Wings Over Grodno : Combat Operations of the Soviet 127th Fighter Regiment, 22-23 June 1941

There is an opinion among the general public that the Soviet Union's entire air force in Belorussia on the first day of the war was caught on the ground by the Luftwaffe and destroyed on the morning of 22 June 1941.

However, the example of the 127th Fighter Aviation Regiment proves that this is far from the case.

Aerial combat continued until the evening of 22 June, by which time the regiment had completely exhausted its ammunition.The author has tracked down and established the fate of almost all 13 pilots of the regiment who were killed that day, as well as the German victory claims.

In the course of conducting field research for the book, the author found an engine from one of the downed Soviet aircraft, which is still lying today on the outskirts of Grodno.

For the first time, with the help of local eyewitnesses to the events, he was able to trace the fate of Major Wolfgang Schellman, the German ace and commander of JG 27, and established where his plane fell.

He also learned the fate of the people who took part in capturing him.Also for the first time in public, the book contains a complete roster of the 127th Fighter Aviation Regiment's pilots. 'Wings over Grodno' is a fascinating contribution to the study of the Soviet air force during the early stages of the Great Patriotic War.