Born in 1923 in Kharkov. Graduated from the Borisoglebsk Aviation School in August 1941.

From October 1941, Junior Lieutenant V. V. Rybalko served on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War. He served in the 122nd Fighter Aviation Regiment and flew MiG-3s, Yak-1s, Yak-7s, and Yak-9s.

In 1941, the regiment fought on the Western Front. In the summer of 1942, it flew from the airfield in Volokolamsk.

In the summer of 1943, the regiment's pilots were already flying Yaks, and later fought on the 1st Ukrainian Front.

In the fall of 1944, the regiment was transferred to the 2nd Ukrainian Front, where it flew sorties over Romania and Hungary.

By May 1945, Captain V.V. Rybalko had shot down 14 enemy aircraft.

- The MiG-3 is my favorite fighter. All my misfortunes and troubles are connected with it. I spent my youth on it. And when I got stronger, I switched to the Yak. It might have been better, but it was easier to fight, I had experience, and the conditions were different.

- Until what year did you fly the MiG?

- From 1941 until the summer of 1943.

- Is the MiG-3 a complex machine?

- It's unique. It had a very powerful supercharged engine, the M-105. The plane caused a lot of trouble on takeoffs. It could turn 180 degrees on takeoff if you didn't hold it in time. It was a decent high-altitude aircraft. It was designed for air defense. But at low altitude, it was like an iron. It wasn't fast enough and was difficult to control. The first aircraft had slats—a terrible problem: if you pulled them even slightly, they'd pop out, and there was a bang. It was unpleasant. During combat, there was a constant bang, and we'd just tape them over. But at altitude, it was a real beast.

I remember one time, we were sitting there waiting for a group, but the Yak-1's tail was light, and the propeller could easily hit the ground while taxiing. Mechanics usually sat on the stabilizer. Suddenly, a group appeared. I was sitting at the takeoff point, ready, but two pairs hadn't yet taxied to me to stand in anticipation. I gave the command to take off, and they took off practically from the parking lot. As soon as they were level with me, I saw a mechanic flying on the stabilizer. He tried to climb over to sit on top, but he slipped and fell about 50 meters...

I participated in several very serious and large-scale air strikes. In 1943, over the course of several days – July 5, 6, and 7, on the eve of the Battle of Kursk – our Western Front attacked German airfields. So, Misha Bondarenko, twice Hero of the Soviet Union, led 24 Il-1s, a large group. And we, fighters from the 122nd Regiment, provided three squadrons of cover for his attack on Seshcha Airfield. That was on July 5th, and on the 6th, we were already flying to Borovskaya. We were preparing for this flight; it was a fundamental flight. The group was so large, from two regiments. It was a combined group: 24 aircraft. We were gathering then, I don't remember who prepared it, received the mission, and who was where. We prepared for this flight on the spot.

At this point, we separated the close-cover fighter group and the strike group. So, the squadron commander, Major Tseboyko, was in front with two wingmen, and I was at the rear of this formation. It should be noted that the escort group's mission was to suppress anti-aircraft weapons, unless, of course, there were enemy fighters. And when Misha Bondarenko led the group into the attack—they attacked immediately—our Tseboyko and his wingman charged at the anti-aircraft guns and were immediately picked off. Tseboyko returned a year later. But his wingman vanished...

The MiG-3 of the 122nd Fighter Air Requiment pilotted by V.Rybalko during a flight to cover forces. Rzhevsko-Sychevst operation. August 1942.

I once had this happen. We were taking off from Ramenskoye to escort a Pe-2. It was the spring of 1942, and everything was going downhill. Long story short, taxiing was incredibly difficult. So, we were supposed to escort nine Pe-2s. Squadron Commander Romanenko didn't take off. While we were taxiing, Misha Korobkov overheated his engine and took off, leaving oil spilling along the side. He landed too, and I was left alone. The Pe-2s approached, I lined up with them, and we were off. At the edge of Ramenskoye, we encountered four Heinkel 113s, which, in my opinion, was the best German fighter. The problem was that the engine was water-cooled, and all the radiators were in the wing surfaces. A match head was enough to hit the radiator, and it would have punctured it. But in terms of piloting, it was a brilliant aircraft.

[At the beginning of the war, Soviet pilots often mistook the Bf 109F for a modified version of the Heinkel 100 delivered to us just before the war.] Admin's note ]

...I was alone with a nine. Altitude about 1,000 meters. We flew without oxygen equipment; we removed it completely because we didn't need it. No transmitters. Only receivers. Well, they didn't shoot me down the first time. But they forced me into combat. The "Pawns" got away. I can't say I was a real ace, but I led them up, without oxygen, to 7,000 meters. I was a tough guy, and I was only 19. And up there, the MiG-3 was good, and those Heinkel 113s were no longer a threat to me; I was already dominant. Apparently they strayed too far, literally right over Moscow, and they couldn't handle me and fled. I didn't shoot anyone down, of course, but if they hadn't gone, things might have been different. This highlights the high-altitude capabilities of our MiG-3. Yes, it was magnificent at altitude.

I remember there were only five pilots left in our 122nd Regiment, and about 80 aircraft—choose whichever you wanted to fly (we were rearming at the time, and we were getting MiG-3s from all the regiments). There were "For the Motherland," "For Stalin," and "For the Bolshevik Party." So I said I wouldn't fly the "For the Bolshevik Party" aircraft because it was too heavy. It's a good thing there was no NKVD agent...

In 1942, our regiment became part of the 5th ShAK, commanded by Kamanin, Hero of the Soviet Union. And our main mission, starting in mid-1942, was escorting attack aircraft and bombers. I can say that after the war we met, and no one accused me of fighting poorly or abandoning anyone. I didn't suffer any losses among those I escorted! That's why we maintained good relations with the attack aircraft. But our regiment only had one Hero of the Soviet Union, and the neighboring regiment had one, while the attack aircraft had 160. It wasn't because we fought poorly; we fought well. Fighters were evaluated based on whether they shot down one or not, but we should be evaluated based on how well our escorts did their job. They did their duty, which meant I did mine along with them. We were in the same formation, at the same airfield. They'd take off on a mission, and we'd follow. We'd come home, go out for a smoke, have a fight, or boast. But they'd drop their bombs, and it's as if we had nothing to do with it.

Take combat tactics, for example. We're linked positionally. Speed ​​is slow. If you go higher, get distracted, and you lose the group, and you won't find it right away—they're camouflaged, after all. And I have to be in over my head, because if someone starts creeping up on them, I'm supposed to attack them. We had to use a "scissor" maneuver—that's when we pass over the group from side to side. The group flies in a straight line, and we increase our speed by taking advantage of the longer path. It's good to have the opportunity to at least do that, but sometimes, when you're leading a long way, you're stuck and hanging there just trying to get there. We really didn't like flying too far behind...

If we saw enemy aircraft off to the side, we hoped they wouldn't come close. Damn them! When providing cover, I had to rush in. If I'm a brave pilot, I had to chase them, I had to shoot them down. But when escorting, I just had to be prepared for them to attack us. That's the kind of psychology we developed! I couldn't abandon the group, even if I was repelling a German aircraft's attack on my group, or even on myself. I could only evade it, and in such a way that it couldn't continue its attack on the group. I couldn't escape the attack far—that's what it needed. That's it.

- Did you have to escort the Su-2s?

- No. I didn't see them. Only the Il-2 and Pe-2.

- How many aircraft were assigned to escort?

- It all depended on the situation in a given direction, what kind of group it was, and where it was going. If the group was large, there was a large escort. Typically, no less than four. The fighters were tasked with covering the group; if they were at the same airfield, they could meet and participate in joint flight preparation. This happened to us often—we were part of a mixed air corps. Typically, if attack aircraft or bombers took off from another airfield, they would close in behind the escort fighters. We were on standby—press the button and take off.

Here's another example. About 20 years ago, I received a letter from Kazan. I don't even remember this guy, Kazakov. Here he writes:

"Comrade, Lieutenant General, I recall a combat sortie in March 1944 against the city of Proskurov. I was assigned to attack the western side of the city with six Il-2 aircraft. I was supposed to be escorted by four Yaks. Only one of your aircraft joined me, and three Yaks went with another group led by Gerasimov, Hero of the Soviet Union from the 809th Regiment.

I was leading the group and thinking: "Where are you going, my dear? To be devoured? Oh well, we're doomed." 20 kilometers short of the city, we were caught in a crossfire of eight heavy machine guns. Approaching the western part of the city, I saw an airfield where Ju-87s were landing under cover of Focke-Wulfs; there were about 20 of them. I decided to go to the airfield and got into it. It was hell, I was fighting back, the situation was difficult, especially for you. I was heading for my airfield, and then all hell broke loose. I just heard you on the radio: "Kazakov, don't drop below 300," and then you showed true courage, attacking the Fokers. You abruptly rolled, ducked under the group, under the machine guns, and then went back to attack the fighters. We returned home without losses."

- This is a unique case for escort. It took a very long time because the attack aircraft had gotten far away, somewhere near Lvov, about 100 kilometers from the front line, attacking trains. We were attacked all the way, and we fought back. But that's not always the case. But a battle like this—one or two and that's it.

- Was the order followed: in case of losses among escorts, the combat sortie is not counted?

- I had no losses among escorts! We knew right away if someone had abandoned someone else. There was an incident when an escort group commander, returning from a mission, informed the attack aircraft commander that he was heading the wrong way. The attack aircraft refused, so the escort group commander decided to go his own way. He was tried. He later received the Hero of the Soviet Union award.

- Was there much resistance from German artillery?

- It depends on where and when. One day at the Sandomierz bridgehead, I witnessed three attack aircraft squadron commanders being shot down. It was unexpected; it seemed the Germans had used something new, but we couldn't figure out what. You'd approach them and they'd go "bang!" and then they wouldn't fire again. Vasya Gamayun, a Hero of the Soviet Union who had already been nominated for the Hero of the Soviet Union award twice, was killed then. The Germans always fired when flying over the front line, regardless of the stage of the operation. They had a lot of anti-aircraft guns. All my problems were caused by them. I was shot down by an anti-aircraft gun in 1941 near Moscow, and the second time in 1943 near Mozhaisk. Once, I don't know how I got home. I landed, I was steering, everyone was watching, but I couldn't figure it out. It turned out my vertical stabilizer was gone and there was a 30-centimeter hole in the fuselage. Also from anti-aircraft guns... I wasn't hit in aerial combat. I only had one difficult time, but I got by.

- How were things with radio communications?

- In 1941-1942, there was no radio. Even if there was, it wasn't used much. Command even introduced ranks: "Radio Communications Master" 1st and 2nd class. We had to know Morse code and pass an exam. That's exactly how they implemented it, and they paid money for it.

- Did you close the canopy?

- No. Especially at first.

- What's the MiG-3 like in terms of maintenance?

- I don't know. But our mechanics were virtuosos; my favorite plane was always ready. If there was serious damage, I'd have to relocate it, but if everything was fine, they'd get it ready quickly. In 1942, I had three planes.

- What was the most dangerous German fighter?

- They're all the same...

- What armament did the MiG-3 carry?

- The MiG carried ShKAS, then UBT-16.

- Were pods with Berezen heavy machine guns used?

- No. We never used external hardpoints. We used RS-82s. I once saved my commander. It was February 1942 near Maloyaroslavets. We were on reconnaissance, still flying in flights: Misha Korobkov, me on the left, Bazhnov on the right. We perked up, calmed down – the house was nearby, we closed in, happy, almost singing. I turned my head, and there was an Me-110 15 meters behind me!

There were two of them and three of us, they were sure they'd shoot us down. But for a moment, I looked ahead and turned away. Misha was an experienced pilot – he also banked, but they shot down Sergei Bazhnov, right on the spot. That's it! We missed him! I turned around and saw that they'd shot him down, and they were chasing the leader, and they were about to open fire, and I had four rockets. I aimed them there, without aiming, and gasped. Another moment and they would have devoured him anyway. I saw they immediately veered away. They only had enough fuel to last us home, not to fight. We flew ground attack missions with the RS-23s. We flew ground attack missions and reconnaissance missions throughout 1941. We flew cover missions a few times, but that didn't stick in my memory. And we didn't count the ground attack and reconnaissance missions...

- How many victories do you have?

- Only 14.

* * *

After the war, he continued to serve in the Air Force.

He was awarded the Order of the Red Banner, the Order of the Patriotic War 1st Class, the Order of the Red Star, and medals.

• I fought in a fighter / Artem Drabkin /