American B-25, A-20 “Boston” Bombers and P-39 Fighters Lined Up for Lend-Lease to USSR, Alaska 1942

August 29, 2025 - Reading time: 4 minutes

American B-25, A-20 Boston bombers and P-39 fighters lined up for Lend-Lease delivery to the USSR, Ladd Field, Alaska, September 1942.

American B-25, A-20 Boston bombers and P-39 fighters lined up at Ladd Field, Alaska, prepared for Lend-Lease delivery to the Soviet Union, September 1942.

ALSIB — «The Arctic Lifeline of Victory»

This historic World War II photograph shows rows of American warplanes—B-25 Mitchell medium bombers, A-20 “Boston” light bombers, and P-39 Airacobra fighters—lined up on the runway of Ladd Field, Alaska, in September 1942. The aircraft were being prepared for delivery to the Soviet Union under the Lend-Lease program.

The Lend-Lease Act, signed into law by President Roosevelt in 1941, allowed the United States to supply its allies with vital war material. For the Soviet Union, these deliveries became essential after the German invasion. Aircraft, trucks, fuel, food, and raw materials provided through Lend-Lease significantly strengthened the Red Army’s ability to resist and eventually defeat the Wehrmacht.

Ladd Field, near Fairbanks, Alaska, played a central role in the Alaska-Siberia (ALSIB) route. From here, Soviet pilots would receive American planes and fly them across the Bering Strait, through Siberia, and finally to the frontlines. The ALSIB air bridge became one of the most remarkable logistical operations of the war, symbolizing the uneasy but crucial wartime alliance between the U.S. and the USSR.

This image captures not only the machines themselves, but also a key moment of global cooperation—American industry and Soviet endurance, working together to crush Nazi Germany. Each aircraft in this lineup represented more than firepower; it was a promise of solidarity across continents.

Technical photo data:
📝 Source: USAAF wartime photo archives
📍 Location: Ladd Field, Alaska, USA
📅 Date: September 1942
📷 Photographer: Unknown