Grigoriy Rechkalov
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Grigory Andreevich Rechkalov (; 9 February 1920 – 20 December 1990) was a Soviet fighter pilot during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
who scored over fifty solo shootdowns, making him one of the highest scoring Soviet fighter pilots. He was twice awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union for his aerial victories and went on to become a general after the war.


Early life

Rechkalov was born on 9 February 1920 in Khudyakovo into a Russian peasant family. After graduation from school, he joined the Army in 1938, and in 1939 graduated from Perm Military Aviation Pilot School. He was initially grounded because of Daltonism, but due to the start of the war he was allowed to fly in 1941 and posted to the 55th Fighter Aviation Regiment, stationed in the
Odessa Military District The Odessa Military District (; , abbreviated ) was a military administrative division of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This district consisted of Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic, Moldavia and five Oblasts of Ukraine, Ukrainian oblasts of Odesa ...
.


World War II

He began his combat career on 22 June 1941 over
Moldavia Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially in ...
flying an
I-153 The Polikarpov I-153 ''Chaika'' () is a late 1930s Soviet sesquiplane fighter. Developed from the I-15 with a retractable undercarriage, the I-153 fought in the Soviet-Japanese combats in Mongolia and was one of the major Soviet fighter types ...
marked "blue 13" on the tail, undertaking 30 sorties in this aircraft during the month and engaging in ten combats. On 27 June, Rechkalov attacked and brought down an Hs.126 east of Boksha, near Sculeni, for his first claim. On 11 July he claimed a
Ju 88 The Junkers Ju 88 is a twin-engined multirole combat aircraft designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Junkers Aircraft and Motor Works. It was used extensively during the Second World War by the ''Luftwaffe'' and became one of ...
near Kotovsk. On 26 July 1941 near Dubasari, he was wounded in the right leg by anti-aircraft fire. He returned safely to his airfield and after landing was hospitalized. Due to the severity of the wound he had was forced to stay with a reserve aviation unit for several months after the three surgeries. He returned to his previous in Spring 1942. Earlier, the unit has been honored with the guards designation and renamed 16 Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment for outstanding service. By the end of 1942, Rechkalov had claimed 4 and 2 shared victories. At that time, the 16th Regiment was re-equipped with new P-39 Airacobras and temporarily posted to the reserve for training. In the spring of 1943, they were posted to the North Caucasus Front and the Kuban River. On 24 May 1943, he was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union for 12 solo and 2 shared shootdowns throughout 194 sorties. In May 1944 Rechkalov took command over the 16th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment, but on 31 May 1944, while leading a formation over Iași, five P-39s were lost after he decided to pursue a group of
Bf 109 The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a monoplane fighter aircraft that was designed and initially produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (BFW). Together with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the Bf 109 formed the backbone of the ...
fighters alone. According to official accounts, Rechkalov was disciplined by his superiors for pursuing the enemy alone rather than offering leadership to his less experienced squadron. Upon the recommendation of his commanding officer
Aleksandr Pokryshkin Alexander Ivanovich Pokryshkin (; – 13 November 1985) was a Soviet fighter pilot in World War II, and later a marshal of aviation. He was one of the highest-scoring Soviet aces, and the highest-scoring pilot ever to fly an American aircraft, ...
, Rechkalov was replaced by
Boris Glinka Boris Borisovich Glinka (; – 11 May 1967) was a Soviet flying ace during World War II with over 20 solo shootdowns. After being awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union () was the highest distinction i ...
of the 100th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment as commander of the 16th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment for (according to Pokryshkin) "losing control, indecisiveness and lack of initiative". Throughout the war Pokryshkin clashed with Rechkalov over his lack of discipline. On 15 July 1944, Glinka was seriously wounded when he bailed out of his badly damaged P-39 and struck the tailplane. Rechkalov again took over as regiment commander, but left command of it in February 1945 and was appointed Inspector for Flight Training of 9th Guards Fighter Aviation Division. By the end of the war he had flown 452 sorties and engaged in 122 dogfights; operational documents credit him with 56 solo and 6 shared kills, while certification documents credit him with 61 solo and 4 shared. He flew the I-153, I-16, MiG-3, Yak-1, and P-39, but a vast majority of his tally was on the P-39. His award nomination did not mention his three victories from 1941, although there have been allegations that Pokryshkin tried to steal some of Rechkalov's kills.


Postwar

In 1951 he graduated from the Air Force Academy in Monino. He then commanded a regiment, and various air divisions. In 1957 he was deputy commander of the fighter aircraft separate Far Eastern Air Defense Army. Rechkalov went on to become a Major General of Aviation in the Soviet Air Force in 1957 before leaving the military in 1959. He wrote two books about his wartime experiences: ''Дымное небо войны'' (English: The Smoking Skies of War) and ''В Небе Молдавии'' (English: In Moldavian Skies). Rechkalov lived in Moscow until his death on 20 December 1990.


Aerial victory claims


Awards and honors

* Twice
Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union () was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for heroic feats in service to the Soviet state and society. The title was awarded both ...
(24 May 1943 and 1 July 1944) *
Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (, ) was an award named after Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the October Revolution. It was established by the Central Executive Committee on 6 April 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration bestowed by the Soviet ...
(24 May 1943) * Four
Order of the Red Banner The Order of the Red Banner () was the first Soviet military decoration. The Order was established on 16 September 1918, during the Russian Civil War by decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. It was the highest award of S ...
(30 December 1942, 5 May 1943, 22 October 1944, and 14 August 1957) *
Order of Alexander Nevsky The Order of Alexander Nevsky () is an Order (distinction), order of merit of the Russia, Russian Federation named in honour of saint Alexander Nevsky (1220–1263) and bestowed to civil servants for twenty years or more of highly meritorious ser ...
(2 October 1943) * Two
Order of the Red Star The Order of the Red Star () was a military decoration of the Soviet Union. It was established by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 6 April 1930 but its statute was only defined in decree of the Presidium of the ...
(26 October 1955 and 14 May 1956) * campaign and jubilee medals


Footnotes


References


Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rechkalov, Grigory 1920 births 1990 deaths People from Irbitsky District Soviet Air Force generals Soviet major generals Heroes of the Soviet Union Russian aviators Russian people of World War II Soviet World War II flying aces Recipients of the Order of Lenin Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Recipients of the Order of Alexander Nevsky Recipients of the Order of the Red Star