Nikolay Putyko Fighter pilot Date of Birth: 25.10.1918 Country: Ukraine

1. Biography of Nikolay Putko
2. Early Victories

Biography of Nikolay Putko

Nikolay S. Putko was born on October 25, 1918, in the city of Nikopol, currently part of the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, in a working-class family. He completed 7 classes of school and attended the FZU school. Putko worked as a milling machine operator at the Nikopol Crane-Building Plant named after Lenin.

In 1939, he joined the Red Army, and a year later, he graduated from the Kachinskaya Military Aviation Pilot School. As a Junior Lieutenant, Putko flew his first combat missions on the Western Front on the first day of the war. However, their airfield was completely destroyed and partially blocked on the evening of June 22, 1941, forcing them to destroy their planes and retreat to the east due to the threat of encirclement.

From July 1942, Putko fought as part of the newly formed 814th Fighter Aviation Regiment, flying the "Hurricane." After the regiment suffered material losses in summer battles, it was re-equipped with the Yak-1 and sent to the Southern Front, towards the Stalingrad direction.

Early Victories

During the battles for Barvenkovsky Outpost, Lieutenant N. Putko successfully intercepted a pair of Ju-88 bombers, attacking them one by one from a short distance after approaching from the sun. His interception was rare in its success.

In the spring of 1944, the 814th Aviation Regiment (which had become the 106th Guards by then) became one of the first in the Soviet Air Force to be re-equipped with the new Yak-3 fighters. On August 31, 1944, Lieutenant N. Putko was attacked by a group of six enemy fighters while conducting reconnaissance. Skillfully utilizing the flight advantages of the Yak-3, he shot down two German Me-109s, evaded the pursuers, and safely returned to the airfield with valuable reconnaissance data.

By February 1945, as the deputy commander of the 106th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment (part of the 11th Guards Fighter Aviation Division, 2nd Guards Assault Aviation Corps, 2nd Air Army, and 1st Ukrainian Front), Senior Lieutenant N. S. Putko had completed 333 combat sorties and shot down 19 enemy aircraft in aerial combat. By the end of the war, Captain N. S. Putko had completed about 450 successful combat sorties and personally shot down 21 enemy aircraft (according to M. Yu. Bykov's research, there were documentary confirmations of 18 individual and 6 group victories).

On June 27, 1945, for his courage and military valor demonstrated in battles with the enemy, he was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

After the war, Nikolay S. Putko continued to serve in the Soviet Air Force and mastered several types of jet fighters. In 1954, at the age of 36 and with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, he was retired from active service. He lived and worked in Moscow and was decorated with the Orders of Lenin, the Red Banner (twice), the Red Star (twice), and various medals. He passed away on August 21, 1962.