Lucky13
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Username: Lucky 13
First name: Jan
Category: Intermediate
Scale: 1/32
Manufacturer: Revell (ICM)
Model Type: Polikarpov I-16 Type 24
Aftermarket Add Ons: None, I think....
Born on November 16, 1912 in the village of Kamenka, now the Volkhov District of the Leningrad Region, in a peasant family. He graduated from 7 classes of secondary school. He worked as an instructor Osoaviahima Volkhov city. Since 1933, serving in the Navy. In 1940 he graduated from the Yeisk Naval Aviation School for Pilots.
Since June 1941, Lieutenant V. F. Golubev in the active army. Fought as part of the Baltic Fleet Air Force, participated in the defense of the Hanko Peninsula.
By June 1942, the squadron commander of the 4th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment (61st Fighter Aviation Brigade, Red Banner Baltic Fleet Air Force) Guards Captain V.F. Golubev made 339 combat sorties, participating in 61 air combat, shot down 4 aircraft in person and 23 - in a group.
October 23, 1942 for the courage and bravery shown in battles with enemies, was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union.
Total made 589 successful combat missions. In 133 air battles destroyed 39 enemy aircraft in person and as part of a group.
After the war, continued to serve in aviation. In 1951, after graduating from the Naval Academy, he commanded the aviation division. Since 1971 - Senior Lecturer at the Academy of the General Staff. Since 1975, General - Lieutenant of Aviation V. F. Golubev - in reserve. Honorary citizen of Syasstroy village, Volkhovsky district of Leningrad region. The author of the books: "School of War", "Wings are getting stronger in battle", "Second Wind", "Ahead of the Commissioner", "In the name of Leningrad" and others. He died on April 17, 2001.
He was awarded orders: Lenin (twice), Red Banner (seven), World War 1 degree (twice), Red Star (twice), "For serving the Motherland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" 3rd degree, the highest military orders of the Republic of Egypt and Great Britain; many medals.
* * *
One of the most successful pilots of the Baltic Fleet Air Force, Vasily Golubev, went through the Great Patriotic War from the first to the last day, from an ordinary pilot to the commander of the 4th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment, participated in all operations of the Baltic Fleet Air Force. During this time, he proved himself a talented commander, carefully planning every combat sortie and operation in the air, taking into account all the tactical weaknesses of the enemy and meticulously examining the mistakes of the pilots of his unit.
He was born in 1912 in the village of Kamenka, near Leningrad. Since childhood, was accustomed to work. By age 14 he was already confidently coping with the plow. After graduating from 7 classes, Vasily, on the advice of his father, went to Leningrad to get a job at the factory. Even then, the young man dreamed of heaven when he arrived in North Palmyra made the first attempt to enter a military theoretical school. He was not accepted - too young. After 2 years of work in the paper mill - a new attempt. And again - failure. This time the medical commission rejected it.
However, the desire to fly is not lost. In 1933, Vasily voluntarily joined the Red Army, and, having been sent to airborne troops, served for 2 years. There he was qualified as a parachute instructor. But he was attracted by airplanes. On the permit of the Komsomol, Vasily went to Duderhof, where he was enrolled as a cadet of a flight - glider school. Here Golubev mastered not only the glider. On his own initiative, he thoroughly studied the U-2 aircraft, flew on it independently.
In 1936, after graduating from school, he was assigned to Syasstroy, to the position of instructor in a parachute-glider club, where he worked for 2 years. In the spring of 1938, he was sent to retrain at the Koktebel Higher Flight Glider School of the Central Council of Osoaviakhim, and then he was appointed a pilot — an instructor of the flying club in Mineralnye Vody. There he flew a lot on U-2, UT-1, UT-2 airplanes and taught others.
An experienced and capable pilot, he firmly decided to become a military aviator, to master more powerful and high-speed airborne vehicles. In 1939, V. Golubev entered the Naval Aviation School in Yeisk. In the entrance exams, he received excellent marks in all subjects. And when they checked his flight training in the air, they immediately enrolled in the last course and were allowed to fly an I-15 fighter on their own. He graduated from this college with honors in 1940.
Since that time, began his permanent service in aviation. At first he was a fighter pilot, a parachute commander of the airborne service, and a flight commander of the 13th separate squadron of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet Air Force. He began the war as part of a separate aviation brigade, and in October 1941 he was transferred to the 13th Fighter Aviation Regiment, which later became the 4th Guards Regiment. Vasily Golubev and his fighting friends became like this regiment and until the end of the war in his ranks they smashed the enemy on land and at sea.
It is significant that the first combat mission to repel the attack of German aircraft on the Kronstadt naval base Golubev performed at 4 am on June 22, 1941. From now on, departures towards the enemy followed one after another, day and night. The main task of the sea pilots was considered air cover of Leningrad on the far and near approaches.
He began to fight on the I-16 with the tail number "13". But the 13th did not bring good luck to Golubev. He won his first victory on June 28, 1941, knocking out a German Ju-88 bomber. In early July, his victim was the fighter Me-109E. Then began a streak of bad luck.
July 13, he attacked the German planes in the forehead, taking them for the Ju-88. However, it turned out to be twin-engined heavy fighters Me-110 with powerful nose armament. As a result, Golubev's "Ishachok" was shot down and the pilot, all bathed in oil, barely managed to land at his airfield. After this incident, the mechanic Bogdanov suggested correcting the fighter's tail number to "14", but Golubev refused ...
Reliable presenter Vasily Golubev, when meeting with the enemy, always sought to build a group's battle order so as to retain the initiative before the start of an air battle or strike on a ground object. Therefore, he always went out of battle victorious. And, as a rule, had no losses. Great importance was attached to mutual assistance in battle. An example of this was given by the presenter himself. At the critical moment of contact with enemy aircraft, he rescued the slaves more than once, saving them from defeat.
When Vasily Fedorovich Golubev, after the war, was asked to speak in front of young warriors, he turned over the episodes of the war years in his memory and thought: "Where to start?" And, as a rule, he began the story from the first battles. Well, at least from the one that took place on July 26, 1941, when Golubev flew on reconnaissance and his slave lieutenant Zotov's car hit the anti-aircraft gun. Management was damaged, Zotov could only fly in a straight line.
Having lost the ability to maneuver, the fighter ceases to be a fighter. Maneuvering in air combat is like a weapon. Therefore, it is not difficult to understand what the pilot experienced when he saw 4 Messers in front of him. Golubev found himself in an unenviable position. If he was alone, it would be easier. And then fight off 4 German fighters and do not move a step away from your friend.
The Germans immediately guessed that something was wrong with the Soviet machine. Not for nothing, it flies only in a straight line. With it, they started. The nearby Messer was preparing to open fire. But Golubev was ahead of him. I managed to catch a sight ...
This could seem like luck - and nothing more. Luck, of course, also happen, but the instant victory won by Golubev was explained entirely differently - by his exceptional accuracy. Vasily Fedorovich was called the air sniper before the war. He practiced a lot to learn to hit the target from the first stage. After the attacks of Golubev, the towing plane dropped a holed air target to the airfield.
And the enemy plane was a little more training target. As soon as the "Messer" found himself in the sight, as the next second he began to fall. The three others understood who they were dealing with. They still tried to attack the Soviet aircraft, but not too aggressively. Every time Golubev turned on them, the Messers avoided his counterattack. And they became quite cautious as the front line approached. Fly it the Germans did not. Zotov was able to safely land a padded car on the airfield.
While he was landing, Golubev carefully guarded him. Unlinked at the front line, the Messers sometimes appeared suddenly over the airfield to sneak off. The fuel on the plane Golubev was short, and he should hurry to land. And he, in order to protect his comrade, circled in the air.
Since we are talking about combat earnings, let's remember what happened on August 10, 1941. Then the lead was not Golubev. Six of our fighters were commanded by another pilot. He got into trouble: when the group was leading an unequal battle with 16 enemy fighters, the group commander seriously wounded him and he decided to bring the car to the airfield. However, as soon as he left the battlefield, a pair of Messers immediately followed him. This saw Vasily Golubev. In such cases, there is no better defense than an attack. Golubev went on the attack. The Germans had to fight with him. This Golubev just wanted. He took the blow and gave the wounded commander the opportunity to withdraw from the battlefield.
What happened the next day, August 11th, also speaks about how comrade Vasily Golubev was. Above the Weymarn station (this is between Volosovo and Kingisepp) a heavy air fight ensued. Our fighters shot down 4 "Messer". The Soviet plane crashed into the ground. However, the pilot managed to jump out with a parachute. Seeing this, the enemies rushed to the white dome ...
Golubev covered him in the full sense of the word. The wings of the pigeon car became a roof over the head of the descending pilot. "Messers" tried to hit the side - Golubev blocked his comrade with a hail of bullets. What happened next? This is quite difficult to talk about. To the ground there were 30–40 meters, and from above — 4 Me-109. So get out. The only advantage is the low height. Usually, in a dogfight, the advantage is of the one who is taller, and then it turned out the opposite. The Germans chased Golubev with great caution: at such a height one could crash into the ground. But Golubev could not continue this "carousel" for a long time - the fuel was running out. When he broke away from his pursuers with a sudden maneuver and sat down at the nearest airfield, a few drops of gasoline remained in the tank.
An even hotter air battle soon broke out in the region of the same Weimarn railway station, where the train with the militia was unloading. From experience, Lieutenant Golubev knew that the enemy bombers assigned to the echelon can have a strong fighter cover. At his request, the squadron commander added 2 more fighters to the two 3-aircraft units, and thus created 2 tactical groups of 4 vehicles each in pairs. And it fully justified itself in battle.
Patrolling over the station, the pilots discovered the approach of a large group of "Junkers". They walked in three columns on a ten in each under the cover of 12 "Messers". So, 8 of our I-16 against 42 German Ju-88 and Me-109! This did not bother Golubev. It was necessary to stun the enemies with something. And the presenter decided to rapidly attack the armada of the bombers with his four lines of "front" on a head-on course, which the Germans were very afraid of. They could not withstand such a mental attack, they began to turn away. The calculation was justified. Our pilots immediately shot down 2 Ju-88 with accurate fire of rockets and machine guns.
The structure of the first enemy column began to disintegrate. Bombs fell on the field far from the station. Also, the second and third columns of enemy bombers were attacked and scattered. The actions of the Golubev group, reflecting the attacks of the Messers, were covered from above by the driven lieutenant D. Knyazev. In an unequal battle, our pilots shot down 11 enemy aircraft without losing a single one of their own.
As early as August 13, 1941, that is, in a relatively short time, there were more than 100 combat sorties on his account, of which 45 were on bombing - assault strikes. Participating in many air battles, he personally and together with his friends shot down 11 enemy vehicles - 4 Ju-88 bomber, reconnaissance aircraft FW-189 (nicknamed "Rama") and 6 Me-109 fighters.
On August 13, 1941, the six I-16 set off to cover the Weinmar railway station. Planes patrolled at an altitude of only 1,200 to 1,500 meters, and this tactical blunder cost the pilots dearly. Ten Me-109s attacked them from above - the slave Golubev was shot down, and Vasily himself, who was wounded in the leg, put the car on the fuselage with difficulty. The plane was broken, and the pilot landed a month in the hospital.
In mid-September 1941, Vasily Golubev returned to his unit, but the 9 remaining fighter regiments by this time had already flown to the airfield in Nova Ladoga. However, two damaged I-16s with removed armament remained at the airbase, which were repaired by evening. On them Golubev together with his friend F. Zotov set off to overtake the regiment.
On the way, unarmed airplanes were attacked by the Messers, and Golubev's fighter was again shot down, splashed down on the surface of Lake Ladoga. Golubev completely exhausted, barely got to the shore, went out on a deserted cape.
The situation seemed hopeless. The incident reported to the command. And then Golubev's combat partner, Dmitry Knyazev, whom Vasily rescued more than once, rushed to find him on the U-2. And found a friend!
At the new place, Golubev again got an I-16 with the number "13", but this time Bogdanov could not stand it and quickly corrected the figure to "ZZ". From now on, the Baltic pilot constantly flew in cars with this designation.
September 24, 1941 to repel the assault of Leningrad by the enemy troops, all the forces that we have were thrown into battle. VF Golubev recalls:
- On that day, Dmitry Tatarenko and I made 8 sorties each. And on September 25, they set a kind of record by completing 11 sorties each: 6 to support the attack aircraft and 5 to attack the enemy troops. To carry out 19 sorties in 2 days and remain combat-ready when thousands of bullets, shrapnel and shells were whistling around — and this now seems like a miracle to me ...
At the beginning of October, Golubev, among 6 pilots, was seconded to the Hanko Peninsula for the defense of the fleet and Kronstadt from attacks by Finnish and German aircraft. Here the manner of battle of the future ace, based on the traditions of Antonenko and Brinko, was clearly manifested. Golubev himself described it this way:
- "Junkers" began to leave to the east. I choose one, go up to 400 meters, send two shells. Close to a short sniper distance, the arrows of the "Junkers" are silent, apparently both are killed. A long line of three machine guns flashing the enemy's plane from tail to cockpit. Ju-88, slowly falling on the wing, goes down. Near the positions of our troops on earth a fireball swells....
At the end of October, Golubev shot down two Finnish trophy fighters I-153, which fairly annoyed the Soviet fleet, and on November 2, 1941, he single-handedly fought four Finnish "Spitfires" from LeLv.32 and recorded one victory (according to other sources either Hurricanes or MS-406.).
After the capitulation of Finland, Golubev had a chance to talk in Malmo with the Finnish pilot who participated in that battle. Finn said that two of the three remaining Spitfires crashed when they returned to base. However, other sources refute these facts: according to Tietoteos, that day Finland, in general, did not lose a single Spitfire.
In the last months of 1941, the 13th IAP suffered heavy losses in the defense of the "Roads of Life" across Lake Ladoga. Partly to blame for this were the German "hunters" from JG 54, who flew on the Me-109F. For example, in early December, the regiment lost two pilots, shot down because of their own carelessness.
First name: Jan
Category: Intermediate
Scale: 1/32
Manufacturer: Revell (ICM)
Model Type: Polikarpov I-16 Type 24
Aftermarket Add Ons: None, I think....
Born on November 16, 1912 in the village of Kamenka, now the Volkhov District of the Leningrad Region, in a peasant family. He graduated from 7 classes of secondary school. He worked as an instructor Osoaviahima Volkhov city. Since 1933, serving in the Navy. In 1940 he graduated from the Yeisk Naval Aviation School for Pilots.
Since June 1941, Lieutenant V. F. Golubev in the active army. Fought as part of the Baltic Fleet Air Force, participated in the defense of the Hanko Peninsula.
By June 1942, the squadron commander of the 4th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment (61st Fighter Aviation Brigade, Red Banner Baltic Fleet Air Force) Guards Captain V.F. Golubev made 339 combat sorties, participating in 61 air combat, shot down 4 aircraft in person and 23 - in a group.
October 23, 1942 for the courage and bravery shown in battles with enemies, was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union.
Total made 589 successful combat missions. In 133 air battles destroyed 39 enemy aircraft in person and as part of a group.
After the war, continued to serve in aviation. In 1951, after graduating from the Naval Academy, he commanded the aviation division. Since 1971 - Senior Lecturer at the Academy of the General Staff. Since 1975, General - Lieutenant of Aviation V. F. Golubev - in reserve. Honorary citizen of Syasstroy village, Volkhovsky district of Leningrad region. The author of the books: "School of War", "Wings are getting stronger in battle", "Second Wind", "Ahead of the Commissioner", "In the name of Leningrad" and others. He died on April 17, 2001.
He was awarded orders: Lenin (twice), Red Banner (seven), World War 1 degree (twice), Red Star (twice), "For serving the Motherland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" 3rd degree, the highest military orders of the Republic of Egypt and Great Britain; many medals.
* * *
One of the most successful pilots of the Baltic Fleet Air Force, Vasily Golubev, went through the Great Patriotic War from the first to the last day, from an ordinary pilot to the commander of the 4th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment, participated in all operations of the Baltic Fleet Air Force. During this time, he proved himself a talented commander, carefully planning every combat sortie and operation in the air, taking into account all the tactical weaknesses of the enemy and meticulously examining the mistakes of the pilots of his unit.
He was born in 1912 in the village of Kamenka, near Leningrad. Since childhood, was accustomed to work. By age 14 he was already confidently coping with the plow. After graduating from 7 classes, Vasily, on the advice of his father, went to Leningrad to get a job at the factory. Even then, the young man dreamed of heaven when he arrived in North Palmyra made the first attempt to enter a military theoretical school. He was not accepted - too young. After 2 years of work in the paper mill - a new attempt. And again - failure. This time the medical commission rejected it.
However, the desire to fly is not lost. In 1933, Vasily voluntarily joined the Red Army, and, having been sent to airborne troops, served for 2 years. There he was qualified as a parachute instructor. But he was attracted by airplanes. On the permit of the Komsomol, Vasily went to Duderhof, where he was enrolled as a cadet of a flight - glider school. Here Golubev mastered not only the glider. On his own initiative, he thoroughly studied the U-2 aircraft, flew on it independently.
In 1936, after graduating from school, he was assigned to Syasstroy, to the position of instructor in a parachute-glider club, where he worked for 2 years. In the spring of 1938, he was sent to retrain at the Koktebel Higher Flight Glider School of the Central Council of Osoaviakhim, and then he was appointed a pilot — an instructor of the flying club in Mineralnye Vody. There he flew a lot on U-2, UT-1, UT-2 airplanes and taught others.
An experienced and capable pilot, he firmly decided to become a military aviator, to master more powerful and high-speed airborne vehicles. In 1939, V. Golubev entered the Naval Aviation School in Yeisk. In the entrance exams, he received excellent marks in all subjects. And when they checked his flight training in the air, they immediately enrolled in the last course and were allowed to fly an I-15 fighter on their own. He graduated from this college with honors in 1940.
Since that time, began his permanent service in aviation. At first he was a fighter pilot, a parachute commander of the airborne service, and a flight commander of the 13th separate squadron of the Red Banner Baltic Fleet Air Force. He began the war as part of a separate aviation brigade, and in October 1941 he was transferred to the 13th Fighter Aviation Regiment, which later became the 4th Guards Regiment. Vasily Golubev and his fighting friends became like this regiment and until the end of the war in his ranks they smashed the enemy on land and at sea.
It is significant that the first combat mission to repel the attack of German aircraft on the Kronstadt naval base Golubev performed at 4 am on June 22, 1941. From now on, departures towards the enemy followed one after another, day and night. The main task of the sea pilots was considered air cover of Leningrad on the far and near approaches.
He began to fight on the I-16 with the tail number "13". But the 13th did not bring good luck to Golubev. He won his first victory on June 28, 1941, knocking out a German Ju-88 bomber. In early July, his victim was the fighter Me-109E. Then began a streak of bad luck.
July 13, he attacked the German planes in the forehead, taking them for the Ju-88. However, it turned out to be twin-engined heavy fighters Me-110 with powerful nose armament. As a result, Golubev's "Ishachok" was shot down and the pilot, all bathed in oil, barely managed to land at his airfield. After this incident, the mechanic Bogdanov suggested correcting the fighter's tail number to "14", but Golubev refused ...
Reliable presenter Vasily Golubev, when meeting with the enemy, always sought to build a group's battle order so as to retain the initiative before the start of an air battle or strike on a ground object. Therefore, he always went out of battle victorious. And, as a rule, had no losses. Great importance was attached to mutual assistance in battle. An example of this was given by the presenter himself. At the critical moment of contact with enemy aircraft, he rescued the slaves more than once, saving them from defeat.
When Vasily Fedorovich Golubev, after the war, was asked to speak in front of young warriors, he turned over the episodes of the war years in his memory and thought: "Where to start?" And, as a rule, he began the story from the first battles. Well, at least from the one that took place on July 26, 1941, when Golubev flew on reconnaissance and his slave lieutenant Zotov's car hit the anti-aircraft gun. Management was damaged, Zotov could only fly in a straight line.
Having lost the ability to maneuver, the fighter ceases to be a fighter. Maneuvering in air combat is like a weapon. Therefore, it is not difficult to understand what the pilot experienced when he saw 4 Messers in front of him. Golubev found himself in an unenviable position. If he was alone, it would be easier. And then fight off 4 German fighters and do not move a step away from your friend.
The Germans immediately guessed that something was wrong with the Soviet machine. Not for nothing, it flies only in a straight line. With it, they started. The nearby Messer was preparing to open fire. But Golubev was ahead of him. I managed to catch a sight ...
This could seem like luck - and nothing more. Luck, of course, also happen, but the instant victory won by Golubev was explained entirely differently - by his exceptional accuracy. Vasily Fedorovich was called the air sniper before the war. He practiced a lot to learn to hit the target from the first stage. After the attacks of Golubev, the towing plane dropped a holed air target to the airfield.
And the enemy plane was a little more training target. As soon as the "Messer" found himself in the sight, as the next second he began to fall. The three others understood who they were dealing with. They still tried to attack the Soviet aircraft, but not too aggressively. Every time Golubev turned on them, the Messers avoided his counterattack. And they became quite cautious as the front line approached. Fly it the Germans did not. Zotov was able to safely land a padded car on the airfield.
While he was landing, Golubev carefully guarded him. Unlinked at the front line, the Messers sometimes appeared suddenly over the airfield to sneak off. The fuel on the plane Golubev was short, and he should hurry to land. And he, in order to protect his comrade, circled in the air.
Since we are talking about combat earnings, let's remember what happened on August 10, 1941. Then the lead was not Golubev. Six of our fighters were commanded by another pilot. He got into trouble: when the group was leading an unequal battle with 16 enemy fighters, the group commander seriously wounded him and he decided to bring the car to the airfield. However, as soon as he left the battlefield, a pair of Messers immediately followed him. This saw Vasily Golubev. In such cases, there is no better defense than an attack. Golubev went on the attack. The Germans had to fight with him. This Golubev just wanted. He took the blow and gave the wounded commander the opportunity to withdraw from the battlefield.
What happened the next day, August 11th, also speaks about how comrade Vasily Golubev was. Above the Weymarn station (this is between Volosovo and Kingisepp) a heavy air fight ensued. Our fighters shot down 4 "Messer". The Soviet plane crashed into the ground. However, the pilot managed to jump out with a parachute. Seeing this, the enemies rushed to the white dome ...
Golubev covered him in the full sense of the word. The wings of the pigeon car became a roof over the head of the descending pilot. "Messers" tried to hit the side - Golubev blocked his comrade with a hail of bullets. What happened next? This is quite difficult to talk about. To the ground there were 30–40 meters, and from above — 4 Me-109. So get out. The only advantage is the low height. Usually, in a dogfight, the advantage is of the one who is taller, and then it turned out the opposite. The Germans chased Golubev with great caution: at such a height one could crash into the ground. But Golubev could not continue this "carousel" for a long time - the fuel was running out. When he broke away from his pursuers with a sudden maneuver and sat down at the nearest airfield, a few drops of gasoline remained in the tank.
An even hotter air battle soon broke out in the region of the same Weimarn railway station, where the train with the militia was unloading. From experience, Lieutenant Golubev knew that the enemy bombers assigned to the echelon can have a strong fighter cover. At his request, the squadron commander added 2 more fighters to the two 3-aircraft units, and thus created 2 tactical groups of 4 vehicles each in pairs. And it fully justified itself in battle.
Patrolling over the station, the pilots discovered the approach of a large group of "Junkers". They walked in three columns on a ten in each under the cover of 12 "Messers". So, 8 of our I-16 against 42 German Ju-88 and Me-109! This did not bother Golubev. It was necessary to stun the enemies with something. And the presenter decided to rapidly attack the armada of the bombers with his four lines of "front" on a head-on course, which the Germans were very afraid of. They could not withstand such a mental attack, they began to turn away. The calculation was justified. Our pilots immediately shot down 2 Ju-88 with accurate fire of rockets and machine guns.
The structure of the first enemy column began to disintegrate. Bombs fell on the field far from the station. Also, the second and third columns of enemy bombers were attacked and scattered. The actions of the Golubev group, reflecting the attacks of the Messers, were covered from above by the driven lieutenant D. Knyazev. In an unequal battle, our pilots shot down 11 enemy aircraft without losing a single one of their own.
As early as August 13, 1941, that is, in a relatively short time, there were more than 100 combat sorties on his account, of which 45 were on bombing - assault strikes. Participating in many air battles, he personally and together with his friends shot down 11 enemy vehicles - 4 Ju-88 bomber, reconnaissance aircraft FW-189 (nicknamed "Rama") and 6 Me-109 fighters.
On August 13, 1941, the six I-16 set off to cover the Weinmar railway station. Planes patrolled at an altitude of only 1,200 to 1,500 meters, and this tactical blunder cost the pilots dearly. Ten Me-109s attacked them from above - the slave Golubev was shot down, and Vasily himself, who was wounded in the leg, put the car on the fuselage with difficulty. The plane was broken, and the pilot landed a month in the hospital.
In mid-September 1941, Vasily Golubev returned to his unit, but the 9 remaining fighter regiments by this time had already flown to the airfield in Nova Ladoga. However, two damaged I-16s with removed armament remained at the airbase, which were repaired by evening. On them Golubev together with his friend F. Zotov set off to overtake the regiment.
On the way, unarmed airplanes were attacked by the Messers, and Golubev's fighter was again shot down, splashed down on the surface of Lake Ladoga. Golubev completely exhausted, barely got to the shore, went out on a deserted cape.
The situation seemed hopeless. The incident reported to the command. And then Golubev's combat partner, Dmitry Knyazev, whom Vasily rescued more than once, rushed to find him on the U-2. And found a friend!
At the new place, Golubev again got an I-16 with the number "13", but this time Bogdanov could not stand it and quickly corrected the figure to "ZZ". From now on, the Baltic pilot constantly flew in cars with this designation.
September 24, 1941 to repel the assault of Leningrad by the enemy troops, all the forces that we have were thrown into battle. VF Golubev recalls:
- On that day, Dmitry Tatarenko and I made 8 sorties each. And on September 25, they set a kind of record by completing 11 sorties each: 6 to support the attack aircraft and 5 to attack the enemy troops. To carry out 19 sorties in 2 days and remain combat-ready when thousands of bullets, shrapnel and shells were whistling around — and this now seems like a miracle to me ...
At the beginning of October, Golubev, among 6 pilots, was seconded to the Hanko Peninsula for the defense of the fleet and Kronstadt from attacks by Finnish and German aircraft. Here the manner of battle of the future ace, based on the traditions of Antonenko and Brinko, was clearly manifested. Golubev himself described it this way:
- "Junkers" began to leave to the east. I choose one, go up to 400 meters, send two shells. Close to a short sniper distance, the arrows of the "Junkers" are silent, apparently both are killed. A long line of three machine guns flashing the enemy's plane from tail to cockpit. Ju-88, slowly falling on the wing, goes down. Near the positions of our troops on earth a fireball swells....
At the end of October, Golubev shot down two Finnish trophy fighters I-153, which fairly annoyed the Soviet fleet, and on November 2, 1941, he single-handedly fought four Finnish "Spitfires" from LeLv.32 and recorded one victory (according to other sources either Hurricanes or MS-406.).
After the capitulation of Finland, Golubev had a chance to talk in Malmo with the Finnish pilot who participated in that battle. Finn said that two of the three remaining Spitfires crashed when they returned to base. However, other sources refute these facts: according to Tietoteos, that day Finland, in general, did not lose a single Spitfire.
In the last months of 1941, the 13th IAP suffered heavy losses in the defense of the "Roads of Life" across Lake Ladoga. Partly to blame for this were the German "hunters" from JG 54, who flew on the Me-109F. For example, in early December, the regiment lost two pilots, shot down because of their own carelessness.
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