Victory
62
Biography
Historians generally agree that Ivan Nikolayevich Kozhedoub, with a total of sixty-two victories, was the best pilot of the Red Air Force during the Great Patriotic War. Indeed, Kozhedoub's score made him the undisputed "ace of aces" among all Allied fighter pilots of World War II. Kozhedoub was not the only one to have more than fifty personal victories to his credit, six other pilots (Gergori Retchlakov, Alexandre Pokrychkine, Nicol;if Goulayev, Kirill Yestigenyev, Nicola'f Skomorokhov, perhaps Nicola'f Choutt, d' after at least one Soviet historian, and Boris Glinka) achieving scores higher than that of the best Western ally ace Commander M.T StJ Pattle, with at least fifty victories.
Looking more closely at the career of I.N Kozhedoub, we s finds that he flew more than 326 sorties during the war, engaging the enemy on 126 occasions (all of his victories were against piston-engined aircraft, with the exception of an Me 262). Kozhedoub flew the La5FN and La-7 masterfully, and his exploits were widely told to an adoring Soviet public, who came to know his face from the huge posters that were displayed in public places, encouraging the population to "fight like Kozhedoub". As a member of the Communist Party, Kozhedoub was the ideal role model for young Soviet fighter pilots. During the Great Patriotic War, he was awarded the H.U.S. twice, and this award was given to him a third time shortly after the end of the war. At the time of the first H.U.S., February 14, 1944, Kozhedoub was Snr Lt and commander in the 240th IAP. Just six months later, he received his second H.U.S., by which time he had been promoted to the rank of captain and made commander-in-chief of the 176th GV.IAP.
Kozhedoub began flying jet aircraft in 1948, and in April 1951 he made sorties on MiG-15 over Korea. He became air force colonel-general in 1974, before being promoted to air corps general on August 7, 1985 - ten years earlier, Kozhedoub's politically committed memoirs, Vernost'otchizne (Loyalty to the native land ) had been published in Russia. Air Corps General Ivan Kozhedoub died at the age of 71 in August 1991.
