Here you can find some details on the exploits of our young aviator, but the focus of this page is to document the evolving appearance of the aircraft skins in use for the campaign.

The Campaign Begins

Ivan Pozdrakov, Leytenant
Front: Leningrad Front
Assignment: 160 IAP
Aircraft: I-16 Type 28 ("Type 24")

14 August 1941
 

"To the Front at last! I have been assigned to the eskadrilya (No.2) of Podpolkovnik Yakushin of the 160th Regiment. There are many experienced fliers in our eskadrilya, and our 'big hand' is Maior Sorokin with 6 victories. I have been allocated a fairly well broken-in aircraft in our regiment, a Type 28 ishak with two ShVAK in the wings. I am happy to recieve this machine, and we have heard much about our hard-hitting cannon at the Academy. I have made an initial acquaintence with the mechanic responsible for my 'White 90'. He seems a nice enough bloke-- a short Ukrainian named Libov."

19 September 1941
 

"During this afternoon's flight I have managed to bring down my third confirmed Fascist aircraft. The repairs called for after last week's damage have been completed. Good ol' Libov has patched up the holes in the cowling and tail; it was pretty stupid of me to get so close to that bomber. I will try to attack from above and with greater speed from now on!"

21 October 1941
 

"Earlier this week we were engaged in the most bitter combat of my life. Fascist airplanes buzzed around me like flies on a corpse. I found myself alone at one point with three 'Messers' trying to bite my tail! The turning, whirling, and diving were frantic, but I somehow held my nerve. Then, an enemy serpent closed in from directly in front of me! I closed my eyes and fired, hoping not to be killed. When I opened my eyes again, I was alive! There was an enormous hole in my starboard wing, and damage everywhere. I limped back to base. When I arrived safely, I was greeted to a hero's welcome-- the Nazi fighter who attacked me from ahead had been blown to bits by my fire! It was my sixth confirmed victory, and Podpolkovnik Yakushin personally awarded me the Order of the Red Banner. It was the proudest day of my life. Today, the 21st, we flew a sortie in my repaired '90'. It's a tough old falcon, this machine. Full of holes, she was, but now she flies again like new. All credit to Libov, as well; I owe him a bottle. I christened the repairs of my machine with my seventh confirmed victory-- one of those Fascist bombers that nearly cost me so dear before."

"White 90" was seriously damaged during an encounter on 17 October, with large holes in the fuselage and starboard wing. I speculated, however, that the damage in these locations could have been repaired locally, at the Regiment. Therefore, a new coat of Green was applied to the repaired areas. The patch over the stbd. wing is obvious, and there are several 'blobs' of similar colour on the fuselage (covering hole repairs). Again, the wear to "90" has increased, and now some underlying wood surface is just starting to peek through around the cockpit. The undersurfaces show increased grime and exhaust. The blue colour has been faded just a tiny bit, and the upper surface colours similarly darkened.
 

29 October 1941
 

"Bitter times. Today I lost my beloved ishak, and nearly my own life. How many times have we been attacked by huge numbers of Fascist fighters, I wonder? Today was the worst. And they came down on us from above, hiding in the sun as they do. Kpt. Pavlov was killed outright when an enemy fighter struck him in the cockpit with a cannon shell. My own aircraft was hit immediately, and to my horror I noticed that she would not respond to the controls! My attacker shot more holes into my port wing, at which I point I was forced to bail out. Luckily, I managed to drift onto our own side of the lines, and was rescued. The unhappiest day of my life. I am glad to be alive."

9 November 1941
 

"Today I piloted my new I-16 Type 28 for the first time while encountering the enemy. In fact, I have not yet had time to apply any white camouflage; a number of pilots in our eskadrilya have done so already. I thought it was best to get accustomed to my new 'Red 23', and worry about such details as maskirovka later.... Well, what a machine she is! I feel reborn after the loss of good ol' '90', and now my new little ishak has given me every confidence. We spotted several Fascist bombers attempting bomb our Red Army troops, and pounced on them. Two of the vile enemy fell to my own guns at once, while a third was heavily damaged by my fire! My new Type 28 is so precise on the controls, so accurate-- I am lucky to fly such a machine! Where are those 'Messers' now!?!"

Pozdrakov has been assigned another Type 28, this again a machine with some usage history. It is suitably weathered for that assumption. The aircraft is finished in a single-colour AII Green scheme, one that is somewhat darkened with age. There is an inscription to port (which I pinched from a Po-2 profile!-- *ahem*), and the tactical number "23" on the fin in red. This aircraft will now be camouflaged with MK-7 winter white, and weathering will begin again following that application according to the campaign.
 

28 January 1942
 

"Today I encountered a very experienced Finnish pilot. The enemy was flying a machine that I did not recognize; some of the comrades in our Regiment say that it is an aircraft manufactured in Fascist Italy. I was most impressed by the maneuverability and handling of this opponent. But, I was even more concerned with my adversary....  This Finn was experienced and disciplined. He made repeated passes head-on, as if daring me to stay in front of him. His shooting was very accurate. At no time did he allow me to get a position behind him, or above; his flying and tactical skills were very worrisome. I decided that the only course was to meet him, like for like. We approached each other several times; how many I now forget. Time and again bullets slammed into my little ishak; this fellow was no amateur! After several passes, we had both used up our ammunition, it seems. This Finnish pilot flew away, trailing smoke from his engine; I do not know what happened to him subsequently. My own aircraft was badly hit, and I had to limp home with broken aileron controls.  Landing in this condition was the most terrifying experience of my life! Somehow I just managed to get down without crashing; it was very close indeed. Libov greeted me at once on the grass where I stopped. 'Your wonderful little maskirovka', which he had made with some winter white paint, 'has been ruined--my apologies...!', I said. He looked bemused. But, Libov reckoned that the damage to my wing was too serious to fix at the Regiment. He is going to send my '23' to the local PARM for repairs."

For winter operations some MK-7 distemper has been applied to Pozdrakov's aircraft. The wings show a make-shift pattern; a type of colouration that one saw a lot during the winter of 1941-42. The MK-7 has been weathered to show some consistent use, and some of the exhaust staining has been reduced over the painted areas.

7 March 1942
 

"My 'Red 23' returned from the PARM last week. The repairs were extensive, as Libov had suspected would be the case. The entire port wing, it seems, was replaced. Indeed, it looks like they slapped on some ancient wing from some derelict--I wonder wherever they dig this thing up!? Oh, well--Libov assures me that it is mechanically sound. If he says so, I don't worry.... But, it looks odd. Today we flew against some Fascist dive-bombers. They were handled very severely by our glorious Regiment, and I recorded my own 11th personal victory. It is a great day! Our Commander, Podpolk. Yakushin, has told me that I might surely receive the Order of Lenin if I keep this up! I will try my very best...! He also drew up our entire eskadrilya today on parade; he has said that there is a big announcement...."

I have speculated that the port wing needed replacement. Thus, a new unit has replaced the original. This wing has been weathered to replicate the kind of spares that one might find at an active PARM. It shows considerable surface wear, and the insignia on the undersurface is both dissimilar to the aircraft's markings, and also quite worn. The upper surface shows darkening with age, and discolouration from various causes. The MK-7 on the fuselage port side, and also onto the wing inner section, has been 'freshened up'; this resulting from the repair work, and thus re-application of some more colour at the PARM. The remainder of the skin has been weathered slightly to account for age.
 

Counterattack at Moscow

Ivan Pozdrakov, Starshiy Leytenant
Front: Rzhev Front
Assignment: 5 GIAP
Aircraft: La-5

12 December 1942
 

It has been an eventful year, that much I can say. It was nine months ago that Podpolkovnik Yakushin drew up our eskadrilya to tell us that many of our pilots would be sent for conversion training to fly the new radial powered Lavochkin fighter. How surprised I was to hear my name called, too! The training at Tula was tough, and we worked very hard to master the La-5. Conversion was made more difficult by the fact that the new fighter had been rushed into service; there were still problems to iron out as we were working up on the machine. Engine temperature management was a big headache, and one little mistake here could get you a motor with one less cylinder attached! The La-5 is a bit of a brute, and there is a lot of power up front in the Shvetsov radial. One of our training pilots flipped his Lavochkin on its back by pushing the throttle too hard during a slippery take-off. We all learned from that mistake in a hurry.... But, the La-5 is nice on the controls and rugged. The aircraft's performance is improving all the time, and newer and better models are leaving the factories every day. As well, it is armed with two of my old friends--ShVAK cannon, mounted right in front of your field of view. I have really enjoyed gunnery practice in my new mount. Last month I was discharged with a number of other pilots training on the La-5 to operational flying. To our great surprise and pride, we were assigned to the illustrious 5 Guard's IAP south of Moscow. What an honour! A Guard's Regiment! I am already wearing the emblem on my tunic! This, and a promotion to Starshiy Leytenant; my head is spinning! The regiment is commanded by a very serious pilot, Hero of the Soviet Union Vasiliy Zaytsev. He commands unlimited respect, Zaytsev, and is a great student of the enemy and its tactics. Already he has held a talk with me in person, and I see his keen interest in the pilots of our Regiment. As they say in the 5th, "one flies with the eyes of the Commander on your neck"... you can feel them. I was assigned my new La-5 today, and my mechanic. The aircraft is fairly new machine and looks to be in good condition. It is more advanced than the models were flew in training, and I spent some time Chul'chin, my exotic Khazak mechanic, to learn the new features. We painted our aircraft with winter white, as the snow has already settled everywhere here. My machine is number "54"; good luck to us both.

Pozdrakov is assigned an La-5 which has been finished in a classic two-colour AII application from Gor'ki. The aircraft was then covered with winter MK-7; weathering will commence from this point. The skin exhibits exhaust and other wear suitable for the described aircraft. Over time the exhaust will be built up, and then be "removed" periodically. Other weathering and grime, and refinish/repairs due to damage, will follow. I have depicted the steel cowl bands as painted (which was not uncommon in 1942) as an exercise to see how they might weather.