Table of Contents

Wartime development and combat tactics/Kharkov turning point/Battle of Stalingrad/Battle of Kursk/Byelorussian offensive/Downfall of Germany

Promotional Information

The first dramatic account of the Il-2 Sturmovik's operations by the most famous units of the Red Army Air Force.

About the Author

Oleg Rastrenin graduated from the Moscow Applied Physics Institute in 1986 and commenced military service. He subsequently graduated from the Zhukovskiy Air Force Academy. He holds the rank of major and the title of doctor of science. Rastrenin has been working on the history of Soviet aviation since 1992, with his major research projects focusing on air tactics and the combat employment of aircraft. He has published more than 20 articles on the history of attack aircraft in Russian and foreign magazines, and is also the author of the books Red Army Attack Aircraft (1941-1945), Red Army Attack Aviation - Tough Experience and The Il-10. A Yurgenson is one of Russia's premier aviation artists, specialising in drawings and colour illustrations of Soviet aircraft. He has illustrated numerous articles on the history of Russian aviation in Russian and foreign aviation magazines since the early 1990s, and has also been published in more than 20 books.

Reviews

"This title is one of the best Osprey Combat Aircraft series I have seen in a while. The level of research is thorough, yet the text is easy to follow. The story of the Il-2 is a fascinating one, and one that needs wider exposure. This title goes a long way to giving this famous plane its due." --Chris BanyaiReipl, Internet Modeler (May 2008) "This story is superbly illustrated with period photos of the men and some of their aircraft... All in all, another superlative book in the Combat Aircraft series. One I know you will enjoy reading." --Scott Van Aken, modelingmadness.com (April 2008) "Overall, this book is an outstanding addition to Osprey's Second World War titles and one of the best sources available on Soviet ground attack operations available in English... [The] author's obvious knowledge of the subject and his use of material not readily available to non-Russian scholars, combined with an effort to place Il-2 operations into their proper context make this one of the very best titles in the Combat Aircraft series." --World War II Quarterly (May 2008) "It is a sign of the times that this latest entry in Osprey's Combat Aircraft series was written by a Russian aviation historian, Oleg Rastrenin, with color profiles by Russian artist Andrey Yurgenson. This gives readers an unprecedented look, through the latest research and photos, at the organization, doctrine and tactics of the Shtumoviki during the 'Great Patriotic War, ' as well as the planes' most successful and heroic aircrews." --Jon Guttman, Aviation History (September 2009)