The MiG-1/3 family of fighters was built to satisfy a Soviet Air Force requirement for an advanced, fast, high-altitude fighter. Entering service in the spring of 1941, the problematic MiG-1 had its handling issues rectified with the hasty production of the MiG-3. Many of these were destroyed on the ground when the Germans launched Operation Barbarossa. Nevertheless, enough examples survived to allow pilots such as Stepan Suprun and Aleksandr Pokryshkin to claim a number of victories in the type. This book tells the complete story of the men who made ace in the first examples of the famous MiG fighter.

The Yak-1 entered Soviet service in 1941, one of three modern types of aircraft accepted for production just prior to the German invasion of the USSR. Despite initial shortcomings, it soon proved to be the thoroughbred of the Soviet Airforce. Indeed, it remained in production until the end of the war, modernized but fundamentally recognizable. By VE-day about 33,100 Yakovlev fighters had been built. Virtually all Soviet fighter regiments flew at least one variety of Yak for a time, including those which gained their fame identified with other aircraft, and consequently many pilots known as Airacobra or Lavochkin aces also scored victories with the Yak. Many other famous aces were exclusively 'Yak patriots', including the French Normandie pilots. This book focuses on the Soviet aces who scored all, or most of their victories in the Yak, drawing informaion from official unit histories and memoirs of the Soviet pilots themselves.

No single volume in English has ever appeared in the West dealing with this intriguing subject area, but now that restrictions have relaxed in the former Soviet Union, records of the deeds of the elite pilots of the various Soviet Air Forces are coming to light. Although initially equipped with very poor aircraft, and robbed of effective leadership thanks as much to Stalin's purges in the late 1930s as to the efforts of the Luftwaffe, Soviet fighter pilots soon turned the tables through the use of both lend-lease aircraft like the Hurricane, Spitfire, P-39 and P-40, and home-grown machines like the MiG-3, LaGG-3/5, Lavochkin La-5/7/9 and the Yak-1/3.

The MiG-1/3 family of fighters was built to satisfy a Soviet Air Force requirement for an advanced, fast, high-altitude fighter. Entering service in the spring of 1941, the problematic MiG-1 had its handling issues rectified with the hasty production of the MiG-3. Many of these were destroyed on the ground when the Germans launched Operation Barbarossa. Nevertheless, enough examples survived to allow pilots such as Stepan Suprun and Aleksandr Pokryshkin to claim a number of victories in the type. This book tells the complete story of the men who made ace in the first examples of the famous MiG fighter.

This book examines the LaGG family of fighters, that were amongst the first modern piston-engined interceptors made available to the Red Air Forces in early 1941and proved far better fighters than their radial-engined predecessors. Despite technical maladies and political interference from Moscow, the LaGG-3 matured into an effective fighter when flown to its strengths at low level. Many early Soviet aces were weaned on the LaGG-3, and if they survived the early massacres of 1941-42, they went on to fly the Lavochkin family of fighters. Indeed, the Lavochkin La-3, -5 and -7 were the fighters of choice for Heroes of the Soviet Union such as Ivan Kozhedub, who claimed 62 kills.

The Dutch D.XXIs saw less than a week of action following the German invasion of the west on 10 May 1940, with many of the country's 28 fighters being destroyed on the ground. However, those that survived the initial onslaught inflicted losses on the Luftwaffe. By then, however, the D.XXI had found everlasting fame in Finland during the Winter War of 1939-40. Proving itself a real thorn in the side of the Soviets, the fighter, operating in primitive conditions and against vastly superior numbers, Finnish D.XXIs racked up an incredible score against the Red Air Force. The D.XXI also has the distinction of producing the first 'ace in a single mission' in World War 2, when then 1Lt Jorma Sarvanto shot down six Ilyushin DB-3 bombers on 6 January 1940. After spending a year providing home defence and flying coastal patrols during the early stages of the Continuation War in 1941, all surviving Finnish Fokker D.XXIs were relegated to the reconnaissance role, which they performed through to the end of hostilities in September 1944.

The Soviet Union began assisting the People's Republic of China in its establishment of a modern air force in 1950, when Soviet Air Force regiments were sent to train local pilots. China's involvement in the Korean War in late October 1950 inevitably drew Soviet pilots into the war, with a total of 52 Soviet pilots scoring five or more victories there. The history of these covert actions has been a long-buried secret and this book is the first English publication to detail the only instance when the Cold War became 'hot'. This book uncovers Soviet combat experiences during the Korean War from detailed unit histories and rare first-hand account. With access to extensive Russian archives, the authors offer an enthralling insight into an air war that has been largely covered up and neglected. Illustrated with previously unpublished photographs and detailed full colour profiles, this book is a unique opportunity to read about an often-forgotten aspect of the Cold War.