Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub was born on June 8, 1920 in the village of Obrazheevka, Shostka district, Sumy region, in the family of a simple rural worker.

The father brought up little Ivan in severity, taught him to work from childhood. The brothers Yakov, Alexander and Grigory, worked as laborers for wealthy people, bringing home meager pennies and food at the end of the season. Yes, and Ivan himself was forced to earn money in childhood, when his father arranged for him to be a shepherd. Fate was favorable to him from childhood and kept him throughout his life.

Even in childhood, as Ivan Nikitovich himself recalled, in his book “Loyalty to the Fatherland”,

could die by drowning in the Desna. The guys went to the flood in a boat to a distant island and in the evening, with a strong wind, they returned to the village. A gust of wind turned the boat across the waves and turned it over. Once in the cold water, the children swam to a nearby tree and climbed onto the branches. By nightfall, the survivors began to freeze, and Vanya's friend Andreika drowned. Yes, and Vanya himself was blown off the branch by the wind when, exhausted, he could not hold on. Falling into the water, Vanya immediately went to the bottom.

The miracle of his salvation was that at that time help on a longboat just approached, where Vanya's brother Alexander was. He managed to notice where the future Soviet air sniper fell and, diving, saved him. On that day, little Ivan experienced the first bereavement in his life. And how much more fate had in store for him...

From childhood, Vanya was fond of sports, these are exercises on the horizontal bar and weightlifting - kettlebell lifting. Father often scolded Ivan for the yard pitted with weights. As a result of these classes, the future defender of the Fatherland developed an excellent vestibular apparatus and endurance.

At school, Vanya was fond of drawing and drew a lot, which developed the eye, the visual memory of the future ace. Tried to paint in oils.

Like everything in life, childhood flew by unnoticed. After graduating from the seven-year period, Ivan entered the school of working youth, where, working as a librarian, he read not only fiction books, but also technical literature. Two more years passed and, on the advice of his father, Ivan entered the Shostka Technical School, at the chemical-technological department. It was far to go home, and Kozhedub moved to a hostel at a technical school. Only the mother did not want to part with her youngest son.

One weekend, with a heavy feeling in his soul, Ivan was returning home from the technical school for the weekend. On the threshold of the house his father met him. Ivan's mother, who undermined her strength at hard work in people, became seriously ill and refused all persuasion to go to the hospital. It's time to go back to college. Ivan did not want to go, apparently foreseeing trouble, but his mother persuaded him to return. Until late at night, Kozhedub sat behind books, reproaching himself for not insisting that his mother go to the hospital, and at dawn his brother Yakov woke him up. Seeing the tear-stained face of his older brother, Ivan immediately understood everything.

Having been widowed, Nikita Kozhedub also moved to Shostka, to a hostel at the factory and often came to visit his son.

About his first meeting with the plane, Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub himself will tell better than me:

“... one afternoon, while playing skittles, I heard the roar of an engine: an airplane was flying at a low altitude. It was the first time I saw him so close. The two passengers sitting in the back waved their hands at us. The car quickly disappeared over the hill.

If only I could climb up and look down on the Desna, on our spacious lands.

Just before leaving, I found out that it was possible to fly: passengers were taken for a ride, but it was already too late. And the plane, frankly speaking, inspired me not only with curiosity, but also with timidity. I even admitted to myself that, perhaps, I would not have dared to fly. And I decided to myself that it is difficult to learn flying, and pilots must be fabulously brave people: just think - they rise into the air, make such flights! And not for a second then did I have the idea to devote my life to aviation.
(Ivan Kozhedub. "Loyalty to the Fatherland").

Ivan took the next step towards his destiny after the war at Lake Khasan, in the summer of 1938. It was then that Ivan remembered his recent meeting with the students of the technical school, who entered the flying club. They came to the technical school to train on sports equipment. At a subsequent meeting with them, Ivan asked the question of how to submit documents to the flying club, to which he received a little encouraging answer, it was too late to submit documents, classes had already begun. But Ivan nevertheless took a chance and entered the flying club, having given his word to catch up with fellow students in theory, before the start of flight practice. He caught up with the group, moreover, he was one of the first members in the group.

It was difficult for the future hero to keep up with everything. Ivan studied at the flying club, not forgetting about the technical school, because he had not yet decided to fly all his life.

At first, I had to hide from my father. Kozhedub recalls how he once asked: “What, tattoo, if I learned to fly?” ("tatu" - in Ukrainian means "dad").

To which the father waved his hands: “Where are you going to chase the crane in the sky ?!”

But Ivan was able to hide only until the summer holidays at the technical school. A little light was going to Shostka to the airfield, to fly. So the father found out about his son's hobby, but, having already got used to his independence, he did not flog the hero.

In the same 1939, Kozhedub decided to link his fate with fighter aircraft, having met his fellow countryman, who came on vacation to his homeland. Young pilots enthusiastically listened to the stories of their flying club graduate, looking at the military uniform with envy. Of course, in those days, the pilots had a special chic uniform. All military officers wore tunics, and the pilots wore shirts with ties and a tunic.

In January 1940, Kozhedub was summoned to the Chuguev School of Military Pilots. By order of the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR S. K. Timoshenko No. 0362 dated December 22, 1940 "On changing the order of service for the junior and middle commanding staff of the Red Army Air Force", Ivan Kozhedub successfully completed the fall of 1940. He expected distribution. Like all his classmates, he was preparing to serve on the western border, where the entire graduation of that year was sent, but the command ordered otherwise. As one of the best cadets, Sergeant Kozhedub was left as an instructor at the school.

The war caught Ivan Nikitovich as an instructor. From the first days of the war, Kozhedub bombarded the authorities with reports asking them to be sent to the front, but the authorities were adamant. “Your duty is to train pilots for the Red Army. The front is suffering heavy losses.

At the end of 1941, the school was transferred to the city of Chimkent, in Kazakhstan. There, cadres for the front were forged in an accelerated mode. Kozhedub continues to besiege the authorities with reports, to which he receives negative answers and even reprimands. Continues to train pilots for the front.

Newspapers from the front reached them, and in some, there were notes about the exploits of their comrades, former cadets, instructors from the school. The modest workers of the rear airfield envied their friends who beat the enemy over the expanses of the Motherland.

Finally, in the fall of 1942, Ivan Nikitovich was sent to the front. In Moscow, Ivan learned that one of his best cadets, Vyacheslav Bashkirov, had been awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Kozhedub is proud of his student and perhaps happy for himself. If the student has surpassed the teacher - the best assessment of the teacher as a professional.

Kozhedub was enrolled in the 240th Fighter Aviation Regiment, commanded by Major Soldatenko. The regiment suffered heavy losses in the battles near Stalingrad and was on staffing. In Gorky, the regiment was retrained for new La-5 fighters. New planes have just begun to arrive at the front and have already gained fame in the Battle of Stalingrad.

In the reserve regiment, Ivan continues to study, studies new materiel, undergoes training flights, studies captured Me-109s, sketching their silhouettes and studying vulnerable spots.

Finally, in January 1943, Kozhedub received a new La-5, number 75 from the squadron named after Valery Chkalov. But he is unhappy with the first car. The plane is equipped with five tanks - a bit heavy.

In March 1943, Kozhedub fought his first air battle. Paired with his leader, Kozhedub was supposed to guard his airfield. Everything went wrong from the start. During takeoff, Kozhedub lost sight of the leader's plane and remained alone in the air. Having made several circles, Ivan saw approaching planes, similar in silhouette to Pe-2 bombers.

Ivan remembered the rule of the fighter in time - If you do not recognize the aircraft, consider it as an enemy aircraft. Explosions on the ground convinced Kozhedub of the accuracy of the rule.

The trouble was that while he was figuring out who was in front of him, the Me-110s launched an attack on the airfield. Kozhedub prepared to attack the enemy, removed the guns from the fuses, but then he remembered one more rule - "before attacking, make sure you are not being attacked." He looked around - a plane with a white spinner was approaching him. While I was thinking who it was, my own or someone else's, the "white cook" opened fire. There was a crash from behind, the cockpit smelled of burning. Ivan was saved by the fact that a high-explosive fragmentation projectile, and not an armor-piercing one, got into the cockpit. Me-109s sat on him tightly, they were about to finish him off, but then anti-aircraft artillery opened fire and the Messers fell off. La-5 Kozhedub also came under fire and received a few more holes. It took a lot of work for Ivan to land the riddled plane. After landing, more than fifty holes were counted.

Now Ivan flew occasionally.

After the first unsuccessful battle, they generally wanted to transfer him to ground service. He lost his leader, allowed the enemy to bomb the airfield, almost died himself, and the plane was under repair for a long time. Car number 75 stood for a long time under repair.

Two tanks were removed from it, it was not suitable for battle, and Ivan sometimes flew as a messenger. All the time he learned to beat the enemy, drew diagrams, studied the experience of famous pilots such as A. I. Pokryshkin.

Pokryshkin's battle formula: "Height - speed - maneuver - fire", Ivan wrote down in his front-line notebook. In the same place, he drew diagrams, silhouettes of enemy aircraft, so as not to waste time in the future on identifying the aircraft. He learned well the lesson taught him by the Germans.

There were "battles of local significance", but even in these battles the regiment was losing people. Leading Kozhedub Vano Gabunia died by ramming an enemy plane, squadron commander Gavrish. On April 14, 1943, during a raid, the regiment commander, Major Soldatenko, was killed.

By the summer, reinforcements arrived in the regiment. Kozhedub was appointed to the post of deputy squadron commander. Vasily Mukhin was appointed to his pair.

The new pair took their first battle in July 1943 on the Kursk Bulge on July 6, 1943. The regiment was ordered to cover ground troops. Above the front line, the group, which included the Kozhedub-Mukhin pair, met with a large group of Yu-87 bombers.

A fierce battle ensued. In the air, their own and other people's planes mixed up. With a burst of cannons, Ivan forced the Me-109 to turn Semenov's commander away from the plane.

The bombers formed a defensive circle. A few minutes passed and Kozhedub went to the line of fire. The cannons have started working, but the "lappeter" does not fall. Ivan continues to shoot. Junkers began to maneuver. Forgetting everything, Ivan continues the attack, deciding that if he does not bring down the enemy, he will ram, as his dead leader Vano Gabunia did. Almost at point-blank range, Kozhedub thrusts a long burst into the enemy. The plane burst into flames and crashed.

To celebrate, Ivan shouted to the follower: “Vasya! Banged one!

He looked around, and saw how the Messer rolled off from him, followed by Mukhin.

Team commander "Collection". But Kozhedub sees another group of Junkers, reports to the commander, but he continues to collect the group. Then Ivan decides to attack the enemy with the forces of his pair. Attached in the tail to the extreme Yu-87, at point-blank range opens fire, but the guns are silent. Shooting long bursts, Ivan shot all his ammunition. Commands Mukhina to attack, he imitates attacks. The Junkers leave, and the couple, at the limit of fuel, returned to their airfield.

Ivan Nikitovich recalled in his book how, during a report on the battle, the squadron commander severely reprimanded him for breaking away from the group.

“Is that so? Chasing the downed. In such an environment, one cannot be unrestrained and imprudent. Killed in an instant. Well, anyway, congratulations on the first shot down.

Since July 10, Kozhedub has been temporarily acting as a commander, instead of Semenov, who was injured.

In September 1943, Ivan received the long-awaited news from home. From his father's letter, he learned that brother Yakov from the first days in the battles, Grigory was driven into slavery by the Nazis, and brother Sashko is working in the rear in the Urals.

The usual for him weekdays of the war flowed. Several times a day, our pilots took off to complete tasks.

September 30, 1943. Kozhedub's group flew out to cover ground troops. On the way to the front line, Ivan was attacked by a couple of German hunters. Having replaced them in time, he abruptly turned around, not having time to give a command to his own. In a frontal attack, the Germans opened fire. In the plane, behind, there was a crash and the opponents dispersed on a collision course. Kozhedub's maneuver was so fast that the fighters of his group, seeing the hunters coming out of the attack, thought that Ivan had been shot down and chased the Germans, burning with a desire for revenge. Ivan was left alone in the cover area. There was no response to all Ivan's orders by radio. Some time passed and Kozhedub's group returned, but passed by towards their base without noticing their commander. And then the Germans appeared and, Kozhedub alone accepted the battle. From all sides, at the limit of the car, Ivan attacked Yu-87. He forced them to stop bombing and put them in a defensive circle. But the Germans did not leave, and the fuel was melting. Someone had to be hit. Ivan finally chose one and shot point-blank. Seeing a colleague engulfed in flames, a falling colleague, the “laptezhniki” randomly bombed and began to leave. On fuel vapor, Kozhedub returned home.

Another day, which Ivan Nikitovich remembers especially.

For the third time, he then led his squadron to cover the troops. At the front line they met a large group of enemy bombers. They immediately attacked and dispersed, but an order was received from the ground to catch up and finish off the enemy. The fighters rushed after them to shoot the defenseless Ju-87s.

This fight is best described in the words of Ivan Nikitovich himself.

“I start attacking him from above - he is so pressed to the ground that you can’t come up from below. The gunner fires back fiercely, but machine-gun trails fly past. A long burst and the bomber bursts into flames.

Soaring over a blazing bomber An indistinct sound is heard - you hear any impact on the plane, despite the hum of the engine. I hear the frightened voice of Vasya Mukhin: “Dad, you are on fire!”

I quickly examine the left plane - everything is in order here. He looked to the right - a fiery jet is knocked out of the gas tank. A chill ran down my spine: yes, I really am burning! Before it's too late, you need to jump with a parachute. I quickly open the lantern. I unfasten my seat belts. And suddenly I remember - below the enemy.
(Ivan Kozhedub. "Loyalty to the Fatherland").

Ivan decides to ram a ground target with a flaming plane. But he continues to fight for his life - he tries to knock down the flame by sliding. Nothing worked. At the bottom, he noticed a cluster of enemy equipment and put the plane into a dive...

Different sources tell about this case in different ways. Therefore, I think it would be right to tell the end of this incident in the words of Ivan Nikitovich himself.

“... I'm directing the plane right at them. The earth is growing fast. There is still hope that it is possible to break the flame if I sharply lift the nose of the aircraft. I grab the plane right over the heads of the dumbfounded Germans. And I hear the joyful voice of the slave:

Dad, the flame is broken! We live!
(Ibid.).

On this day, fate spared him, once again.

Having flown over the front line, Kozhedub wanted to leave the plane again, but could not - he felt sorry for the car. He loved his planes very much. Always identified them with living beings. And never once in the entire war, did not leave the car.

On February 4, 1944, friends congratulated Ivan on conferring on him the high title of Hero of the Soviet Union. By that time, Kozhedub's personal account had exceeded 30 downed enemy vehicles.

In May 1944, when the regiment of Ivan Kozhedub was already fighting over Romania, Ivan received an order to overtake a new aircraft from the city of Balti to his airfield. Arriving at the place, Kozhedub learned that La-5 FN, number 14, named after the Hero of the Soviet Union, Lieutenant Colonel N. Konev, the command of the air force decided to transfer it to him.

Collective farmer Konev Vasily Viktorovich, the father of the Hero who died in the battles for the Motherland, bought a plane with his personal savings and asked him to transfer it to the best pilot. They would recognize Ivan Kozhedub.

To fight on such a machine was not only honorable, but also dangerous. The German aces were well aware that not ordinary pilots fly on such aircraft. Very often they attacked Ivan, seeing the inscriptions on the sides, but the faithful wingman always reliably covered the commander. Paired with Mukhin, as Ivan Nikitovich recalled, he could not be afraid for his tail.

And he paid in full for the reliability of the follower. His meager memories are worthy of great respect:

“... I look around. I see that Mukhin is in an advantageous position. I broadcast on the radio: “Vasya! Beat him! I cover!..”

Or: "... Vasya, we take the last one in pincers!" (In this battle, the couple shot down a Heinkel-111, which was credited to Mukhin).

And he himself was a Hero and gave the opportunity to become Heroes to others.

On one of the days of the 44th year, a group of aircraft landed at the airfield of the 240th Fighter Aviation Regiment. The airfield resounded: “Pokryshkin, Pokryshkin!”. Ivan wanted to come up and get acquainted with the famous ace, but he was shy, and while he hesitated, Pokryshkin's planes flew away. Only after the war, Ivan again saw the Glorious Pilot at the Academy. M. V. Frunze. Perhaps he met with him in preparation for the Victory Parade.

In the summer of 1944, Kozhedub was summoned to Moscow. There Kozhedub learned about his new assignment to the 176th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment.

Ivan did not sleep all night, trying to find words so as not to leave his native regiment, but General Shatsky, sympathizing, remained adamant. He expressed his understanding of the situation, but orders from above are not discussed, they are carried out.

At the familiar alternate airfield, where Ivan was still a stupid, inexperienced pilot, he was recognized and congratulated on his success. Ivan Nikitovich had to retrain for the new La-7 aircraft. The regiment of air hunters, where he was to fight, flew precisely on these machines.

On August 19, Ivan learned about the awarding of A. I. Pokryshkin with the third Gold Star medal. And he himself was congratulated on being awarded the title of Twice Hero. Kozhedub by that time shot down 45 fascist planes.

From the end of August 1944, Kozhedub took up the duties of deputy regiment commander. The regiment performs aerial hunting missions, staffed by experienced pilots with long flying hours and rich combat experience. Gone are the days when our sky was protected by yellow-mouthed chicks trained in an accelerated take-off and landing course. Now, young pilots, if the situation allowed, were introduced into battle gradually.

And in the Kozhedub regiment there were truly experienced pilots. The planes in the regiment had a special color - gray with a red nose and a white keel. Ivan's car was repainted overnight to match the others. So, on a car with tail number 27, Kozhedub flew until the end of the war.

In his memoirs, Ivan Nikitovich talks very sparingly about his downed. It all comes down to simple phrases: "... I see the enemy, I attack, I shoot down ..." and no colorful descriptions. The period of service in the 176th GIAP, Kozhedub describes the exploits of his fellow soldiers more, seeing ordinary workdays in his sorties.

February 19, 1945. Kozhedub, paired with Dmitry Titarenko, flew out to hunt. In the Frankfurt area, at an altitude of 3,500 meters, they saw a single plane flying at high speed. Having squeezed everything to the limit from his “shop”, Kozhedub managed to get closer to an unknown car. It was a jet Me-262. According to the intelligence that the pilots were introduced to, these aircraft were fundamentally new and dangerous in combat. The German flew without much concern for safety - he hoped for high speed. The Soviet couple gradually approached the jet fighter.

Knowing the character of Titarenko, Kozhedub asks: “Dima, take your time!”

But the tracks flew into the enemy plane, and the German began to turn away from the line of fire. The distance between Kozhedub and Me-262 was sharply reduced, which allowed the Soviet ace to complete the attack logically. After a well-aimed turn, the Me-262 aircraft, falling apart, fell to the ground.

Kozhedub shot down the last two fascists on April 17 near Berlin. These were the Foke-Wulf-190. It was his last dogfight in that war.

In the late spring of 1945, Ivan Nikitovich, by order of the command, flew to Moscow.

Part 2. The secret life of Ivan Kozhedub.

Recently, many secrecy stamps have been removed. Some cases that happened to him in the last period of the war also became unclassified information.

In the preface N.G. Bodrikhin to the book by I.N. Kozhedub "Loyalty to the Fatherland" of later editions, provides interesting facts about the air battle between Kozhedub and the Americans. I will quote:

“As Ivan Nikitovich himself told me, on April 17, 1945, having met the Allies’ Flying Fortresses in the air, he drove a couple of Messerschmitts away from them with a barrage, but a second later he himself was attacked by American cover fighters.

"To whom is fire? Me?!" - Kozhedub recalled indignantly half a century later. The line was long, with a long distance, a kilometer, with bright, unlike ours and German, tracer shells. Due to the long distance, it was clear how the end of the line was bent down I rolled over and, quickly approaching, attacked the extreme American (by the number of fighters in the escort, I already understood who it was) something exploded in his fuselage, he got very steamy and went down towards our troops. from an inverted position, I attacked the next one, my shells fell very well, the plane exploded in the air.

When the tension of the battle subsided, my mood was not at all victorious, because I had already managed to make out the white stars on the wings and fuselages. “They will arrange for me ... on the first day,” I thought, putting the car in. But everything worked out. In the cockpit of the Mustang, which had landed on our territory, sat a hefty Negro. To the question of the guys who arrived in time for him, who shot him down (or rather, when they managed to translate this question), he answered: “Focke-Wulf” with a red nose ... I don’t think that he played along then; the allies had not yet learned to look both ways ...

When the films of the FKP (photo film machine gun) were shown, the main moments of the battle were recorded on them very clearly. The films were watched by the command of the regiment, and the division, and the corps. The division commander Savitsky, to whom we were then under operational control, after watching said: "These victories in - on account of a future war." And Pavel Fedorovich Chupikov, our regimental commander, soon gave me these films with the words: “Take them for yourself, Ivan, and don’t show them to anyone.”

It was one of several military clashes between Soviet and American aviation that took place in 1944-1945 ... ”(Internet newspaper“ Centrazia ”No. 18 of May 13, 2004.)

Another significant battle was fought by Ivan Nikitovich before Victory Day on May 6, when a group of "flying fortresses" with cover planes entered the Soviet zone. The Soviet pilots warned the Americans with tracers, but they continued to fly, responding with machine gun fire. Then it's time for Kozhedub. In twenty minutes of battle, he drove three invincible "fortresses" into the ground.

However, they were not allowed to draw stars even then, but they had to fight with the Americans. Now it was in the Far East, where the division of the 64th Air Corps, together with its commander, Major General Kozhedub, fought in Korea. Although, even without the "fuselage stars" it is known that 264 American pilots did not reach their bases there ... (Viktor Anisimov. Article "How Kozhedub shot down the Americans." Nashe Delo newspaper, October 13, 2007). Until recently, we could all learn about the military path of Ivan Kozhedub.

So, during the Great Patriotic War, Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub made 330 sorties, conducted 120 air battles, shooting down 62 Nazi aircraft. Not a bad account. Quote from the Radiovoice of Russia newspaper: “Historians say that Ivan Kozhedub shot down many more planes than official sources say. The fact is that he did not chalk up an enemy car if he himself did not see how it fell to the ground. “And suddenly, he will make it to his own?”, - the pilot explained to his brother-soldiers ... ”(The newspaper“ Radio Voice of Russia ”).

On June 24, 1945, I. N. Kozhedub carried the banner of one of the regiments in the ranks of the combined regiment of the First Ukrainian Front across Red Square.

In the summer of 1945, after the Victory Parade, Ivan Nikitovich was sent to the Military Academy. M. V. Frunze. As Vladimir Lavrinenkov recalls in his book “Without War”, Kozhedub “escaped” to the Air Force Academy in Monino.

G. Kislovodsk. In the late evening of November 1950, two MGB officers came for Kozhedub, who was resting in a local sanatorium, and gave him a few minutes to get ready.

In the regional committee of the party, through government communications, he receives an order from the commander of the Air Force of the Moscow district, V.I. Stalin, to arrive in Moscow. "There is work, and Vanya is resting ...".

In an atmosphere of secrecy, under the name of Krylov Kozhedub, he has been in command of the 324th Fighter Air Division in North Korea for 10 months.

On April 12, 1951, the Kozhedub troops conducted their first air battle over the Yalu River. Fighters defended a strategically important bridge across the river. 40 American bombers went to the bridge under the cover of about 100 fighters.

Kozhedub lifted all 50 MiG-15s into the air. Or a chest in crosses, or a head in the bushes. A fellow soldier of Ivan Nikitovich, Sergei Kramarenko, recalls: “In total, 12 bombers and 5 fighters fell to the ground. 120 pilots were taken prisoner by the Chinese and Koreans. Kozhedub himself did not participate in this battle.

But could the gambler three times Hero of the Soviet Union really sit quietly on the ground?

He is strictly prohibited from flying on combat missions. Even in Moscow, V.I. Stalin told him: “You are good, here you can fight with your own methods,” says Nikolai Bodrikhin in Sergei Medvedev’s film “Secrets of the Century. Two wars of Ivan Kozhedub.

The UN Assembly recognized North Korea as an aggressor and any military assistance to her was illegal. If Kozhedub had been shot down, a severe international scandal could have happened, and UN troops could have started hostilities against the USSR.

And yet Ivan Nikitovich made several sorties.

I don't want to retell the whole movie. I’ll just finish this episode from the life of Kozhedub by repeating the words of the author of the film, Sergei Medvedev: “Later, the Chinese friends of Ivan Nikitovich, under great secrecy, told the son of the Soviet ace that during his stay in Korea, he added 17 more to his“ American account ” enemy planes.

Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub died at his dacha on August 8, 1991, from a heart attack. And a few days later, his Fatherland ceased to exist, the loyalty of which he kept all his glorious life.

This plane still remembers the stinking smell of Fokkers.

Materials used in this article:

1.I. N. Kozhedub. Loyalty to the Motherland.

2. Article by Yuri Nersesov "The American Account of Major Kozhedub" from the Internet newspaper "Centrazia" No. 18 dated May 13, 2004.

4. The film "Two Wars of Ivan Kozhedub". From the series Secrets of the Century with Sergei Medvedev.

Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub (Ukrainian Ivan Mikitovich Kozhedub; June 8 , obrazhiivka, Glukhovsky district, Chernigov province , Ukrainian SSR - 8 August , Moscow , the USSR) - Soviet military leader , ace pilot times Great Patriotic War, the most successful fighter pilot in aviation allies(64 wins). Three times Hero of the Soviet Union. Air Marshal (the 6th of May ).

Biography

Ivan Kozhedub was born in the village obrazhiivka Glukhovsky district Chernigov province(now Shostka district Sumy region Ukraine) in family peasant - church warden. Belonged to the second generation [ ] Soviet fighter pilots who took part in the Great Patriotic War.

He made his first steps in aviation, being engaged in Shostka flying club. At the beginning 1940- joined the ranks Red Army and graduated in the autumn of the same year Chuguevskaya military aviation school of pilots, after which he continued to serve in it as an instructor.

The first air battle ended in failure for Kozhedub and almost became the last - his La-5 was damaged by cannon fire Messerschmitt-109, the armored back saved him from an incendiary projectile, and when returning, the plane was fired upon by Soviet anti-aircraft gunners, it was hit by 2 anti-aircraft shells. Despite the fact that Kozhedub managed to land the plane, it was not subject to full restoration, and the pilot had to fly on the "remnants" - free planes available in the squadron. Soon they wanted to take him to the alert post, but the regiment commander stood up for him. At the beginning of the summer of 1943, Kozhedub was awarded the rank of junior lieutenant, then he was appointed to the post of deputy squadron commander. Soon after it, July 6 1943 on the Kursk Bulge, during the fortieth sortie, Kozhedub shot down his first German bomber Junkers Yu-87. The very next day he shot down the second, and July 9 shot down 2 fighters at once Bf-109. First rank Hero of the Soviet Union Kozhedub (already a senior lieutenant) was awarded February 4 1944 for 146 sorties and 20 downed enemy aircraft.

The last battle in the Great Patriotic War, in which he shot down 2 FW-190, Kozhedub spent April 17 1945 in the sky above Berlin. third medal "Gold Star" Kozhedub received August 18 1945 for high military skill, personal courage and courage shown on the fronts of the war. He was an excellent shooter and preferred to open fire at a distance of 200-300 meters, rarely approaching a shorter distance.

I. N. Kozhedub was never shot down during the Great Patriotic War, and although he was knocked out, he always landed his plane. Kozhedub also has the world's first jet fighter, the German Me-262, which he shot down February 19 1945, but he was not the first to do this - more August 28 In 1944, one downed Me-262 was credited to American pilots M. Croy and J. Myers, and in total, until February 1945, about 20 downed aircraft of this type were officially credited to American pilots.

At the end of the war, Kozhedub continued to serve in the Air Force. AT 1949 graduated Red Banner Air Force Academy. At the same time, he remained an active fighter pilot, having mastered a jet in 1948. MiG-15. AT 1956 graduated Military Academy of the General Staff. During wars in korea commanded the 324th Fighter Aviation Division (324th IAD) as part of 64th Fighter Aviation Corps. April to January 1952 the division's pilots scored 216 air victories, losing only 27 aircraft (9 pilots died).

List of aerial victories

In official Soviet historiography, the result of Kozhedub's combat activities looks like 62 enemy aircraft shot down personally. However, recent archival studies have shown that this figure is slightly underestimated - in the award documents (where it, in fact, was taken from), for unknown reasons, there are no two air victories (June 8, 1944 - Me-109 and April 11, 1944 - PZL-24 ), while they were confirmed and officially entered into the personal account of the pilot.

Total aerial victories: 64+0
sorties - 330
air battles - 120

1 now living. 2 Subsequently received the rank of Chief Marshal of Artillery. 3 Stripped of rank in 1952, reinstated in 1953. 4 Demoted to the rank of Major General of Artillery in 1963. 5 Chief Marshal of Artillery, previously held the rank of General of the Army.