When, not surprisingly, they didn’t get an appointment: ibid., 54.
“Marina Raskova is forming . . . you may personally talk with her”: officer as quoted by Yevgeniya Zhigulenko in Noggle, 54.
“spellbound” when they found themselves: Yevgeniya Zhigulenko in Noggle, 54.
All the information was spread: Merry, 51.
Irina Rakobolskaya, who grew up: The memories are those of Irina Rakobolskaya in Noggle, 26–27. The quotation “generation not from this universe” is Irina Rakobolskaya as quoted in Krylova 2010, 12.
Irina was on duty: Merry, 51.
No one who heard the summons could resist: Krylova 2010, 121; Merry, 41.
CHAPTER 9: THE 122ND AIR GROUP
For the young women who answered: Pennington 2001, 37.
carrying only a small bag: A. M. Bereznitskaya in Cottam 1997, 98.
The women from Moscow: Vinogradova 2015, 24.
Throughout the huge nation: M. A. Kazarinova in Cottam 1997, 16–17.
One of them, when Marina assigned her: A. M. Bereznitskaya in Cottam 1997, 99.
On October 14 the girls were given military uniforms: Merry, 64; Alexandra Makunina in Noggle, 166; Pennington 2001, 38.
“right down to the underwear”: Raisa Aronova, quoted in Pennington 2001, 38, from Raisa Aronova 2nd ed., 24; also quoted in Strebe 2009, 23.
Even in 1943, when they received skirts: Pennington 2001, 234, note 79.
One woman remembered: Klavdiya Ilushina in Noggle, 51.
But it couldn’t happen in Moscow: Grossman, 60.
Then, on October 16, 1941, a Moscow radio: Overy, 97.
During that single chaotic night: Pennington 2001, 39.
Aboard one of those trains: Markwick & Cardona 2012, 88.
Marina’s recruits had to wait: Irina Sebrova in Noggle, 74; Pennington 2001 41, 234.
They didn’t have any idea where: A. M. Bereznitskaya in Cottam 1997, 100; Merry, 50; Pennington 2001, 40.
Their train was made up: Pennington 2001, 41; Vinogradova 2015, 45.
At the station, in the freezing darkness: M. A. Kazarinova in Cottam 1997, 15, 17–18.
In total, nearly a thousand young women: Merry, 55.
There, they would train: M. A. Kazarinova in Cottam 1997, 21–22.
During the long trip, Marina went: Merry, 55; Pennington 2001, 40.
And the recruits started to make friends: Vinogradova 2015, 44–45, 50.
There wasn’t a lot of food: Markwick & Cardona 2012, 92; Vinogradova 2015, 48.
“just like rabbits . . . made us take it all back”: Valentina Kravchenko-Savitskaya, quoted in Pennington 2001, 41, from an interview by Reina Pennington on May 7, 1993; see also Pennington 2001, 235, note 97.
“Service personnel must cover . . . have turned into mops”: M. A. Kazarinova in Cottam 1997, 18.
Militsa was no-nonsense: Pennington 2001, 36.
There were no lights showing: ibid., 41.
Militsa, who’d graduated from the Engels Flying School: M. A. Kazarinova in Cottam 1997, 22; see also Vinogradova 2015, 63.
Their hearts must have lifted: Markova 1986, 73.
The gymnasium of the Red Army Officers’ House: Pennington 2001, 42; see also Vinogradova 2015, 63.
“Is this some kind of a boudoir? . . . the girls don’t have them either!”: Marina Raskova as quoted by M. A. Kazarinova in Cottam 1997, 22.
Now a military representative: Markova 1986, 74; Pennington 2001, 42.
Sidebar: Combat Boots
Klavdiya Terekhova said that in one drill: Klavdiya Terekhova-Kasatkina in Noggle, 191.
But the young recruits were forbidden: A. M. Bereznitskaya in Cottam 1997, 99; Klavdiya Terekhova-Kasatkina in Noggle, 191; Pennington 2001, 39.
Combat boots in women’s sizes for British soldiers: Drury, August 30, 2012.
In 2015, after American women soldiers: Scarborough, May 14, 2015.
CHAPTER 10: “NOW I AM A WARRIOR”
Marina hadn’t forgotten Militsa’s comments: Merry, 56; Pennington 2001, 42; Strebe 2009, 24.
The haircuts drove home to everyone: Olga Yakovleva in Cottam 1997, 285; Nadezhda Popova in Noggle, 81.
At first, headstrong, talented Lilya: Klavdiya Terekhova-Kasatkina in Noggle, 192.
When the young women . . . Marina had to admit that it did: The story and quotations are from Inna Vladimirovna Pasportnikova in Pennington 2001, 46. They are quoted from a typescript in Pennington’s collection headed “Moi Komandir,” 1989. See Pennington 2001, 235, note 129.
But she couldn’t let such an outrageous violation: Krylova 2010, 274–75; Inna Pasportnikova in Noggle, 195; Pennington 2001, 46.
Hanging on to their feminity: Saywell, 138.
Marina divided the young women: Pennington 2001, 37.
Marina gave these assignments: Polina Gelman in Noggle, 39; Yevgeniya Zhigulenko in Noggle, 54; Pennington 2001, 37.
Women with physical strength: Merry, 36.
They began lessons immediately: Gibson, 122.
“Our days were filled . . . in the frosty air: ‘Sing!’”: Inna Pasportnikova in Cottam 1997, 313.
Sometimes, to get people used to combat: Pennington 2001, 42.
On November 7, 1941, less than a month: Markova 1986, 78; Markwick & Cardona 2012, 92; Pennington 2001, 42.
“Let’s vow once more . . . beloved homeland”: Marina Raskova, quoted in Markova 1986, 79; English translation quoted in Pennington 2001, 43.
“Now I am a warrior . . . mastering a fearsome weapon”: Zhenya Rudneva, quoted in Markwick & Cardona 2012, 93.
Less than a month later, on December 5, 1941: Hook, 73–74.
Meanwhile, another ferocious wind: Hook, 72–74; LaFeber & Polenberg, 251, 254.
on December 9, 1941, under an order of Stalin: Markwick & Cardona 2012, 93.
Marina chose Militsa Kazarinova’s sister: Alexandra Makunina in Cottam 1997, 254–55.
Marina also assigned commanders: Pennington 2001, 48, 94.
Marina chose Yevdokia Bershanskaya: M. A. Kazarinova in Cottam 1997, 27; Krylova 2010, 135; Markwick & Cardona 2012, 91; Vinogradova 2015, 107.
But Marina wanted her to take charge: Natalya Meklin-Kravtsova in Cottam 1997, 159; Noggle, 18; Pennington 2001, 75.
Yevdokia’s second-in-command: Krylova 2010, 12
Irina had gone to war: ibid., 97.
Now, when Marina Raskova told her: Irina Rakobolskaya in Noggle, 27.
Sidebar: Units Of Measurement
In World War II, in the USSR: Von Hardesty & Grinberg, 371.
CHAPTER 11: WINTER TRAINING
The winter of 1941–1942 was the coldest: Stolfi, 220.
They covered their faces with masks: Vinogradova 2015, 89.
Throughout that fearsome winter: Belyakov, 34; Merry, 56–57; Pennington 2001, 43.
Beginning in January 1942: Pennington 2001, 47.
Training in wartime meant that: M. A. Kazarinova in Cottam 1997, 25.
“It was early morning . . . hands freeze to the metal”: Zoya Malkova in Cottam 1997, 298–99.
“Other girls join in . . . you found new strength”: ibid., 299.
The young airwomen truly: Pennington 2001, 45.
She hummed along to Rimsky-Korsakov: Merry, 109, 152; Pennington 2001, 29, 45.
At the end of the day’s training: M. A. Kazarinova in Cottam 1997, 26.
“The Dugout”: Quoted by M. A. Kazarinova in Cottam 1997, 26-27. It was written by the poet Alexey Surkov and beloved throughout the Soviet Union during the war. The English translation is my own, based on several English versions.
And she had a sympathetic ear: Antonina Skoblikova in Cottam 1997, 66.
Some of the women: M. A. Kazarinova in Cottam 1997, 27; Markova 1986, 65.
The one thing Marina didn’t make time for: Yekaterina Fedotova in Cottam 1997, 51; Pennington 2001, 44.
Years later, when other men: Alexievich 20
17, 113; Pennington 2001, 28.
CHAPTER 12: GROUND CREW
Irina Favorskaya was a student: Irina Lunyova-Favorskaya in Noggle, 209–10.
“We had to fix instruments . . . girls laughed and made fun of me”: Irina Lunyova-Favorskaya in Noggle, 210.
Zinaida Butkaryova came from: Zinaida Butkaryova-Yermolayeva in Noggle, 184–85; Klavdiya Terekhova-Kasatkina in Noggle, 191.
“When one of our aircraft . . . the pilot got down safely”: Zinaida Butkaryova-Yermolayeva in Noggle, 186.
One, Khivaz Dospanova, was from a town in Kirghiz: Markwick & Cardona 2012, 90.
Only a third of one percent of Soviet women: ibid., 89.
Zoya Malkova, the aircraft mechanic: Zoya Malkova in Noggle, 218.
Life was harder for ground crew: Pennington 2001, 116.
The young women who’d been assigned as Komsomol: Vinogradova 2015, 90–91.
“After I was in closer contact . . . we all became like sisters”: Klavdiya Ilushina in Noggle, 49.
Sidebar: Kitchen Duty: Another Form of Elitism
Valentina Petrochenkova was so inspired: Valentina Petrochenkova-Neminushaya in Noggle, 175.
“and only the instructors in the bushes could stop us!”: ibid., 175–76.
When she’d finished her course . . . she was still sitting there: The story, and the dialogue quoted with the officer, are quoted in Valentina Petrochenkova-Neminushaya’s account in Noggle, 176.
Finally she wore him down: ibid., 176–77.
CHAPTER 13: THE AIRCRAFT ARRIVE
Late in December 1941: Markova 1986, 84.
These battered Sukhoys: Pennington 2001, 51; Vinogradova 2015, 81.
Remember Vladimir Petlyakov: Gunston, 279.
These Pe-2s were the planes: Krylova 2010, 126; Pennington 2001, 52.
by the end of the war the 587th loved this aircraft: Mariya Dolina in Cottam 1997, 71; Yekaterina Fedotova in Cottam 1997, 116; Vinogradova 2015, 101.
The aircraft for the 588th Night Bomber Aviation Regiment: Pennington 2001, 48.
They were Polikarpov Po-2 biplanes: Pennington 2001, 31; Vinogradova 2015, 98.
They were already being used at the front: Irina Rakobolskaya in Cottam 1997, 150; Vinogradova 2015, 106.
“It sounded like a sewing machine . . . as long as the Po-2s approached”: Artur Gartner in Wasps and Witches, 39:29 ff.
“We hated the German fascists . . . to be able to fire at them!”: Polina Gelman in Noggle, 39.
As for the 586th Fighter Aviation Regiment: Pennington 2001, 50.
The male technicians at the factory: Levin, 29–30; Pennington 2001, 50.
Marina decided to introduce: Pennington 2001, 51.
“Our aerodrome kids were transformed . . . pulled themselves up”: The quotation is I. S. Levin, 29–30, English translation by Pennington 2001, 51.
It wasn’t long before the splendid Yak-1: M. A. Kazarinova in Cottam 1997, 23; Nina Slovokhotova in Cottam 1997, 261; Pennington 2001, 51; Vinogradova 2015, 96.
Those fighter planes only had room: Pennington 2001, 51.
“outside when the wind was blowing . . . would be a deep blue color”: Galina Drobovich in Noggle, 190.
Soon the young fighter pilots: Olga Yakovleva in Cottam 1997, 286.
“The machine is splendid! . . . I learned how to turn”: Lilya Litvyak, quoted by S. Gribanov in Cottam 1997, 305.
CHAPTER 14: NOT QUITE READY FOR WAR
Hardly any of Marina Raskova’s pilots: Markwick & Cardona 2012, 94; Pennington 2001, 73.
“You see this? . . . I cannot see it!”: Raisa Zhitova-Yushina in Noggle, 90.
On March 9, 1942, it was deadly for the 588th: Vinogradova 2015, 117–18.
“It was like flying through milk”: Yevdokia Bershanskaya, quoted in Vinogradova 2015, 117.
Marina stayed up late: Markova 1986, 87; Pennington 2001, 48–49; Vinogradova 2015, 117–18.
“My darlings, my girls . . . you shouldn’t be sobbing”: Marina Raskova as quoted by Klavdiya Terekhova-Kasatkina in Noggle, 194.
“These are our first losses . . . Clench your hearts like a fist”: Marina Raskova as quoted by Klavdiya Terekhova-Kasatkina in Alexievich 2017, 564.
The incident shook everyone: Serafima Amosova-Taranenko in Noggle, 44.
Because of the accident: Markwick & Cardona 2012, 94; Pennington 2001, 49.
“We are having remarkable summer-like flying . . . very confident and completely grown-up”: Lilya Litvyak in a letter, quoted by S. Gribanov in Cottam 1997, 306.
But before they could go to war: Vinogradova 2015, 121–22.
But when the 586th’s assignment came: Yekaterina Polunina in Noggle, 164.
Instead, they’d be protecting the strategic city: Vinogradova 2015, 127.
On April 16, 1942, the women: Pennington 2001, 108.
Skylarks sang in the fields around them: Vinogradova 2015, 168.
every night the air raid sirens wailed: Nina Slovokhotova in Cottam 1997, 259.
The 586th’s main mission: Pennington 2001, 103, 105.
Sometimes they also had to deliver urgent messages: Tamara Pamyatnykh in Cottam 1997, 160; Klavdiya Pankratova in Cottam 1997, 282.
In addition to being disappointed: Vinogradova 2015, 127.
Marina had appointed Tamara Kazarinova: Alexandra Makunina in Cottam 1997, 254.
“fairly well . . . not bad”: Alexandra Makunina in Cottam 1997, 255.
Tamara didn’t often fly along: Pennington 2001, 107.
Soviet fighter pilots were alone: Merry, 104.
Three of the 586th’s fighter pilots: Nina Potapova in Cottam 1997, 347.
Lilya Litvyak and Katya Budanova: Inna Pasportnikova in Cottam 1997, 314–15.
“So May has almost ended . . . thirsting for battle, especially me”: Lilya Litvyak, quoted by S. Gribanov in Cottam 1997, 307.
There were now more than twenty-five nations: Hook, 77.
The Americans were fighting an air and sea war: ibid., 82.
As the snow began to melt in Russia: See Anderson, 2015, for a detailed account of the Leningrad blockade.
But Moscow was still free: Hook, 81.
In March, the Red Army began fighting in Crimea: ibid., 84.
Encouraged by the warm weather: Beevor & Vinogradova in Grossman 2006, 116–17; Overy, 157–58; Pennington 2001, 79; Vinogradova 2015, 161.
CHAPTER 15: THE 588TH: IN COMBAT AT LAST
The 588th was sent to help: Mariya Smirnova in Noggle, 31; Serafima Amosova-Taranenko in Noggle, 44; Markwick & Cardona 2012, 96; Pennington 2001, 76.
Marina Raskova’s young aviators: Pennington 2001, 49.
Marina flew with the 588th: Irina Rakobolskaya in Cottam 1997, 151.
Ten minutes before the planes: Raisa Aronova in Cottam 1997, 250.
the surrounding orchards were foamy: Markova 1986, 91.
When the young women climbed out: Pennington 2001, 76, referring to Raisa Aronova 1980, 52–53.
Once again, the young women’s morale: Pennington 2001, 78.
The pilot who checked out Mariya Smirnova: Mariya Smirnova in Noggle, 31.
Before Marina flew back: Markova 1986, 91.
“Standing shoulder to shoulder . . . opening up in our lives”: Natalya Meklin-Kravtsova in Cottam 1997, 158.
On June 10, 1942, three Po-2s: Markwick & Cardona 2012, 96; Pennington 2001, 73, 78.
The 588th’s commander, Yevdokia Bershanskaya: Natalya Meklin-Kravtsova in Cottam 1997, 159.
As they approached the target area: Serafima Amosova-Taranenko in Noggle, 45.
“When we landed . . . hugging and kissing us”: Serafima Amosova-Taranenko in Noggle, 45.
But for Lyuba Olkhovskaya’s squadron: Markwick & Cardona 2012, 96; Zoya Parfyonova in Noggle, 71; Pennington 2001, 78.
“We painted on . . . our planes . . . the Death of our Friends”: Serafima Amosova-Taranenko in Noggle, 45.
Lyuba’s squadron had to fly: Zoya Parfyonova in Noggle, 71.
Mariya S
mirnova, the pilot: Mariya Smirnova in Noggle, 31.
For most of the summer: Pennington 2001, 77.
Yevdokia Bershanskaya turned out to be: Natalya Meklin-Kravtsova in Cottam 1997, 159; Pennington 2001, 75.
She tried to balance military discipline: Olga Yerokhina-Averjanova in Noggle, 58–59.
Tonya Rudakova, who was tiny: Irina Rakobolskaya in Cottam 1997, 156.
“Be careful”: Natalya Meklin-Kravtsova quoting Yevdokia Bershanskaya in Cottam 1997, 160, 199.
That was enough to reassure: Irina Rakobolskaya in Cottam 1997, 155.
They used two airfields: Irina Rakobolskaya in Cottam 1997, 154; Serafima Amosova-Taranenko in Noggle, 45.
“You point your plane . . . how I hate them!”: Zhenya Rudneva, quoted in Vinogradova 2015, 109.
The release catch wasn’t entirely reliable: Irina Rakobolskaya in Noggle, 29.
“I am not in the least afraid . . . so wonderful to fly!”: Zhenya Rudneva in Cottam 1997, 218.
Flying in the dark: Irina Rakobolskaya in Noggle, 30.
Another sobering accident: Polina Gelman in Cottam 1997, 163; Vinogradova 2015, 157–58.
The darkened nighttime airfields: Pennington 2001, 81.
“Soon we’ll be expected to land . . . commander’s cigarette”: Irina Rakobolskaya in Cottam 1997, 155.
CHAPTER 16: DIVE-BOMBERS FOR THE 587TH
Back at Engels: Markova 1986, 94; Noggle, 99; Valentina Kravchenko-Savitskaya in Noggle, 101; Pennington 2001, 53, 54.
“flying coffin”: Antonina Bondareva-Spitsina in Wasps and Witches, 36:13ff.
“the control stick was heavy . . . tail up for takeoff”: Yekaterina Musatova-Fedotova in Noggle, 147.
Marina Raskova was less experienced: Merry 109; Pennington 2001, 44; Pennington 2003 Vol. 2, 353.
Katya was there to see: Yekaterina Fedotova in Cottam 1997, 51; Vinogradova 2015, 128–29.
“Never mind, girls . . . certainly is airworthy”: Marina Raskova as quoted by Yekaterina Fedotova in Cottam 1997, 51.
According to pilot Yelena: Yelena Malyutina in Newman, December 6, 2016.
In the back of the aircraft: Noggle, 99.
Now Marina ran into: Pennington 2001, 52–53.
Tonya Khokhlova was one: Antonina Khokhlova-Dubkova in Noggle, 114.
“but in the air it was one, two, and it was recharged!”: ibid.
It was difficult for the armorers: Dasha Chalaya in Cottam 1997, 95.
The Pe-2 dive-bomber contained five: Galina Volova in Cottam 1997, 93.