April 12 is a rainy day for American aviation for two reasons at once
One is known to the whole planet - this is the flight into space of the first man, who became the Russian pilot-cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin.
Another reason is very little known, although it was on this day, exactly ten years before the flight of Gagarin, that the Russian aces of the three times Hero of the Soviet Union Ivan Kozhedub, who then commanded the 324th Fighter Aviation Division, dispelled the myth of the invulnerability of the American flying super-fortresses B-29 - those most that dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and were preparing to do the same with dozens of cities in the USSR (in accordance with the plans for the war against the Soviet Union "Totality", "Pincher", "Dropshot", "Broiler / Frolic", "Charioteer", "Halfmoon / Fleetwood", "Trojan", "Off-tackle" and others adopted since 1945 and improved as the United States accumulates nuclear weapons).
As a result of the collapse of the aviation component of these plans, the famous expression "Black Thursday" was born. It happened on April 12, 1951 during the Korean War. On this day, an armada of 21 B-29 bombers, escorted by guards from 200 American fighters, collided with Soviet MiG aircraft. The Americans were confident in their invulnerability and victory, but Soviet pilots found control over the winged superweapon that destroyed Hiroshima. It was decided to use the only tactical technique that remained at their disposal - from top to bottom to penetrate the formation of the American B-29 armada and the US Air Force fighters covering them with Soviet MiGs.
The Soviet aces did this only once, but that was enough. The effect exceeded all expectations. 12 of the 21 "flying superfortresses" were shot down. Of the remaining nine "invulnerable" until that day, American vehicles did not have a single one that returned to the base without killed and wounded crew members. At the same time, four US Air Force fighters were shot down. If the Americans had not turned in panic to the coastline, beyond which Soviet fighters were forbidden to fly, the losses of US aviation would have been even greater.
The Soviet MiGs had no losses. For three days, the stunned Americans did not fly out at all. Then, under powerful cover, they sent three B-29s for a test. These were all shot down. After that, they began to send "flying super-fortresses" only at night, and having lost 170 vaunted "super-fortresses" downed, they stopped using them altogether.
This is how the participant describes that battle - pilot-ace Major General of Aviation Sergey Makarovich Kramarenko (pictured) - a veteran of the Great Patriotic War (on the fronts since August 1942, personally and in a group, he shot down 13 German planes and a spotter balloon) and the Korean War (from April 1951 to February 1952 made 149 sorties, personally shot down 13 enemy aircraft in air battles):
“… I look down. We are just above the bombers. Our MiGs shoot "flying super-fortresses". One's wing has fallen off and is falling apart in the air, three or four cars are on fire. Crews jump out of the burning bombers, dozens of parachutes hang in the air. The impression is that an airborne assault has been thrown out. And the battle was only gaining momentum …
The crews of the destroyed planes began to jump out, the rest turned back. Then four more damaged "flying fortresses" fell on the way home or crashed at airfields. Then about 100 American pilots were taken prisoner. After the battle, almost every one of our MiGs found one, two, three holes. One had a hundred holes. But there was no major damage, not a single bullet hit the cockpit.
The Americans called this day, April 12, "Black Tuesday," and then they did not fly for three months. We tried to make another raid, but if in the first battle 12 B-29s were shot down, in the second we already destroyed 16 “flying fortresses”. In total, over the three years of the Korean war, 170 B-29 bombers were shot down. The Americans lost the main forces of their strategic aviation located in the South-Eastern theater of operations. During the day they no longer flew, only single planes at night. But we beat them at night too.
Then for a long time the Americans did not lose the shock of the fact that their bombers, which were considered the most powerful, the most invulnerable, turned out to be defenseless against Soviet fighters. And after the first battles we began to call the "flying fortresses" "flying sheds" - so quickly they caught fire and burned brightly."
For that battle, the successful fulfillment of command assignments and the courage and courage of the guards shown at the same time, by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of October 10, 1951, he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the award of the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal.
Happy Holidays, Dear Colleagues!
