Ilmari Juutilainen
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Eino Ilmari "Illu" Juutilainen (21 February 1914 – 21 February 1999) was a fighter pilot of the Ilmavoimat (
Finnish Air Force , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment = 159 , equipment_label ...
), and the top scoring non-German fighter pilot of all time. The top
flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...
of the Finnish Air Force, he led all Finnish pilots in score against
Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...
aircraft in
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
(1939–40 and 1941–44), with 94 confirmed aerial combat victories (he himself claimed further kills for a total of 126 victories, but these were unconfirmed) in 437 sorties. He achieved 34 of his victories while flying the
Brewster Buffalo The Brewster F2A Buffalo is an American fighter aircraft which saw service early in World War II. Designed and built by the Brewster Aeronautical Corporation, it was one of the first U.S. monoplanes with an arrestor hook and other modifications ...
fighter.Stenman and Thomas 2010, p. 85. One of the four double recipients of the Mannerheim Cross 2nd Class, Juutilainen was born in
Lieksa Lieksa () is a town and municipality of Finland. It is located in the North Karelia region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . The municipality is unilingually Finnish. ...
, and died in
Tuusula Tuusula (; sv, Tusby ) is a municipality of Finland. It belongs to the Helsinki sub-region of the Uusimaa region. The municipality has a population of () and is by far the third largest municipality in Finland after Nurmijärvi and Kirkkonummi ...
. His brother was the Finnish Army Captain
Aarne Juutilainen Aarne Edward Juutilainen (; 18 October 1904 – 28 October 1976), nicknamed "The Terror of Morocco", was a Finnish army captain who served in the French Foreign Legion in Morocco between 1930 and 1935. After returning to Finland, he served ...
, nicknamed "The Terror of Morocco".


Summary

Juutilainen flew
Fokker D.XXI The Fokker D.XXI fighter was designed in 1935 by Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker in response to requirements laid out by the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force (''Militaire Luchtvaart van het Koninklijk Nederlands-Indisch Leger'', ML ...
,
Brewster Buffalo The Brewster F2A Buffalo is an American fighter aircraft which saw service early in World War II. Designed and built by the Brewster Aeronautical Corporation, it was one of the first U.S. monoplanes with an arrestor hook and other modifications ...
, and Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters. He finished the war without a single hit to his plane from enemy fighter airplanes (once he was forced to land after a friendly anti-aircraft gun fired at his Bf 109). Like Japanese fighter ace
Saburō Sakai was a Japanese naval aviator and flying ace (''"Gekitsui-O"'', ) of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. Sakai had 28–64 aerial victories, including shared ones, according to official Japanese records, but his autobiography, ''Samura ...
, Juutilainen never lost a wingman in combat. He also scored the first radar-assisted victory in the Finnish Air Force on 24 March 1943, when he was guided to a Soviet Pe-2 by a German radar operator, who was testing out the freshly delivered radar sets, that officially became operational 3 days later.


Military career

Juutilainen entered the
Finnish military The Finnish Defence Forces ( fi, Puolustusvoimat, sv, Försvarsmakten) are the military of Finland. The Finnish Defence Forces consist of the Finnish Army, the Finnish Navy and the Finnish Air Force. In wartime the Finnish Border Guard (which i ...
on 9 September 1932 for his compulsory military service, serving as a pilot in the
Finnish Air Force , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment = 159 , equipment_label ...
starting in 1935. On 1 May 1935, Juutilainen was promoted to sergeant. He was transferred to ''LeLv 24'', operating from
Utti Utti is a village in Valkeala, since 2009 a part of Kouvola, Finland. In 1918 General Carl Gustaf Mannerheim set up the first Finnish Air Force base in the village. Today, Utti is best known for the Utti Jaeger Regiment, a helicopter base and a t ...
, on March 3, 1939. In October 1939, with the situation worsening, the squadron moved to Immola, closer to the Finnish-Soviet frontier. During the
Winter War The Winter War,, sv, Vinterkriget, rus, Зи́мняя война́, r=Zimnyaya voyna. The names Soviet–Finnish War 1939–1940 (russian: link=no, Сове́тско-финская война́ 1939–1940) and Soviet–Finland War 1 ...
(which broke on 30 November 1939) Juutilainen flew the
Fokker D.XXI The Fokker D.XXI fighter was designed in 1935 by Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker in response to requirements laid out by the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force (''Militaire Luchtvaart van het Koninklijk Nederlands-Indisch Leger'', ML ...
. He scored his first victory on 19 December 1939, shooting down an Ilyushin DB-3 bomber and damaging two more.Jackson 2003, p. 47. At the end of the Winter War, Juutilainen had achieved one shared and two individual victories.Stenman and Thomas 2010, p. 94. During the
Continuation War The Continuation War, also known as the Second Soviet-Finnish War, was a conflict fought by Finland and Nazi Germany against the Soviet Union from 1941 to 1944, as part of World War II.; sv, fortsättningskriget; german: Fortsetzungskrieg. A ...
, Juutilainen served in ''3/LeLv 24'', flying a
Brewster B-239 The Brewster F2A Buffalo is an American fighter aircraft which saw service early in World War II. Designed and built by the Brewster Aeronautical Corporation, it was one of the first U.S. monoplanes with an arrestor hook and other modifications ...
"Buffalo". On 21 July 1941, Juutilainen and five other Buffaloes scrambled to intercept Soviet fighters from 65th ShAP that were strafing Finnish troops near
Käkisalmi Priozersk (russian: Приозе́рск; fi, Käkisalmi; sv, Kexholm) is a town and the administrative center of Priozersky District in Leningrad Oblast, Russia, located at the northwestern shore of Lake Ladoga, at the estuary of the northern ...
. During that sortie, he destroyed a
Polikarpov I-153 The Polikarpov I-153 ''Chaika'' (Russian ''Чайка'', "Seagull") was a late 1930s Soviet biplane fighter. Developed as an advanced version of the I-15 with a retractable undercarriage, the I-153 fought in the Soviet-Japanese combats in Mon ...
'Chaika', making him an "ace" in the Brewster Buffalo.Stenman and Thomas 2010, p. 14. A few days later, on 1 August, seven fighters under the command of First Lieutenant Karhunen destroyed six I-16s near Rautjarvi, and Juutilainen (having been promoted to
Warrant Officer Warrant officer (WO) is a rank or category of ranks in the armed forces of many countries. Depending on the country, service, or historical context, warrant officers are sometimes classified as the most junior of the commissioned ranks, the mos ...
in the meantime) claimed two of them.Stenman and Thomas 2010, p. 15. On the morning of 6 February 1942, while reconnoitering the Petrovkiy-Jam region with other LLv 24 pilots, Juutilainen intercepted seven
Tupolev SB The Tupolev ANT-40, also known by its service name Tupolev SB (russian: Скоростной бомбардировщик – ''Skorostnoi Bombardirovschik'' – high speed bomber) and development co-name TsAGI-40, was a high speed twin-engined ...
bombers escorted by 12 MiG-3s. Juutilainen claimed two SBs. Juutilainen later recalled: On 27–28 March 1942, ''3/LLv 24'' moved to Immola in preparation for a Finnish Army offensive on Suursaari, in the Gulf of Finland. Although grossly outnumbered over the Gulf of Finland, ''LeLv 24'' pilots were more experienced than their Soviet opponents from Red Banner Baltic Fleet. Even when they had the advantage of surprise and height, Soviet pilots did not succeed in shooting down Finnish pilots.Stenman and Thomas 2010, p. 30. On 28 March, WO Juutilainen, in patrol with Sgt Huotari, attacked some "Chaikas" of 11 IAP over the Suurkyla shoreline, at
Gogland Gogland or Hogland (russian: Гогланд, transliteration from original sv, Hogland; fi, Suursaari) is an island in the Gulf of Finland in the eastern Baltic Sea, about 180 km west from Saint Petersburg and 35 km from the coas ...
, and shot down two of them. These air victories took Juutilainen's tally to 22. A month later, on 26 April, he became his unit's first recipient of the Mannerheim Cross.Stenman and Thomas 2010, p. 24. On 20 September, he took off with Capt Jorma Karhunen and ''3/LeLv 24'' pilots for a patrol of the
Kronstadt Kronstadt (russian: Кроншта́дт, Kronshtadt ), also spelled Kronshtadt, Cronstadt or Kronštádt (from german: link=no, Krone for " crown" and ''Stadt'' for "city") is a Russian port city in Kronshtadtsky District of the federal city ...
--
Seiskari Seskar ( fi, Seiskari) ( sv, Seitskär) (russian: Сескар) is an island in the Gulf of Finland, part of the Leningrad Oblast of Russia. The island was an independent municipality of Finland populated by Finns at least since 16th century, unt ...
region. Near the Estonian coast, they were bounced by ten Soviet fighters. But the Finnish quickly reacted and managed to down three of their opponents. WO Juutilainen was credited with two kills. All in all, Juutilainen scored 34 victories in Brewster B-239, 28 of them (including three triple kills) between 9 July 1941 and 22 November 1942, in his BW-364 "Orange 4". In 1943, Juutilainen was transferred to ''LeLv 34'', which used new Messerschmitt Bf 109G-2s.Jackson 2003, p. 47. With the Bf 109, he shot down a further 58 enemy planes. He shot down six Soviet airplanes on 30 June 1944 (all confirmed on Soviet loss records), becoming an
ace in a day The term "ace in a day" is used to designate a pilot who has shot down five or more airplanes in a single day, based on usual definition of an "ace" as one with five or more aerial victories. World War I Ace in a day on two occasions A Bristol F ...
and parallelling
Jorma Sarvanto Jorma Kalevi Sarvanto (22 August 1912 – 16 October 1963) was a Finnish Air Force pilot and the foremost Finnish fighter ace of the Winter War. Early life Sarvanto was born and raised in Turku, Finland. He attended high school in Turku and g ...
's score on 6 January 1940 in the
Winter War The Winter War,, sv, Vinterkriget, rus, Зи́мняя война́, r=Zimnyaya voyna. The names Soviet–Finnish War 1939–1940 (russian: link=no, Сове́тско-финская война́ 1939–1940) and Soviet–Finland War 1 ...
. Juutilainen refused an officer commission, fearing it would keep him from flying. His 94th and last victory was a
Li-2 The Lisunov Li-2 (NATO reporting name: Cab), originally designated PS-84, was a license-built Soviet-version of the Douglas DC-3. It was produced by Factory #84 in Moscow-Khimki and, after evacuation in 1941, at TAPO in Tashkent. The proj ...
, the Russian version of the
Douglas C-47 The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota (Royal Air Force, RAF, Royal Australian Air Force, RAAF, Royal Canadian Air Force, RCAF, Royal New Zealand Air Force, RNZAF, and South African Air Force, SAAF designation) is a airlift, military transport ai ...
, shot down on 3 September 1944 over the Karelian Isthmus.Jackson 2003, p. 47.


Post-war

After the wars, Juutilainen served in the air force until 1947. He worked as a professional pilot until 1956, flying people in his
De Havilland Moth The de Havilland Moths were a series of light aircraft, sports planes, and military trainers designed by Geoffrey de Havilland. In the late 1920s and 1930s, they were the most common civilian aircraft flying in Britain, and during that time ever ...
. His last flight was in 1997, at age 83, in a two-seat
F-18 Hornet The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is an all-weather, twin-engine, supersonic, carrier-capable, multirole combat aircraft, designed as both a fighter and attack aircraft (hence the F/A designation). Designed by McDonnell Douglas (now part ...
of the Finnish Air Force. Juutilainen died at home in
Tuusula Tuusula (; sv, Tusby ) is a municipality of Finland. It belongs to the Helsinki sub-region of the Uusimaa region. The municipality has a population of () and is by far the third largest municipality in Finland after Nurmijärvi and Kirkkonummi ...
(Tusby) on his 85th birthday on 21 February 1999.


Victories


References


Notes


Bibliography

* Juutilainen, Eino Ilmari (translated by Nikunen, Heikki). ''Double Fighter Knight''. Tampere, Finland: Apali Oy, 1996. . Juutilainen's memoirs that were published in
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
in 1996. * Keskinen, Kalevi; Stenman, Kari and Niska, Klaus. ''Hävittäjä-ässät (Finnish Fighter Aces)''. Espoo, Finland: Tietoteas, 1978. . (Finnish) * Jackson, Robert. ''Air Aces Of WWII''. Ramsbury, Marlborough, Airlife, 2003. . * Stenman, Kari and Andrew Thomas. '' Brewster F2A Buffalo Aces of World War 2 (Aircraft of the Aces 91)''. Oxford UK/Long Island City NY, Osprey Publishing, 2010. . * * Stenman, Kari and Keskinen, Kalevi. ''Finnish Aces of World War 2 (Aircraft of the Aces 23)''. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing, 1998. .


External links


Tarrif.net – Interview with Ilmari Juutilainen




*
List of World War II aces from Finland This list includes of all the 96 fighter aces of World War II from Finland. For other countries see List of World War II aces by country Finnish fighter aces With specific aircraft types Fokker D.XXI Below are all the Finnish aces who have ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Juutilainen, Ilmari 1914 births 1999 deaths Finnish Air Force personnel Finnish World War II flying aces Winter War pilots Knights of the Mannerheim Cross Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Liberty, 3rd Class People from Lieksa People from Kuopio Province (Grand Duchy of Finland)