Mariya Mikhailovna Kuznetsova (russian: Мария Михайловна Кузнецова; 14 April 1918 12 October 1990) was a Soviet fighter pilot who originally flew with the women's 586th Fighter Aviation Regiment but was later transferred to the 437th Fighter Aviation Regiment with

Yekaterina Budanova Yekaterina Vasilyevna Budanova (russian: Екатерина Васильевна Буданова), nicknamed Katya (Катя) (6 December 1916 – 19 July 1943), was a fighter pilot in the Soviet Air Force during World War II. Usually credited ...

, Lydia Litvyak, and several other members of the unit in September 1942. While she did not become an ace, she made it through

Battle of Stalingrad The Battle of Stalingrad (23 August 19422 February 1943) was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II where Nazi Germany and its allies unsuccessfully fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad (later re ...

unlike many of her colleagues transferred there.

Civilian life

Kuznetsova was born on 4 April 1918 to a Russian peasant family in Yazvishchi village, Moscow Governorate, RSFSR. She began flying when she was 18, but her father was arrested during the

Red Terror The Red Terror (russian: Красный террор, krasnyj terror) in Soviet Russia was a campaign of political repression and executions carried out by the Bolsheviks, chiefly through the Cheka, the Bolshevik secret police. It started in lat ...

in 1937, forcing her to note the arrest in applications and documents, resulting in her being kicked out of flight training several times for being related to an "enemy of the people"; however, her friends spoke up on her behalf and managed to convince the head of the flight school to let her stay. After the war she married Vladimir Pavlovich Zhukotsky, commander of the 802nd Fighter Aviation Regiment.

World War II

After transferring to the Red Army from Osoviahim in October 1941 she began training at Engels Military Aviation School until she was deployed to defend important structures in Saratov from German bombers with the 586th Fighter Aviation Regiment. In September 1942 she was transferred to the 437th Fighter Aviation Regiment with

, Lydia Litvyak, and

Raisa Belyaeva Raisa Vasilyevna Belyayeva (russian: Раиса Васильевна Беляева; 25 December 1912 19 July 1943) was one of the first Russian female fighter pilots. She fought alongside Lydia Litvyak and was credited with up to three aerial ...

; the reasons for the transfer are disputed among historians, ranging from the need for experienced pilots in the

battle of Stalingrad The Battle of Stalingrad (23 August 19422 February 1943) was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II where Nazi Germany and its allies unsuccessfully fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad (later re ...

Tamara Kazarinova Tamara Aleksandrovna Kazarinova (russian: Тамара Александровна Казаринова; 9 July 1906 – 4 August 1956) was a Soviet pilot and the commander of the 586th Fighter Aviation Regiment during the Second World War until she ...

wanting to get rid of the pilots who complained about her. In a postwar interview with

Anne Noggle Anne Noggle (1922 – August 16, 2005) was an American aviator, photographer, curator and professor. After receiving her pilot's license as a teenager, she enrolled as a WASP pilot during World War II, flying missions in 1943 and 1944. Follow ...

she claimed to have shot down three enemy aircraft, including a Ju-87 and

Ju-88 The Junkers Ju 88 is a German World War II ''Luftwaffe'' twin-engined multirole combat aircraft. Junkers Aircraft and Motor Works (JFM) designed the plane in the mid-1930s as a so-called ''Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") that would be too fast ...

, but there is no confirmation of this in her award sheets or regiment documents. It is confirmed that she flew over 100 sorties, providing cover for strategically valuable targets and escorting

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 proje ...

transport aircraft. After serving with the predominantly male fighter aviation regiment in Stalingrad she did not want to return to her original unit, the 586th Fighter Aviation Regiment, because it was an air defense unit that saw less intense combat; however, she was forced to do so under threat of tribunal, despite complaining that she wouldn't be "deserting" to the reserve but to the frontlines. During the war she was featured alongside Litvyak and Budanova in the military aviation newspaper ''Stalinsky Sokol.''

Awards

* Two

Order of the Patriotic War The Order of the Patriotic War (russian: Орден Отечественной войны, Orden Otechestvennoy voiny) is a Soviet military decoration that was awarded to all soldiers in the Soviet armed forces, security troops, and to partisan ...

2nd class (21 February 1944 and 1985) *

Order of the Red Star The Order of the Red Star (russian: Орден Красной Звезды, Orden Krasnoy Zvezdy) was a military decoration of the Soviet Union. It was established by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 6 April 193 ...

(28 September 1944) * campaign and jubilee medals

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kuznetsova, Mariya 1918 births 1990 deaths Soviet women in World War II Soviet World War II pilots Women air force personnel of the Soviet Union