Lydia Litvyak

Lydia Vladimirovna Litvyak (Лидия Владимировна Литвяк, (Moscow, August 18, 1921 – Krasnyi Luch [1] August 1, 1943), also known as Lydia Litviak or Lilya Litviak, was a fighter pilot in the Soviet Air Force during World War II. With 12 solo victories [2] [3] (but some authors say 11 [4] or even 13 [5] [6] ) and either two,[7] or four,[8] shared gained in 66 combat missions,[5] she is one of the world's only two female fighter aces, along with Katya Budanova. She was shot down by Luftwaffe's Experten Hans-Jörg Merkle of JG 52 or Hans Schleef, of JG 3. {| class="toc" id="toc"

Contents
[hide] *1 Early life
 * 2 World War II
 * 2.1 Women's regiment
 * 2.2 Men's regiment
 * 2.3 Free hunter
 * 2.4 Last Mission
 * 3 Recognition and controversy
 * 3.1 Death controversy
 * 3.2 Number of kills
 * 4 Character and private life
 * 5 White lily, white rose
 * 6 Decorations
 * 7 Aerial victories
 * 8 References
 * 8.1 Notes
 * 8.2 Bibliography
 * 9 External links
 * }

[edit] Early life
Born in Moscow, Litvyak became interested in aviation at an early age. At 14 she enrolled in a flying club. She performed her first solo flight at 15, and later graduated at Kherson military flying school. She became a flight instructor at Kalinin Airclub,[9] and by the time the German-Soviet war broke out, had already trained forty-five pilots.[10]

[edit] Women's regiment
After the German attack on the Soviet Union in June 1941, Litvyak tried to join a military aviation unit, but was turned down for lack of experience. After deliberately exaggerating her pre-war flight time by 100 hours, she joined the all-female 586th Fighter Regiment of the Air Defense Force (586 IAP/PVO, istrebitel'naia aviatsia protivovozdushnoi oborony),[11] which was formed by Marina Raskova. She trained there on the Yakovlev Yak-1 aircraft. A wrecked Junkers Ju 88: the first "victim" of Litvyak was an aircraft of this type===[edit] Men's regiment=== Litvyak flew her first combat flights in the summer of 1942 over Saratov. In September, she was assigned to the 437 IAP, a men's regiment fighting over Stalingrad. On 10 September she moved along with Katya Budanova, Maria M. Kuznetsova and Raisa Beliaeva, the commander of the group, and accompanying female ground crew, to the regiment airfield, at Verkhnaia Akhtuba, on the east bank of the Volga river. But when they arrived the base was empty and under attack, so they soon moved to Srednaia Akhtuba.[12] Here, flying a Yak-1[13] carrying the number "32" on the fuselage, she would achieve considerable success.[14] "Liliia Litvyak was a very aggressive person", but an exceptional pilot, recalled Boris Eremin (later lieutenant general of aviation), who was a regimental commander in the division to which she and Budanova were assigned, "a born fighter pilot".[15] Restored Messerschmitt Bf 109G: The first fighter shot down by Litvyak was an aircraft of this type, flown by a Luftwaffe ace.In the 437th Fighter Regiment, Litvyak scored her very first two kills on 13 September, three days after her arrival and on her third mission to cover Stalingrad, becoming the very first woman fighter pilot to shoot down an enemy aircraft.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Cottam-Selected-Biographies_p._150._15-0">[16] That day, four Yak-1s—with Major S. Danilov in the lead—attacked a formation of Junkers Ju 88s escorted by Messerschmitt Bf 109s.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Seidl_p._135._16-0">[17] Her first kill was a Ju 88 which fell in flames from the sky after several bursts. Then she shot a Bf 109 G-2 "Gustav" off the tail of her squadron commander, Raisa Beliaeva.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Seidl_p._135._16-1">[17] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-17">[18] The Bf 109 was piloted by a decorated pilot from the 4th Air Fleet commanded by General Wolfram Freiherr von Richthofen (a distant relative of the Red Baron)<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Cottam-Selected-Biographies_p._150._15-1">[16] the 11-victory ace, three-time recipient<sup class="noprint Inline-Template" style="white-space: nowrap;">[clarification needed] of the Iron Cross,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Goodpaster_p._27._0-1">[1] Staff Sergeant Erwin Maier of the 2nd Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 53. Maier parachuted from his aircraft, was captured by Soviet troops, and asked to see the Russian ace who had outflown him. When he was taken to stand in front of Litvyak, he thought he was being made the butt of a Soviet joke. It was not until Litvyak described each move of the dogfight to him in perfect detail that he knew he had been beaten by a woman pilot.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-18">[19] But according to other authors <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Bergstr.C3.B6m_p._83._19-0">[20] the first air victory of a female pilot was achieved by 586° IAP's Leutenant Valeriya Khomiakova when she shot down the Ju 88 flown by Oblt. Gerhard Maak of 7./KG76 on the night of 24 September 1942.On 14 September, according to some authors, Litvyak shot down another Bf 109.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Sakaida_p._14._20-0">[21] But on that day, Luftwaffe, on Stalingrad, did not lose any Bf 109. <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Bergstr.C3.B6m_p._134._21-0">[22] On 27 September Litvyak scored an air victory against a Ju 88, the gunner having shot up the regiment commander, Major M.S. Khovostnikov.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Seidl_p._135._16-2">[17] For some historians <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Bergstr.C3.B6m_p._83._19-1">[20] that was her first kill.

[edit] Free hunter
Litvyak, Beliaeva, Budanova and Kuznetsova stayed in the 437 IAP for a short time only, mainly because it was equipped with LaGG 3s rather than Yak-1s, that the women flew, and was lacking the facilities to service the latter. So the four women were moved to the 9th Guards Fighter Regiment (9 GvIAP, gvardeiskii istrebitel’ nyi aviatsionnyi polk). From October 1942 till January 1943, Litvyak and Budanova served, still in the Stalingrad area, with this famous unit, commanded by Lev Shestakov, Hero of Soviet Union.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Cottam-Selected-Biographies_p._150._15-2">[16]

In January 1943, the 9th was re-equipped with the Bell P-39 Airacobras and Litvyak and Budanova were moved to the 296 IAP (later the 73 GvIAP, Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment) of Nikolai Baranov, of the 8th Air Army, so that they could still fly the Yaks.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington_pp._135-163._22-0">[23] On February 23, she was awarded the Order of the Red Star, made a junior lieutenant and selected to take part in the elite air tactic called okhotniki, or "free hunter", where pairs of experienced pilots searched for targets on their own initiative.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington1997_23-0">[24] Twice, she was forced to land due to battle damage. On 22 March she was wounded for the first time.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Cottam-Selected-Biographies_p._152._24-0">[25] That day she was flying as part of a group of six Yak fighters when they attacked a dozen Ju 88s. Litvyak shot down one of the bombers, but was in turn attacked and wounded by the escorting Bf 109s. She managed to shoot down a Messerschmitt and to return to her airfield and land her plane, but was in severe pain and losing blood.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington_pp._137-138._25-0">[26] While in 73 GvIAP, she often flew as wingman of Alexei Frolovich Solomatin. Kapitan Solomatin was a flying ace. He had claimed a total of 39 victories (22 shared), when he flew into the ground, in Pavlonka, and was killed in front of the entire regiment on May 21,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polak_p._302._26-0">[27] while training a new flyer. Lydia was devastated by the crash and wrote a letter to her mother describing how she realized only after Solomatin's death that she had loved him.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington1997_23-1">[24]

Senior Sergeant Inna Pasportnikova, Litvyak's mechanic during the time she flew with the men's regiment, reported in 1990 that after Solomatin's death, Litvyak wanted nothing but to fly combat missions, and she fought desperately.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Noggle_p.198_27-0">[28]

Litvyak scored against a difficult target on May 31, 1943: an artillery observation balloon manned by a German officer. German artillery was aided in targeting by reports from the observation post on the balloon. The elimination of the balloon had been attempted by other Soviet airmen but all had been driven away by a dense protective belt of anti-aircraft fire defending the balloon. Litvyak volunteered to take out the balloon but was turned down. She insisted, and described for her commander her plan: she would attack it from the rear after flying in a wide circle around the perimeter of the battleground and over German-held territory. The tactic worked—the hydrogen-filled balloon caught fire under her stream of tracer bullets and was destroyed.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-28">[29]

On June 13, 1943, Litvyak was appointed flight commander of the 3rd Aviation Squadron within 73rd GvIAP.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington1997_23-2">[24]

Lydia made an additional kill on July 16, 1943.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Sakaida_p._15._29-0">[30] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington_.28Amazons.29_p._264._30-0">[31] That day, six Yaks encountered 30 German bombers with six escorts. The woman ace downed a bomber and shared a victory with a comrade, but her fighter was hit and she had to make a belly landing.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington_.28Amazons.29_p._264._30-1">[31] She was wounded again but refused to take medical leave. She shot down two more Bf 109s on 19 and 21 July 1943.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington_.28Amazons.29_p._264._30-2">[31]

[edit] Last Mission
Krasnyi Luch wall of Honor to the Heroes of War and Labor. Litvyak took off for her last mission from an airfield close to this city, where a museum dedicated to her is located.On August 1, 1943, Lydia did not come back to her base of Krasnyy Luch, in the Donbass, from an escort to a flight of Ilyushin Il-2 Shturmoviks. It was her fourth sortie of the day. As the Soviets were returning to base near Orel,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Spick_p._120._4-2">[5] a pair of Bf 109 fighters<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Noggle_p.198_27-1">[28] dived on Lydia while she was attacking a large group of German bombers. Soviet pilot Ivan Borisenko recalled: “Lily just didn’t see the Messerschmitt 109s flying cover for the German bombers. A pair of them dived on her and when she did see them she turned to meet them. Then they all disappeared behind a cloud.” Borisenko, involved in the dogfight, saw her a last time, through a gap in the clouds, her Yak-1 pouring smoke and pursued by as many as eight Bf 109s.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Myles_p._232._31-0">[32] Borisenko descended to see if he could find her. No parachute was seen, and no explosion, yet she never returned from the mission. Litvyak was 21 years old. Soviet authorities suspected that she might have been captured, a possibility that prevented them from awarding her the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Noggle199_32-0">[33] Two German pilots are believed to have shot down Litvyak: Feldwebel Hans-Jörg Merkle of 1./JG.52 and Leutnant Hans Schleef, of 7./JG 3. Merkle is the only pilot that claimed a Yak-1 on Dmitryevka (where she was last seen and was - reportedly - buried), on 1st August 1943, while Schleef claimed a LaGG-3 (often confused in combat with Yak-1s by German pilots) on the same day, in South-Ukraine area where Litvyak's aircraft was at last found.

[edit] Recognition and controversy
In an attempt to prove that Litvyak had not been taken captive, Pasportnikova embarked on a 36 year search for the Yakovlev Yak-1 crash site assisted by the public and the media. For three years she was joined by relatives who together combed the most likely areas with a metal detector.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Noggle199_32-1">[33] In 1979, after uncovering more than 90 other crash sites, 30 aircraft<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Noggle199_32-2">[33] and many lost pilots killed in action, "the searchers discovered that an unidentified woman pilot had been buried in the village of Dmitrievka... in Shakhterski district." It was then assumed that it was Litvyak and that she had been killed in action after sustaining a mortal head wound.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington1997_23-3">[24] Pasportnikova said that a specialist commission was formed to inspect the exhumed body and it concluded the remains were those of Litvyak.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Noggle_p._200._33-0">[34]

On May 6, 1990, USSR President Mikhail Gorbachev posthumously awarded Litvyak Hero of the Soviet Union.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-34">[35] Her final rank was senior lieutenant.

[edit] Death controversy
Arguments have been published that dispute the official version of Litvyak's death. Although Yekaterina Valentina Vaschenko, the curator of the Litvyak museum in Krasnyi Luch has stated that the body was disinterred and examined by forensic specialists who determined that it was indeed Litvyak,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-35">[36] Kazimiera Janina "Jean" Cottam claims, on the basis of evidence provided by Ekaterina Polunina, chief mechanic and archivist of the 586th Fighter Regiment in which Litvyak initially served, that the body was never exhumed and that verification was limited to comparison of a number of reports.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Cottam2006_36-0">[37] Cottam, an author and researcher focusing on Soviet women in the military, concludes that Litvyak made a belly-landing in her stricken aircraft, was captured and taken to a prisoner of war camp.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Cottam2006_36-1">[37] In her book published in 2004, Polunina lists evidence that led her to conclude that Litvyak was pulled from the downed aircraft by German troops and held prisoner for some time.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polunina_37-0">[38]

In 2000, Nina Raspopova, a veteran of the 46th (Taman) Guards Night Bomber Aviation Regiment (also known as the "Night Witches") informed Polunina that she had seen a woman greatly resembling Litvyak, alive and being interviewed on a Swiss television program.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polunina_37-1">[38] Raspopova claimed that the woman concerned was Russian, appeared to be aged in her late 70s, and was introduced as a mother of three and former Soviet combat pilot. The woman supposedly claimed to have been wounded twice during World War II. However, Litvak did not serve in the "Night Witches" and it is not clear whether Raspopova knew her personally.

[edit] Number of kills
There are conflicting claims about Litvyak's victory score in different publications; none are official records. Most often, 11 individual kills and 3 team kills are quoted, but also 8 individual and 4 team, 12 individual and 2 team,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Noggle157_6-1">[7] or other combinations. Pasportnikova stated in 1990 that the tally was 12 solo kills including the balloon, and three shared.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-38">[39] Polunina has written that the kills of top-scoring Soviet pilots, including those of Litvyak and Budanova, were often inflated; and that Litvyak should be credited with five solo aircraft kills and two group kills, including the observation balloon.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polunina_37-2">[38]

Litvyak was awarded with the Order of the Red Banner, Order of the Red Star, and was twice honored with the Order of the Patriotic War.

[edit] Character and private life
Litvyak displayed a rebellious and romantic character.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Milanetti_39-0">[40] Returning from a successful mission, she would "buzz" the aerodrome and then indulge in unauthorised aerobatics, knowing that it enraged her commander.

Litvyak could also be superstitious, as Paspotnikova testified: She never believed that she was invincible. She believed that some pilots had luck on their side and others didn't. She firmly believed that, if you survived the first missions, the more you flew and the more experience you got your chances of making it would increase. But you had to have luck on your side.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Milanetti_39-1">[40] Despite the predominantly male environment in which she found herself, she never renounced her femininity, and would carry on dyeing her hair blonde, sending her friend Inna Pasportnikova to the hospital to fetch hydrogen peroxide for her.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Milanetti_39-2">[40] She would fashion scarves from parachute material, dyeing the small pieces in different colours and stitching them together and would not hide her love of flowers, which she picked at every available occasion, favouring red roses. She would make bouquets and keep them in the cockpit, which were promptly discarded by the male pilots who shared her aircraft.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Milanetti_39-3">[40]

Her comrade Solomatin is believed to have been her fiancé, and after his death she wrote to her mother: You see, he was not my type, but his insistence and his love for me convinced me to love him... and now, it seems I will never meet someone like him ever again.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Milanetti_39-4">[40] The novel Vernis iz Poleta (<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-40">[41] ) (Return from Flight) by Natalya Kravtsova fictionalizes the death of Solomatin, stating that he was killed when he ran out of ammunition while battling with a German Bf 109 fighter plane over his own airfield. Litvyak and others at the airfield watched the fight and witnessed his death.

[edit] White lily, white rose
She was called the "White Lily of Stalingrad" in Soviet press releases; the white lily flower may be translated from Russian as Madonna lily. She has also been called the "White Rose of Stalingrad" in Europe and North America after reports of her exploits were first published in English. A play about her, White Rose, was performed once in Coventry.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-41">[42]

[edit] Decorations

 * Hero of the Soviet Union.
 * Order of Lenin.
 * Order of the Red Banner
 * Order of the Red Star.
 * Order of the Patriotic War 1st class.

[edit] Aerial victories
The following table summarizes Litvyak's victories and her probable victims: (**) = Overclaim. Not known German combat loss match this claim.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template" style="white-space: nowrap;">[clarification needed]
 * September 13, 1942
 * two solo, a Junkers Ju 88<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polak_p._201._13-1">[14] and a Messerschmitt Bf 109 (of E. Maier.) Another source suggests a Heinkel He 111 instead of a Ju 88.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Myles_1981_42-0">[43]
 * September 14, 1942
 * one solo, a Bf 109 <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Sakaida_p._14._20-1">[21] (according to historian Hans D. Seidl,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Seidl_p._135._16-3">[17] it was a kill shared with Katya Budanova)
 * September 27, 1942
 * one solo, a Junkers Ju 88
 * one shared, with Raisa Beliaeva, a Messerschmitt Bf 109
 * February 11, 1943
 * one solo, a Junkers Ju 87<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polak_p._202._12-1">[13] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington1997_23-4">[24] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Aranysas_3-09_43-0">[44]
 * one shared, with Alexei Solomatin, a Focke-Wulf Fw 190<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polak_p._202._12-2">[13] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington1997_23-5">[24]
 * March 1, 1943
 * one solo, a Focke-Wulf Fw 190
 * March 22, 1943
 * two solo, a Messerschmitt Bf 109<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polak_p._202._12-3">[13] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington1997_23-6">[24] and a Junkers Ju 88 <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polak_p._202._12-4">[13]
 * May 5, 1943
 * one solo, a Messerschmitt Bf 109<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polak_p._202._12-5">[13] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington1997_23-7">[24] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Aranysas_3-09_43-1">[44]
 * May 7, 1943
 * one solo, a Messerschmitt Bf 109 <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polak_p._202._12-6">[13] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington1997_23-8">[24] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Aranysas_3-09_43-2">[44]
 * May 31, 1943
 * one solo, an artillery observation balloon<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polak_p._202._12-7">[13] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington1997_23-9">[24] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Aranysas_3-09_43-3">[44]
 * July 16, 1943
 * one solo, Messerschmitt Bf 109. One source claims the victim aircraft had an "Ace of Spades" card painted on the fuselage.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Myles_1981_42-1">[43] Another source claims that this kill was a bomber.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Sakaida_p._15._29-1">[30]
 * one shared<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Sakaida_p._15._29-2">[30] (According to another source, the shared kill was a Bf 109 while the solo was a Ju 88<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polak_p._202._12-8">[13] )
 * July 19, 1943
 * one solo, a Messerschmitt Bf 109
 * July 21, 1943
 * one a Messerschmitt Bf 109<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington_.28Amazons.29_p._264._30-3">[31]
 * July 31, 1943
 * one solo, a Messerschmitt Bf 109
 * one shared, a Messerschmitt Bf 109 (however, according to the books of Pennington, Cottam, Noggle, Sakaida, Goodpaster, Polak and Seidl, on 31 July 1943, Litvyak did not score any kill)
 * August 1, 1943
 * one solo, a Messerschmitt Bf 109,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polak_p._202._12-9">[13]
 * one shared, a Messerschmitt Bf 109<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Polak_p._202._12-10">[13] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Pennington1997_23-10">[24]

[edit] Notes

 * 1) ^ a b Goodpaster 2009, p. 27.
 * 2) ^ Jackson 2003, p. 57.
 * 3) ^ Seidl 1998, p. 323.
 * 4) ^ Morgan 1999, p. 31.
 * 5) ^ a b c Spick 1999, p. 120.
 * 6) ^ Spick 1983, p. 102.
 * 7) ^ a b Noggle, 1994, p. 157.
 * 8) ^ Bergström, 2007, p. 83.
 * 9) ^ Seidl 1998, p. 134.
 * 10) ^ Cottam-Selected-Biographies 1998, p. 149.
 * 11) ^ Pennington 2001, p. XV.
 * 12) ^ Pennington 2001, pp. 130-131.
 * 13) ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Polak 1999, p. 202.
 * 14) ^ a b Polak 1999, p. 201.
 * 15) ^ Pennington 1997, p. 163.
 * 16) ^ a b c Cottam-Selected-Biographies 1998, p. 150.
 * 17) ^ a b c d Seidl 1998, p. 135.
 * 18) ^ The Eastern Front. Russian Aces. Lilya Vladimirovna Litviak. Retrieved March 23, 2009.
 * 19) ^ Goodpaster, 2007, p. 27.
 * 20) ^ a b Bergström 2007, p. 83.
 * 21) ^ a b Sakaida 2003, p. 14.
 * 22) ^ Bergström 2007, p. 134.
 * 23) ^ Pennington 2001, pp. 135-163.
 * 24) ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Pennington, 1997
 * 25) ^ Cottam-Selected-Biographies 1998, p. 152.
 * 26) ^ Pennington 2001, pp. 137-138.
 * 27) ^ Polak 1999, p. 302.
 * 28) ^ a b Noggle, 1994, p. 198
 * 29) ^ Noggle, 1994, pp. 197–198.
 * 30) ^ a b c Sakaida 2003, p. 15.
 * 31) ^ a b c d Pennington (Amazons) 2003, p. 264.
 * 32) ^ Myles 1981, p. 232.
 * 33) ^ a b c Noggle, 1994, p. 199
 * 34) ^ Noggle 1994, p. 200.
 * 35) ^ Noggle, 1994, pp. 158, 194.
 * 36) ^ Soviet-Awards.com Henry Sakaida, 2002. The Memorial to Soviet Ace Lydia Litvyak, page 3. Retrieved on March 23, 2009.
 * 37) ^ a b Redarmyonline.org. Kazimiera Janina "Jean" Cottam, 2006. (Lidya (Lily) Vladimirovna Litvyak (b. 1921). Retrieved March 23, 2009.
 * 38) ^ a b c Polunina, 2004
 * 39) ^ Noggle, 1994, p. 197.
 * 40) ^ a b c d e Milanetti, Gian Piero (April 2011) (in Italian). Le streghe della notte (first ed.). Rome: Istituto Bibliografico Napoleone. pp. 73–88. ISBN 88-7565-100-0.
 * 41) ^ Return from the flight,http://openlibrary.org/b/OL4050426M/Vernisʹ_iz_poletathat
 * 42) ^ The Guardian. Notes and Queries. Yesteryear. Question by Jaakko, Sydney Australia. Apparently during World War 2 in Russia there was a female pilot, the "White Rose of Stalingrad". Can anyone describe her exploits, and did she survive the war? Retrieved March 23, 2009.
 * 43) ^ a b Myles, 1981
 * 44) ^ a b c d Aranysas, March 2009. "Sztálingrád Fehér Lilioma". Retrieved March 23, 2009.
 * 45) ^ Belyakov, Vladimir. Aviation History magazine, March 2002
 * 46) ^ Prien, JG 53, II, p. 569
 * 47) ^ Bergstrom, Dikov & Antipov, p.168
 * 48) ^ LW Loss Report (microfilm roll #7)
 * 49) ^ Fast, JG 52, IV p. 76
 * 50) ^ Die Geschichte der II./JG 52, p.308
 * 51) ^ LW Loss Report (microfilm roll #8)
 * 52) ^ a b Stockton, Harold; Tyminski, Dariusz; Bergström, Christer (1998-12-09). "Marina Raskova and Soviet Female Pilots" (in Polish). WWII Ace Stories. Elknet.pl. http://www.elknet.pl/acestory/raskov/raskov.htm. Retrieved 2011-12-31.
 * 53) ^ a b LW Loss Report (microfilm roll #11)-Vol. 19
 * 54) ^ a b Prien/Stemmer, II./JG 3, p.408
 * 55) ^ Kacha, Petr. "Hans 'Specker' Grünberg, Oberleutnant". Aces of the Luftwaffe. Luftwaffe.cz. http://www.luftwaffe.cz/grunberg.html. Retrieved 2011-12-31.
 * 56) ^ a b LW Loss Report (microfilm roll #11)-Vol. 20
 * 57) ^ Fast, JG 52, IV, p.102
 * 58) ^ Fast, JG 52 Band IV p102

[edit] Bibliography

 * Bergström, Christer (2007). Barbarossa—The Air Battle: July–December 1941. Classic Publications. ISBN 1-85780-270-5. http://books.google.com/books?id=-FiyGAAACAAJ.
 * Bergström, Christer. Stalingrad—The Air Battle: 1942 through January 1943. Hinckley England, Midland, 2007. ISBN 978-1-85780-276-4.
 * Christer Bergström, Andrey Dikov & Vlad Antipov, Black Cross – Red Star. Air War over the Eastern Front. Volume 3. Everything for Stalingrad. Eagle Editions Ltd., 2006.
 * Goodpaster-Strebe, Amy (2007). Flying for Her Country: the American and Soviet women military pilots of World War II. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 0-275-99434-1. http://books.google.com/books?id=bFbUVQNeSwoC.
 * Cottam, Kazimiera J. (1998). Women in War and Resistance: Selected Biographies of Soviet Women Soldiers. Focus Publishing/R.Pullins Co.. ISBN 1-58510-160-5.
 * Jackson, Robert. Air Aces of WWII. Ramsbury, MarlboRough, Vital Guide, Airlife Crowood Press, 2003. ISBN 1-84037-412-8.
 * Milanetti, Gian Piero (2011) (in Italian). Le Streghe della Notte: La storia non detta delle eroiche ragazze-pilota dell'Unione Sovietica nella Grande Guerra Patriottica. Istituto Bibliografico Napoleone, Roma, Italia. ISBN 88-7565-100-0. http://www.calameo.com/books/0007962970324ec79c522.
 * Myles, Bruce (1981). Night Witches: the untold story of Soviet women in combat. Mainstream. ISBN 0-906391-22-9. http://books.google.com/books?id=CkRnAAAAMAAJ.
 * Noggle, Anne (1994). A Dance with Death: Soviet Airwomen in World War II. Texas A&M University. ISBN 0-89096-601-X. http://books.google.com/books?id=-ESSJzUOk2oC.
 * Pennington (Editor), Reina (2003). Amazons to Fighter Pilotsdr: a biographical dictionary of military women. Greenwood Press, Westport, Connecticut-London. ISBN 0-313-32707-6.
 * Prien, Jochen - Stemmer, Gerhard - Rodeike, Peter - Bock, Winfried: Die Jagdfliegerverbände der Deutschen Luftwaffe 1934 bis 1945 - Teil 6 Tielband I Unternehmen "Barbarossa" Einsatz im Osten 22.6. bis 05.12.1941, Struve Druck, 2003.
 * Prien, Jochen - Stemmer, Gerhard - Rodeike, Peter - Bock, Winfried: Die Jagdfliegerverbände der Deutschen Luftwaffe 1934 bis 1945 - Teil 9 Tielband II Wom Sommerfeldzug 1942 bis zur Niederlage von Stalingrad 1.5.1942 bis 3.2.1943, Struve Druck, 2006.
 * Pennington, Reina (1997). Wings, Women, and War: Soviet Airwomen in World War II Combat. University Press of Kansas. ISBN 0-7006-1554-7. http://books.google.com/books?id=HBpSGQAACAAJ.
 * Polunina, Ekaterina K. (2004). Devčonki, podružki, letčicy. Izdat. Dom "Vestnik Vozduš. Flota". http://books.google.com/books?id=YzesMQAACAAJ.
 * Morgan, Hugh. Gli assi Sovietici della Seconda guerra mondiale (in Italian). Edizioni del Prado/Osprey Aviation, 1999. ISBN 84-8372-203-8.
 * Polak, Tomas with Christofer Shores. Stalin's Falcons—The aces of the red star. London, Grub Street, 1999. ISBN 1-902304-01-2.
 * Sakaida, Henry (2003). Heroines of the Soviet Union: 1941-45. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84176-598-3.
 * Seidl, Hans D. Stalin's Eagles—An illustrated Study of the Soviet Aces of World War II and Korea. Atglen, PA, Schiffer Military History, 1998. ISBN 0-7643-0476-3.
 * Shores, Christopher. Air Aces. Greenwich CY, Bison Books, 1983. ISBN 0-86124-104-5.
 * Spick, Mike.The complete fighter ace: all the world' fighter aces, 1914–200. London, Greenhill Books, 1999. ISBN 1-85367-374-9.

[edit] External links
&nbsp
 * The best Soviet WW2 pilots A photo gallery of female pilots
 * Lydia Litvyak Memorial
 * WWII Ace Stories. Dariusz Tyminski. Lilya Litvak—The "White Rose" of Stalingrad.