IAP were based, which were armed with 60 and 45 of the latest MiG-3 fighters, respectively. . In addition, the 1st GA in Novgorod, armed with 174 DB-3, Il-4 and TB-3 bombers, could be deployed against Finland, as was the case in the Winter War.

In Finland, the deliveries of aircraft that began during the Winter War were completed, the Air Force, both numerically and qualitatively, significantly exceeded the pre-war level. But at the same time, many aircraft are already outdated, especially when compared with the latest Soviet fighters.

Dornier Do 17Z, donated personally by Goering to the Finnish Air Force at the end of 1941

A Finnish pilot accepts a captured French Moran-Saulnier MS.406 fighter from the Germans

"Acquired" Curtiss 75 "Hawk", captured by the Germans in Norway

Finland's participation in the "long war" began early in the morning on June 25, 1941, when the USSR attacked 18 major Finnish air bases. 263 bombers and 224 fighters took part in the raids. This massive attack, which was aimed at the complete destruction of the Finnish Air Force on the ground, ended in complete disaster for the Red Army Air Force: the attackers lost 25 aircraft during the destruction on the ground ... only two (!) Finnish aircraft. The greatest losses were suffered by the SB from the 72nd SBAP, based in Petrozavodsk - acting without fighter cover, the regiment in this raid lost 8 bombers shot down by Finnish fighters, and the ninth was shot down by its own interceptors on the way to its airfield.

In contrast to the Winter War, the Finnish Air Force immediately gained local air superiority, despite the numerical superiority of the enemy, and the Red Army Air Force began to suffer heavy losses, even taking into account the fact that individual Soviet pilots fought with respectable courage. Ground Finnish troops quite quickly moved deep into the Soviet territory to the river. Svir and Lake Onega. On the Karelian Isthmus, by September 1941, Finnish troops had reached the old border. After the capture of the main cities of Soviet Karelia, Petrozavodsk, Karhumyaki (Medvezh-Yegorsk) and Povenets, in December 1941, the Finnish offensive stopped. From that moment on, for two and a half years, until June 1944, the front line was relatively stable. Aviation activity during this period was moderate. But local air superiority remained with the Finnish Air Force.

[In 1943, the Red Army Air Force began to receive the latest aircraft - Yak and La-5 fighters, Pe-2 dive bombers, as well as Lend-Lease aircraft "Aerocobra", "Boston", "Mitchell", etc. - in large quantities. The level of training has also increased Soviet pilots^ Thus, the obsolete aircraft of the Finnish Air Force, delivered during and immediately after the end of the Winter War, could not compete with the latest Soviet aircraft. A qualitative renewal of the aircraft fleet of the Finnish Air Force was required.

In the period 1940-42, the Germans supplied Finland almost exclusively with aircraft captured in the occupied countries: 57 Moran-Saulnier 406 fighters, 42 Curtiss P-36 aircraft captured in France and Norway, 12 SB bombers, 6 Pe-2 dive bombers, 11 fighters I-153 and 15 German bombers Dornier-17Z. During this period of the war, the Finnish Air Force had about 100 captured Soviet aircraft. Most of them were more or less obsolete. Maintaining and procuring parts for this motley fleet of aircraft has been the biggest headache for ground technicians. Only in the spring of 1943 did deliveries of more modern aircraft begin - Messerschmitt-109S-2 (30 aircraft), Junkers-88 (24 aircraft). In 1943-44. deliveries of Messerschmitt-109S-6 aircraft began. In total, Finland received 162 Me-109s of various modifications. A Finnish-designed fighter, Mirski, was also developed. Its deliveries began in the summer of 1944, when the aircraft was already obsolete.

The main fighter of the Finnish Air Force at the end of the "long" war - Messerschmitt Bf 109

In the picture Bf 109G-2 of the best Finnish ace Eino Juutilainen

STRATEGIC BOMBING OF HELSINKI IN FEBRUARY 1944

In February 1944, units long-range aviation of the Supreme High Command of the USSR (ADD) undertook massive strategic bombing the capital of Finland and other targets in the deep rear of the Finns. The strikes were made three times at night, 2120 sorties were carried out. The purpose of these actions was purely political - to force the Finnish leadership to abandon the "brotherhood in arms" with Germany and start peace talks from the USSR. It is not known exactly when the order to bomb Helsinki was given. Since the commander of the ADD, Air Marshal A.E. Golovanov participated in Tehran conference November 29 - December 2, 1943, he could have received this order there.

During a relatively quiet period of the war, Finnish radio intelligence achieved great success - the code of encrypted radio communications of the Red Army Air Force was split, which in some cases allowed Finnish interceptors to intercept Soviet bombers and reconnaissance aircraft in advance. Soon, radio intelligence was able to read ADD radio communications as well. Thanks to this, the Finnish Air Force and Air Defense received alerts about the upcoming second and third raids on Helsinki a few hours before the raid. The effectiveness of radio intelligence was so high that before the raids, a message was intercepted and deciphered that Marshal Golovanov was personally in Leningrad in order to manage the operation.

Strategic raids on Helsinki took place at intervals of 10 days - 6/7, 16/17 and 26/27 February 1944, respectively, 773, 497 and 850 sorties were made. Despite the disadvantageous position of the city on the shores of the Gulf of Finland, as well as the lack of warning of the first raid until the discovery of a Soviet weather reconnaissance aircraft, the use of radar-controlled anti-aircraft fire and pre-calculated barrage firing schemes forced most of the attacking aircraft to turn away from the city and drop bombs at sea. Only a few bombers were destroyed - the main task was not to shoot them down, but to force them to turn away from Helsinki. Only 799 of the 10,980 bombs dropped in the raids landed on populated areas city, the victims among the population amounted to only 145 people. Thanks to the excellent organization of the air defense of the Finnish capital, she withstood the strongest strike of the ADD from all organized up to that time. Without such an effective air defense system and radio intelligence, the damage to the Finnish capital would have been many times greater.

ADD's next strike was aimed at South coast Gulf of Finland - Tallinn became its main target. On the night of March 9/10, 1944, about 300 bombers attacked him. Due to the poor organization of the air defense of the occupied city by the Germans, which had nothing to do with the air defense of Helsinki, the results of this raid were very serious - more than half of the buildings in the Estonian capital were destroyed, about 1300 people died.

Based on radio intelligence data, the Finnish Air Force formation LeR 4 (4th Aviation Regiment) prepared an unpleasant surprise for the ADD. On the way back from Tallinn to the air bases in the southern part of the Karelian Isthmus, to the columns of ADD aircraft over Gulf of Finland Finnish bombers - 21 aircraft, mostly captured DB-3s and Il-4s - coolly joined in and made the rest of the way to the Soviet bases with them. When the landing lights were lit for the landing of the ADD bombers, the Finns launched bombing attacks on the airfields of Levashovo, Kasimovo and Gorskaya. Photo reconnaissance carried out the next day by captured Pe-2s showed that at least 9 Soviet aircraft were destroyed, and the runways, hangars, warehouses and other structures at the airfields received damage of varying severity. The Finns suffered no losses. ^SH "1 For an analysis of the actions of the air defense of Helsinki during strategic raids, the staff officers and commanders of some parts of the Finnish Air Force expressed their opinions about the actions of aviation when they were reflected. The Air Force headquarters decided to form night fighter units as soon as possible and immediately start training pilots. For this purpose, they were the best flight personnel of Finland were involved, as well as a number of scarce Messe Rschmitt-109 fighters. similar decision seriously weakened the Air Force grouping on the Karelian Isthmus, where the main fighter air units were concentrated. On the other hand, staff officers, after three ADD raids on the capital, reasonably believed that the success of a further air - and not only air - war would be determined in the skies over Helsinki if the ADD raids continued.

Bf 109G-6 of 11 HLeLv 34 with underwing guns, June 1944

The Finnish Bf 109G-I4 is already in post-war coloring (usually the Finns called them G-6 anyway - the diversity of the Finnish Messerschmitt fleet led to the fact that due to problems with spare parts by the time of the "Fourth Stalin's blow"almost all Bf-109s turned out to be incompetent)

A Finnish J and 88 being refueled before a sortie from a captured Soviet tanker based on a ZiS-5

As subsequent events showed, both these opinions were equally correct. After the ADD raids on Tallinn and Narva, the ability to repel massive air raids with anti-aircraft artillery and a few night fighters was considered quite modest. On the other hand, the development of events on the Karelian Isthmus and over the Gulf of Finland, with the daily arrival of the latest aircraft in the Soviet air units, forced the Finnish Air Force in this area to be in constant tension. The main mistake was that the possibility of obtaining in Germany an additional batch of Messerschmitt-109s, which the Finnish Air Force needed so much in 1943, was not used.

The retraining of Finnish pilots for night operations was organized in Germany. The first group of 20 pilots went there on June 13, 1944. The program was launched at the least convenient time, when these pilots were so needed at the front. The connection of the Finnish night fighters was never organized - after the conclusion of the Soviet-Finnish truce on September 4, 1944, all Finnish pilots trained in Germany were interned, and the deliveries of night fighters to Finland were canceled.

STRATEGIC SOVIET OFFENSIVE ON THE KARELIAN ISTH IN JUNE 1944

On June 9, 1944, Stalin's "Fourth Strategic Strike" began - an offensive on the Karelian Isthmus in the direction of Viipuri (Vyborg) by forces Leningrad front. Air cover for the offensive was provided by the 13th Airborne Armed Forces, reinforced by the 113th and 334th bomber divisions of the Headquarters reserve, which were armed with Il-4 and Tu-2 aircraft, respectively, as well as the 2nd Guards Air Defense Fighter Corps and 220 aircraft from composition of the Air Force of the Baltic Fleet, organizationally temporarily subordinate to the 13th VA - a total of 1294 aircraft (489 Yak-9, La-5, Airacobra fighters, the main connection is the 275th I AD with 172 aircraft; 346 Il-2 attack aircraft, 288 Il-4, Pe-2, Tu-2 bombers and 171 reconnaissance, bomber and aircraft general purpose.)

The Finnish Air Force had 51 fighters and 66 bombers in this direction. The structure of the Air Force underwent a rapid reorganization. New Messerschmitt-109 fighters arrived from Germany, often being driven directly to the front; and on June 16, the German Kulmi Command, armed with 44 Junkere-87 dive bombers and 34 Focke-Wulf-190 fighters, arrived at the Imola airbase in the southeast of Finland and immediately took part in the battles. After bloody battles on June 20, 1944, the city of Viipuri was occupied by Soviet troops. After that, thanks to the strengthening of the Finnish troops and the successful counterattacks, the Soviet offensive was slowed down. Due to the fact that the Soviet strikes were concentrated in a small geographical area, the Finnish Air Force, through skillful maneuvering of forces, was able to achieve local air superiority even in the face of a tenfold Soviet superiority in forces! good example successful actions Finnish Air Force during this period is the fact that not a single Finnish bomber, escorted by Finnish fighters, was lost from the actions of Soviet fighters during the fighting on the Karelian Isthmus.

Yu-88 from 3/PLeLv 44 returns to its base after a sortief

In mid-July, part of the Red Army forces required to attack Germany was redeployed to the Estonian direction. The first aviation formation deployed from the Finnish front was the 334th bomber air division, which was armed with top-secret Tu-2 aircraft. Her redeployment began immediately after the capture of Viipuri, on June 20, 1944.

The actions of the main Soviet fighter unit, the 275th and AD, were considered ineffective. The combat report for June 1944, only recently released to the public, states the following:

“In the initial period of time, enemy fighters appeared on the likely routes of our aviation, mainly over their territory, making surprise attacks, not getting involved in open combat, but mainly hunting for single aircraft that had lagged behind the main formation. At the end of June, enemy fighters covered their ground forces in the directions north and northwest of Viipuri in groups of 10-20 vehicles (mainly Me-109 and FV-190), consisting of individual couples or fours, creating a curtain on the possible approach paths of our aircraft (an indirect indication of the effectiveness of Finnish radio intelligence, which, with ever-increasing accuracy, directed a few Finnish fighters at the points of interception of Soviet bombers - KFG).

... it is interesting that our aircraft are not attacked on the way to the target, but only while they are directly above the target on the combat course and on the return route. The enemy is trying to reduce the accuracy of our bombing and destroy aircraft that have fallen behind during the turn to the return course.

... During the attack of our planes, the enemy tries to approach the minimum distance, camouflaging himself in the clouds or approaching from the direction of the sun. A single attack is carried out, and when our cover fighters counterattack, the enemy goes into the clouds with a climb or, in case of clear weather, dives down steeply, turning into level flight near the ground.

... Air Force command posts located

aviation guidance points located along the front do not always correctly assess the situation, disorienting our fighters and not always giving information about the appearance of enemy aircraft over the battlefield.

... The headquarters of the 275th and AD did not provide any reports on combat experience during the entire operation and did not instruct the flight crew on enemy tactics."

The actions of the Il-2 attack aircraft, which also suffered heavy losses, were severely criticized:

"Enemy fighters attack the Il-2 from angles that exclude the return fire of the shooters, forcing the attack aircraft to line up in a defensive ring or snake.

... Counterattacks by enemy fighters in the second half of June (1944 - KFG) led to the need to increase the fighter cover of our ground forces.

... Attack aircraft, continuing to operate without fighter cover, began to suffer serious losses from enemy fighters, since their main mistake was to stretch the formation when attacking ground troops. At the same time, part of the aircraft lagged behind the formation on turns, not observing a closed formation when trying to break away from the attacking enemy fighters.

This fairly honest and impartial report concludes:

"The increased number of defeats in air battles and the increased number of losses of (our) fighters indicate that fighter air units Air Army, who did not meet opposition at the beginning of the operation, lost their caution and began to act less coordinated in groups, as a result of which, in many cases, the enemy seized the initiative and gained an advantage in air battles. The leaders of formations and groups of aircraft did not react to changes in the situation with due speed and did not disseminate the combat experience of the best pilots and formations. "

Another significant evidence of the poor fighting qualities of the 275th IAD - the main Soviet fighter air formation on the Karelian Isthmus - is indirectly the fact that neither the division itself, nor any of its subordinate IAP received any awards for the summer campaign of 1944, while many other aviation formations of the Red Army Air Force received honorary titles, for example, "Vyborgsky", etc.

Three of the best Finnish aces of the Second World War (from left to right): Eino Juutilainen (94 victories in 437 sorties), Hans Wind (75 victories in 302 sorties), Eino Luukkanen (56 victories in 441 sorties)

The combat qualities of Finnish aviation in the report are presented as follows:

"As a rule, the route of Finnish fighters to the battlefield was not direct, but consisted of short straight sections, mating at an angle of 80-90 °, which made it difficult for our pilots to calculate the interception point.

... Based on the testimony of a captured Finnish pilot, it turned out that enemy pilots fly without maps, knowing the territory by heart. The Finnish KDP send their fighters to intercept our bombers and kov, using the coordinates. Instructions are issued by radio from the respective airfields, which are directly connected with the aviation guidance posts. In a number of cases, (Finnish) bombers received information about our interceptors already in the air on the way to the target, after which they turned away from the route and waited 20-30 minutes before resuming the attack "(another indirect confirmation of the effectiveness of Finnish radio intelligence - KFG).

By the time of the armistice on September 4, 1944, the number of aces per capita in Finland was the highest in the world, and combat characteristics the main Air Force fighter - Messerschmitt-109 - were not inferior to the characteristics of most enemy fighters.

On closer examination, the situation may seem paradoxical: thanks to high efficiency and minimal losses, the Finnish Air Force by September 1944 was both relatively and in absolute terms stronger than at the beginning of the war, by June 1941, the Finnish Air Force did not undergo such extermination and destruction as the Luftwaffe.

At the same time, it should be noted that the Finnish Air Force miraculously avoided significant losses in the early days of the Soviet offensive in June 1944, the beginning and scale of which caught Finnish intelligence by surprise. The fact that Finnish intelligence officers knew or did not know about the upcoming strategic offensive of the USSR has been the subject of fierce disputes between historians and veterans in Finland for over 50 years.

In this context, a curious and still inexplicable fact is the absolute non-participation of the ADD in this operation. It was only recently that the author was able to find documents in the Central Archive of the USSR Ministry of Defense (TsAMO), from which it is clear that at least four ADD air corps (more than 400 Il-4s and Mitchells * 1) took off from their bases in middle lane Russia on the evening of June 9, 1944 to clear the offensive path of the 21st army, which was supposed to break into the Finnish defenses in the area of ​​Beloostrov (Valkyarvi) the next morning.

The task of the Pe-2 and Tu-2 dive bombers and the Il-2 attack aircraft was to strike at the front line of the Finnish defense, while the ADD was to destroy the railway junction

Viipuri and the Suulajärvi and Heinioki air bases, where the Finnish Messerschmitts were based. But on the route, fortunately for the Finnish side, the ADD planes met powerful thunderstorm fronts and after 35-40 minutes of flight were recalled to their airfields. The time to divert the bombers of the 13th VA was lost. This aborted ADD aircraft mission was never mentioned in Soviet and Russian publications.

Thus, the Finns got the opportunity to transfer their then invaluable fighters to safe airfields in the rear and begin to intercept the aircraft of the 13th VA on the way to the target.

POST-WAR DEVELOPMENT

Temporary peaceful agreement was signed on September 19, 1944 (hostilities ceased already on September 4). One of his conditions was the help of the Finns in the expulsion of the Germans from Lapland. This sluggish war ended on April 26, 1945 without extensive use of aviation, but accurate German anti-aircraft fire caused relatively heavy losses among the Finns, mainly in bombers and reconnaissance aircraft.

Under the peace treaty, Finland ceded to the USSR part of its territory in Karelia and Pstsamo, returning to the borders of 1940. But even despite this, the results of both the "Winter" and the "Long" war can be interpreted as great victories for Finland, since the main goal both wars - the preservation and guarantee of the independence of Finland - was achieved. In this regard, the following is interesting: only three capitals of European states that participated in the World War were not occupied by the enemy - Moscow, London and Helsinki.

Post-war Finnish Air Force: combat training Fugue Master CM 170R from HavLLv 21, spring 1972

National priorities after the war did not leave large funds on the development of the Air Force, wartime weapons dominated in Finland until the beginning of the 50s. The Paris Peace Treaty of 1947 placed restrictions on the development of the Finnish Air Force - maximum amount aircraft - 60 pieces, the absence of bombers and missiles in service. These restrictions were not critical, since the number of first-line aircraft was indicated. Bomber aviation was considered unnecessary, since the experience of the war and budgetary restrictions showed the correctness of building the Air Force on the basis of fighter units. The restriction on missile weapons was lifted in the early 60s, and a few years ago the Finnish government denounced the restrictions Paris Treaty as outdated and out of date.

The Finnish Air Force switched to jet technology in 1953 with the entry into service of 6 single and 9 double De Heaviland Vampire fighters. The supersonic era began in 1958 with the receipt of 13 Folland "Net" aircraft, which, despite their high maneuverability, were by no means a model of technical excellence and therefore underwent a radical modernization in Finland. A Finnish-designed TCB, the piston Vihuri (produced in the amount of 51 pieces in 1951-54) was replaced by the jet Fuga "Magister" in 1958 (18 pieces were delivered from France, another 62 were assembled in Finland).

The double speed of sound was surpassed by the Finnish Air Force in 1963 with the entry into service of the MiG-21F aircraft (22 + 2 aircraft, single and double), which were eventually replaced by the all-weather Saab-35 modifications S and F (total 48 machines, from 12 of them were assembled in Finland, deliveries were made in 1972 - 1977) and MiG-21bis (26 + 4 aircraft, deliveries in 1978 - 1981). late 70s (11 aircraft were delivered from England, 46 were assembled in Finland.) For initial training, an aircraft of the Finnish design Valmet "Vinka" is used (30 aircraft were delivered in the early 80s). The structural organization of the Finnish Air Force was changed in the 50s, when the country's territory was divided into three air defense regions, each of which has a fighter aircraft, as well as maintenance, control, airspace tracking, basing, and maintenance and support structures. In the 50s - 60s. a network of long-range and medium-range radars was created to monitor airspace.

The Finnish aviation industry, in particular Valmet Ltd, which has now changed its name to Finnavitek Ltd, has always been an important part of technical structure Air Force. Licensed production and assembly of aircraft have prepared a good production and repair base.

MODERN FINNISH AIR FORCE

As noted earlier, the experience of warfare and the limited defense spending of a small country have formed a clear doctrine, implying air superiority, which is cornerstone modern Finnish defense strategy and will continue to be so in the future.

Recently, the Finnish Air Force has undergone an intensive renewal. The radars were replaced with newer, "blind" sections of the air defense system were covered by new radars. The control centers have been upgraded with the installation of a data exchange system, which allows air combat to be controlled, say, over Lapland, from a control center in southern Finland. The Air Force also controls anti-aircraft artillery and missiles, which allows air and anti-aircraft fire to be coordinated in the same area. Target echo tracking is integrated into an airspace tracking system, which in wartime will be supplemented by a wide network of optical observation posts.

The most famous fleet renewal program is the purchase of Hornet fighters. After a long analysis, in 1992 the McDonnell Douglas F-18 "Hornet" aircraft was chosen as the basis of the Finnish Air Force, it will replace the Saab-35 and MiG-21 aircraft. The main selection criterion was the ability to detect a target outside visual contact and the firepower of the aircraft. In addition, the aircraft is flexible in operation and can carry several alternative weapon systems and has a balanced life cycle cost. A total of 57 single-seat and 7 two-seat aircraft will be delivered, which will be assembled in Finland, continuing the good tradition of licensed production. Deliveries began in June 1996, and all two-seat aircraft are already flying.

Modern Finnish Air Force: MiG-21bis from HavLLv 31

Training combat Hawk Mk 51 from HavLLv 11 (under the fuselage - a container with a cannon "Eden"), June 1986

Finnish Saab 35S "Draken" from HavLLv 21, spring 1991

Almost the entire flight crew of the Finnish Air Force are fighter pilots. In the process of selecting new personnel, one pilot is selected from 50 candidates. All of them are trained as fighter pilots, the cadres of second-line pilots are formed from fighter pilots who are dismissed due to age. Each fighter AKP has an attached squadron of Hawk aircraft used as enemy aircraft simulators in the daily training process.

The Commander-in-Chief of the Air Force is responsible for the inviolability of the entire airspace of Finland, as well as for the technical condition of the equipment and training of personnel. This increases the operational readiness of the Air Force. The commanders of the Air Defense Zones are responsible for the respective territories, while the Commander-in-Chief of the Air Force has the authority to use the entire military aviation at your discretion.

Conclusions:

The development of air doctrine in Finland is based on careful analysis combat use, which speaks of the paramount importance of achieving air supremacy and the combat qualities of individual pilots. The specific conditions of Finland require the concentration of the entire available air force fleet in order to achieve air superiority. Taking the qualitative parameter as a basis, it becomes clear from an attempt at combat use that air defense tasks can be solved even in the conditions of a limited military budget, due to the size of the country.

The successful fulfillment by the Finnish Air Force of its functions - ensuring the neutral status of the country by protecting its air borders by all means - is aimed at preventing their violation by anyone and ensuring the successful defense of the country. The Finnish Air Force, with its well-trained pilots, is undoubtedly a stabilizing factor in a rapidly changing world. political map Europe.

Notes on sources.

Most sources on the history of the Finnish Air Force are on Finnish, which makes them inaccessible to most foreign users. The following sources can be recommended (at the request of the editors, the author prepared this article for English language- ed.), partially or completely in English:

Multivolume "History of the Finnish Air Force" (Finnish Air Force history) (15 volumes published); Memoirs of the Finnish ace Eino Lukkanen "Fighter over Finnland" (Fighter over Finn land); Memoirs of the Finnish ace number 1 Ilmari Juutiläinen "Double fighter knight" (Double fighter knight) Bilingual (Swedish - English) edition of the "Chronicle of the F-19 Corps" (En F-19 Kronika). secrets of the "long war"

In March 1918, the Swedish Count Cravi von Rosen overtook the Morane-Saulnier Type D to Finland, which became the first aircraft of the new Air Force. The plane was marked with a blue swastika on a white circle, which soon became an identification mark - "khakaristi". However, the final organization of the Air Force did not take place until 1919 with the help of France and Great Britain.

On November 30, 1939, as a result of the signing of the Molotov-Ribentrop Pact, the country was drawn into a conflict with the USSR.

As a result of this war, Finnish pilots showed their courage and training, winning 207 confirmed victories with the loss of only 48 of their own machines.

However, after 15 months, the Finnish pilots again had to face their former opponents.

The so-called "Continued War" lasted from June 22, 1941 to September 4, 1944. On the ground, Finnish and German troops tried to cut the Murmansk railway line, along which the main stream of "Lend-Lease" was going. However, these attempts failed.

In 1944, after the beginning of the defeat of Germany, the Finns also surrendered. At that time, the first line included Brewster Model 239, 25 Fiat G.50, as well as Curtiss Hawk 75A, Fokker D.XXI, M.S.406.

Of the German vehicles, 30 Messerschmitt Bf 109G-2 and 132 Bf 109G-6, 15 Dornier Do 17Z-2 and the same number of Ju 88A-4 entered service. In total, during this war, Finnish pilots claim 1600 downed Soviet aircraft with the loss of 211 of their own.

In April 1945, the Finnish swastika was replaced by the modern white and blue OZ. Under the Peace of Paris in 1947, Finland lost 30,000 km2 of its territory and the port of Petsamo in the north.

Moreover, Helsinki was only allowed to have 60 fighters and 3,000 Air Force personnel. Bombers, submarines and everything that could theoretically carry nuclear weapons were banned - only weapons for defense. It is no coincidence that the post-war motto of the Finnish Air Force sounds like "Qualitas Potentia Nostra" (In quality lies our strength).

Post-war rearmament was carried out both from the West and from the East, and on your own. Today, the Paris Agreements have already lost force and the number of fighters is 67. In 1953, the first jet aircraft began to enter service - these were six de Havilland Vampire Mk 52, two years later replenished with nine Vampire Mk 55, which were operated until 1965.

The Air Force received 11 Folland Gnat Mk Is in 1958, which served until 1972. In 1962, all this splendor was supplemented by four MiG-15UTIs. They served as a transitional type to 22 MiG-21F-13s received in two batches (in April and November) of 1963. From 1965 to 1980, two MiG-21Us also performed combat training functions.

MiGs served as fighter-interceptors until 1986. At that time, five MiG-21Fs were lost in accidents, and two became museum samples). In 1956, the Air Force transport capabilities were replenished with a pair of Percival Pembroke (served until 1968).

From 1961 to 1981, three Il-28Rs were engaged in pulling targets. Interestingly, despite the ban, one “clean” Il-28 bomber was also received. In the 1960s and 70s, seven Douglas C-47 Dakotas and two Douglas C-53s were purchased. The Dakotas served faithfully for 24 years, making their last flight on December 18, 1984. Just one year - 1974 - the Finns operated the BN-2A Islander and Piper PA-31-310 Navajo. Two Cessna 402B Businessliners did not last long either.

The functions of initial flight training since 1958 were assigned to 36 Saab 9ID Safir, withdrawn from service only in 1983. In the same year, 18 Fouga CM 170 Magisters also entered service, and the aircraft came to the yard so much that in 1960 another 62 such aircraft were assembled under license. Like other aircraft, these "flying desks" served for two decades, making their last flight on December 19, 1988.

Finnish helicopter pilots at different times flew the WSK SM-lSZ / M (Polish version of the Mi-1), then there were Alluets. In parallel, from 1962 to 1979, three Mi-4s were operated, which were replaced by AB 206A.

At the end of the 80s, it became necessary to replace the morally and physically obsolete MiG-21s. In 1989, a competition was announced, which included the JAS 39A Gripen, General Dynamics F-16 MLU, McDonnell Douglas F/A-18C, Dassault Mirage 2000-5 and MiG-29. As a result, in April 1992, the Hornets were chosen.

At the moment, the Finnish Air Force is consolidated into three aviation commands, each of which consists of one Havittajalentolaivue (HavLLv, squadron) and a radar station. Each ae consists of four links. The north of the country is under the control of the Lapland Air Command with headquarters in Rovanie, the southeast is covered by the Karelian Air Command (headquarters in Kuopio-Rissala) and finally the southwest is under the command of Satakunta (Tampere-Pirkkala).

The main headquarters is located in Tikkakoski-Jyaskyla, Air Force Academy(Ilmasotakoulu) - in Kauhava. All units have a high degree of readiness, since there is no such thing as a wartime staff in the country. In total, to replace the MiG-21 and Draken, the Finns bought 64 F-18 Hornets (57 single-seat F-18Cs and seven F-18Ds).

On November 7, 1995, the first four F-18Ds flew to Finland under their own power, and even earlier (in October), the Valmet factories began assembling the first F-18Cs, which began to enter service in June 1996.

For arming the Hornets, the AIM-9M Sidewinder and AIM-120B AMRAAM missiles were purchased. Finland also became the first foreign country to receive fighter jets with the more powerful APG-73 radar.

In addition, Nokia installed systems that fully integrated data from Drakens and MiG-21s.

The first Drakens entered service with the Finnish Air Force in 1972 in the form of six used Saab J 35Bs. They were leased from the Swedish Air Force, and from April 1974 to July 1975, a dozen Saab 35S were built at Valmet.

In total, 47 Draken were received and built, of which 30 survived to today. In addition to the built-in 30-mm cannon, these fighters can carry 3 types of SD: AIM-4 Falcon (manufactured under license in Sweden), AIM-9J Sidewinder and R-13M.

F-18s became the first all-weather fighters in the Finnish Air Force.

With the receipt of more Hornets, the Drakens are gradually removed from service

The third flight in each air command is a training flight armed with the BAe Hawk. In 1980, the first four Hawk Mk 51s entered service, after which the remaining 46 vehicles were assembled in Finland. In addition, from 1993 to 1994, 7 more cars were bought. Despite the fact that they are declared as "training" aircraft, they are most likely "light fighters". Judge for yourself: in addition to the 30-mm Aden cannon, aircraft can carry three types of missiles - R-13M, AIM-9J Sidewinder and R-60.

In addition, each command has a liaison link, which, as a rule, has one Piper PA-28
Arrow, one Piper PA-31 Chieftain, two Valmet L-90 TP Redigo and one - two Valmet (L-70)
Vinka.

A young man who wants to become a pilot takes a 4-year course at the Air Force Academy. Initial training takes place on the Valmet L-70 Vinka. On these aircraft, cadets make 45 sorties in 11 months. For the next three years, Vinka and Hawk remain their main machines.

After 60 hours on the Vinck and 100 hours on the Hawk, the student becomes a pilot. After that, he is sent to the active parts, where for next year he must make another 150 sorties on the Hawk. And only in the second year he is allowed to fly on the Hornet.

In January 1997, the reconnaissance squadron (Tiedustelulentolaivue) was disbanded, and its six reconnaissance MiG-21bis\T and a number of Hawks capable of carrying reconnaissance containers were transferred in parts.

At the same time, the transport squadron was disbanded and its Fokker F27 and Learjet, together with the "reconnaissance" Hawks, formed a new squadron - Operational Support, which reports directly to the Air Force Commander. Moreover, one of the Fokkers was converted into a kind of flying VKP, and the rest perform transport functions.

Finnish Army Aviation.

On January 1, 1997, the Air Force helicopter unit was disbanded, and its two Hughes 500Ds, five Mi-8Ts and two Mi-8Ps were transferred only to the formed army aviation.

Border troops.

Paramilitary border troops have a large number of armored vehicles and patrol boats. In addition, it has an air patrol squadron, which is based at three airfields - Helsinki, Turku and Rovaniemi.

To date, there are four AB 206s, four AB 412s, three AS 332L1 Super Pumas and two Dornier Do 228s. One AB.206A was transferred from the Air Force and, in addition to patrol functions, performs training tasks.

Of the AV.212s, two are standard AB 412SPs and one helicopter is an AB 212EP equipped with a Bendix 1500 radar. Both the AV.212 and Super Puma are equipped for search and rescue operations. Dorniers have equipment for naval reconnaissance. All pilots of the Border Troops have previously served in the Air Force, but the aircraft carry civilian registration codes. During the war, the border troops are transferred to the jurisdiction of the fleet.

(c) M. Zhirokhov, 2005

Corner of the sky. 2005 (Page:

In May 1928, three fighters were purchased from the UK. Gloster Gamecock Mk II, 15 more (received the name "Kukko") in 1929-1930. were released under license in Finland

In May 1937, a contract was signed for the supply of 7 Dutch Fokker D.XXI monoplane fighters with Bristol Mercury VIII engines, as well as for the supply of another 21 kits for licensed assembly in Finland. Aircraft of the Dutch assembly were delivered before the end of 1937, and the assembly of licensed aircraft was carried out from October 1938 to July 1939 at the Valtion lentokonetehdas state aircraft factory in Tampere. These aircraft were also fitted with Finnish-made Mercury VII engines. In addition, a number of changes were made to the design and armament of the Finnish Fokkers. On November 30, 1939, the Finnish Air Force included 31 (according to other sources 39) Fokker D.XXI fighters, consolidated into the Lentolavio-24 air group, some of which, after the start of the Winter War, were re-equipped on a ski chassis. It was this fighter that became the basis of the Finnish fighter aviation during the battles with the Red Army aviation in November 1939 - March 1940.

Before the signing of the armistice (March 13), the Lentolavio-24 interceptors shot down, according to Finnish data, 127 Soviet aircraft, 13 of which were recorded on his personal account by Captain Saravanto (Zamba), the best Finnish ace of the Winter War. Own irretrievable losses according to the same sources - 12 cars and only 8 pilots. According to Finnish data, the total result of the aircraft of the Red Army Air Force shot down by the Finnish Air Force amounted to 521 aircraft (according to the Soviet 261 aircraft, but according to updated data, the total losses of the Red Army Air Force in Soviet-Finnish war amounted to 579 aircraft).

In 1939, even before the start of the war, Finland entered into an additional license agreement for the assembly of another 50 Fokker D.XXI fighters, which was carried out from January 1940 to March 1941, already with American Pratt & Whitney R-1535 Twin Wasp Junior engines (due to lack of aircraft engines Bristol Mercury VIII). During the "Continued War" as part of the Finnish Air Force, Fokkers with American radial engines were used mainly for reconnaissance and ground attack, as well as in educational units. Irretrievable losses amounted to 39 cars. The last batch of 5 Fokker D.XXI fighters was manufactured in August - November 1944 with Pratt & Whitney R-1535 Twin Wasp Junior engines and took part already in battles against the Luftwaffe during the Lapland War until the spring of 1945. The last Fokkers were decommissioned from flight training units only in 1952.

In the fall of 1939, a batch of Fiat G.50 Freccia fighters was also purchased in Italy, which, due to the protests of the USSR, came to Finland only in February-March 1940 and replaced the English Gladiators, but to take part in the battles before the armistice was practically did not have time. They took an active part in the "Continued War" from June 1941 to May 1944, although they were poorly adapted for operation in winter.

In the period after the Second World War, the Finnish Air Force was equipped with imported aircraft, both Soviet-made (MiG fighters, Mi helicopters, etc.), and manufactured by other countries (for example, Swedish Saab fighters, etc.), as well as own licensed aircraft (Valmet) .

As of 1978, the Finnish Air Force consisted of 3 thousand military personnel and about 50 combat aircraft (2 fighter and 1 training squadrons), as well as one transport squadron, one general purpose squadron, one communications squadron and one helicopter squadron .

In 2007, training aircraft "Hawk" Mk.66 were purchased in Switzerland, in 2010 it was decided to repair and modernize 18 machines (the total cost of work is 40 million euros).

As of 2011, the Finnish Air Force consisted of 3.85 thousand people, 121 combat aircraft (55 - F / A-18C; 7 - F / A-18D; one - F-28 "Maritime Enforcer"; two - F-27 Friendship; 58 - Hawk; three - Learjet 35А; eight - Valmet L-90 Redigo; five - Piper PA-31-350 "Chieftain"

Since the time of the Jaeger movement, the oath has been a solemn event. On this day, a parade is held, which demonstrates the military equipment of those units where the service will take place. Veterans speak to conscripts, recalling the experience of past wars. Former pilots call on young people to defend the interests of Finland as selflessly as they did.

In the Finnish song, which is called "Oath", there are words that the soldiers will not allow any violence against the Motherland, dear and beloved Finland. These words sound like a refrain:

"Kuullos pyhä vala, kallis Suomenmaa:
sinuun koskea ei väkivalta saa!”

Tikkakoski - Finnish aviation history

Conscripts are serving in Tikkakoski, who, after taking the oath, will become servicemen of the Finnish Air Force. The place is famous for the location of such important organizations as the Finnish Air Force Administration, the Training Center (theory), Information Service, Summer school with training aircraft base. In addition to the Finnish Air Force Academy, Tikkakoski is home to the country's largest research and development unit specializing in the development of aircraft systems.

The Aviation Museum of Central Finland is also located here. The exhibits of the museum tell about the history and modernity of Finnish aviation. The exposition of aircraft models is also of interest. There is a department of aviation radio engineering and air interception systems.

The Aviation Museum in the town of Tikkakoski, a few kilometers from the city of Jyväskylä, is a huge hangar, which contains many aircraft, engines, weapons, and equipment. Our tourists, especially front-line soldiers, are amazed by the abundance of swastikas and blue crosses on the wings of airplanes.

Involuntarily the question arises: What does the Finnish swastika have to do with the symbol of National Socialism? To answer it, we propose to make a short digression into history.

Ancient designation of the movement of the sun around the earth, from east to west

The swastika is one of the most ancient and widespread graphic symbols, used by different peoples in different times. The magic sign, indicating the movement of the sun around the earth, from east to west, can be seen not only in Finnish museums, but also in old books. For example, in the calendar of 1896. On the page dedicated to the month "February" there is a splash screen with a swastika.

The sign has regained popularity in European culture in the 19th century - on the wave of the fashion of the Aryan theory. In Finland at that time there was a rise in national consciousness. According to historians, on February 3, 1899, a manifesto was issued, according to which the Russian authorities could issue resolutions binding on Finland without the consent of the Finnish Sejm. In 1901, independent Finnish troops were abolished and an unlimited dictatorship of the Governor-General was established, who received emergency powers in 1903.

Limitation of Finnish autonomy

As a result of the policy of Russification, an attempt was made to force the Finns to pass military service in the Russian army. When the Sejm, which used to make concessions, rejected this demand, General Bobrikov introduced courts-martial. The policy of restricting the rights of the Finns led to the assassination of the Governor-General Bobrikov. In Finnish history textbooks, this period is referred to as "Russaviha", which translates literally as "hatred of the Russians" or more neutrally - "years of oppression".

According to S. Yu. Witte, Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Russian Empire, “... during the entire period of the Russian revolution there were only two political assassinations in Finland - Bobrikov and one prosecutor. Both murders were committed not by anarchists, not by revolutionaries, but by Finnish people for national ideas. Finnish people are by nature correct people who respect the laws, and they are alien to the ugliest murders that are daily committed in Russia on political grounds ... It is a pity that there were two Finns who committed these two political murders and stained Finland with political blood".

Under the pressure of the 1905 revolution, Nicholas II was forced to approve the decision adopted by the Finnish Seimas. new constitution Finland. But the policy of Russification continued, the national movement in the Grand Duchy reached its apogee before the war of 1914.

Jaeger Cross - Cross of Freedom

Even before and during the First World War, representatives of Finnish industrialists cooperated with Germany, which gave loans with a lower percentage than Russia. In 1914, martial law was declared in Finland, the country took part in the war, 500 volunteers went into the army. As a result of parliamentary elections, the Social Democrats received a majority of votes. Russian military orders appeared, which caused an industrial boom and a decrease in unemployment that hit the country during the war years.

It seemed that Finland had become loyal to Russia, if not for the speeches of the Finnish bourgeoisie, which was engaged in espionage in favor of Germany. Under the influence of national patriots, the Jaeger movement appeared. In 1915, the legendary 27th Chasseur Battalion was formed, consisting of two thousand volunteers who went to Riga to join the German troops on the Eastern Front. Subsequently, veterans of the 27th battalion formed a cohort of white Finnish army. famous general Talvela, an associate of Mannerheim and an active participant in the Winter War, left the ranks of the chasseurs.

Russia responded to the participation of Finnish volunteers in the war against it by introducing strict passport control. Under wartime law, men between the ages of 17 and 35 who left Finland were sentenced to death penalty. The February Revolution saved the Finnish national movement, although a civil war broke out in the country. The Whites, not without the help of Germany, drowned the Red movement in blood.

With the light hand of the Swedish friend Mannerheim, March 6 is the birthday of Finnish aviation

During the civil war, the swastika came to Finnish aviation. On March 6, 1918, the Swedish Count Eric von Rosen presented Mannerheim's white army with his first plane with a swastika on board, and this emblem, by order of Mannerheim, became part of the symbols and badges of the young republic. Thus, it is from this event that Finnish aviation traces its history, March 6 is celebrated as the Day of the Finnish Air Force.

In Germany, the swastika has become state symbol after the Nazis came to power in 1933. She was depicted on the coat of arms and flag. The Finnish swastika, "hakaristi", has come a long way: from a magical sign to a military symbol. She represented Finland on the fronts of the two wars that Finland fought with Soviet Union- The Winter War and the Continuation War.

Despite the fact that after the Second World War, the image of the swastika was banned in a number of countries, Nazi groups of all kinds still use it today. There is no place in the Finnish army for the swastika, which was tarnished by the Nazis during the war years. The emblem of the Finnish Air Force has a circle instead of "hakaristi".