Crew of Soviet Pe-2 Dive Bomber After Combat Mission, August 1944
October 7, 2025 - Reading time: 5 minutes
Exhausted Soviet Pe-2 crew from the 11th Independent Reconnaissance Air Regiment after a dangerous combat sortie, August 1944.
This rare World War II photograph captures the weary crew of a Soviet Petlyakov Pe-2 dive bomber from the 11th Independent Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment (11th ORAP) of the Red Army Air Force after returning from a dangerous combat mission.
The men shown are:
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Senior Lieutenant Alexander Rakov, pilot and commander of the Pe-2;
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Lieutenant Nikolai Blishchavenko, navigator;
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Sergeant Krylov, radio operator and gunner.
Rakov joined the 11th ORAP in May 1943 and quickly became one of the regiment’s most skilled pilots. The Pe-2, known among crews as the “Peshka,” was one of the Soviet Union’s most effective dive bombers—fast, agile, and deadly accurate in attack runs.
Tragically, just 20 days after this photograph was taken, on September 3, 1944, Rakov’s aircraft was shot down by German anti-aircraft fire near the town of Skrunda. The navigator and radio operator were killed; Rakov was captured but later escaped from captivity on April 8, 1945, and made his way back to Soviet lines.
Short description for homepage
Exhausted Soviet Pe-2 crew from the 11th Independent Reconnaissance Air Regiment after a dangerous combat sortie, August 1944.
Technical photo data
📍 Location: USSR
📅 Date: August 13, 1944
📝 Aircraft: Petlyakov Pe-2 dive bomber, 11th ORAP
📷 Author: Boris Vdovenko
🔗 Source: A. Kalinovsky’s “FOTAB” project — bellabs.ru/Fotab/R-11/R-11.html
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