Litvyak

Lydia Litvyak Soviet fighter pilot Ace Hero In the world ranking of female combat pilots the first line Her name has been there since August 1943 And probably forever For almost eighty years past none of the female aces have come close to such a combat account Unless of course excluding Katerina Budanova a fellow soldier and Lilys best friend Katya is the second line Their regiment flew on Yak1 fighters He covered attack aircraft transporters and ground troops They fought over Stalingrad Rostov and Mius Front They converged in battles with German fighters bombers and scouts They returned from combat sorties with empty tanks and holes fell on enemy territory burned and sat on their belly saved friends suffered losses were injured and returned to duty They won and became legends On the first of August 1943 Lilya Litvyak was incomplete for 22 years That day her plane took off for the last time and remained in the sky forever