Рыбин, Ю. В. Советские асы на Харрикейнах в годы Второй Мировой Войны / Юрий Рыбин . – [Б. м. ] : Osprey Publishing, 2012. – 97 с. : ил., портр. – Англ. яз.

This diagram illustrates the battle on 1 July 1942 when 78th IAP pilots, led by Petr Sgibnev, reported the destruction of seven Ju 87 dive- dombers that w ere attempting to target Murmansk surprise formation attack followed by the selection of opponents by individual pilots. The tactic worked well enough in 1941, when German bombers generally operated in the Murmansk area without fighter escort. In the case of the 1 July 1942 battle, six pilots each claimed to have shot down an enemy bomber and three of the leading group claimed two. Clearly a sudden mass attack like this had an impact on the morale of enemy bomber crews, but the tactic also exposed the Soviet fighter pilots to attack by the escorting fighters, although in mid-1942 such a head-on pass was still considered a valid tactic. Yet alongside the reference to the successful and ‘well-organised action as a group’, there was some criticism of the Hurricanes’ leader in the official report of the battle; ‘Capt Sgibnev made a fundamental mistake by being so engrossed in his pursuit of the enemy that he failed to organise a re-grouping of his pilots after the battle, which resulted in them returning to their airfield individually.’ At a conference of Northern Fleet pilots held shortly after the 1 July action, Sgibnev shared his observations and experiences from the battle with his colleagues; ‘There is no need to be afraid of attacking a Ju 87 head-on, as it is defenceless from an attack from this direction. However, it is difficult to aim during a head-on attack, and firing can therefore be ineffective. One has to know the weak points of enemy aircraft, and hit them there. The Me 109 is a good aircraft, but even it has a weak spot. In the Hurricane, you cannot get away from the Messerschmitt in level flight. Nevertheless, it can be shot down if you manage to get behind the fighter, as it is not a strong aircraft. It is also lightly armed with one cannon and two machine guns. Me 109 pilots never enter into head-on attacks.’ Two days after the 1 July clash, four 78th IAP Hurricanes, together with a flight of I-15bis fighters from 27th IAP, intercepted a formation 63 © Osprey Publishing • www.ospreypublishing.com AR CT IC WAR HOTS UP