1. Konstantin Kokkinaki was a Soviet fighter and test pilot.
13 Facts About Konstantin Kokkinaki
1. 2.
Konstantin Kokkinaki shot a total of 14 enemy aircraft in the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II.
3.
Konstantin Kokkinaki was born on 11 March 1910, in Novorossiysk into a Pontic Greek family.
4.
Konstantin Kokkinaki left school in 1925 after finishing the 7th grade, going on to work as a sailor in the Novorossiysk port.
5.
In 1932, Kokkinaki graduated from the Stalingrad Military Aviation School.
6.
Konstantin Kokkinaki went on to serve as a pilot in the Red Air Force, becoming a test pilot in 1939.
7.
Two squadrons of Polikarpov I-15 and Polikarpov I-16s assembled near Moscow, Stepan Suprun was appointed as their commander with Konstantin Kokkinaki acting as his deputy.
8.
On 10 January 1940, Konstantin Kokkinaki shot down his seventh enemy aircraft.
9.
In June 1941, Konstantin Kokkinaki was dispatched to the front lines of World War II.
10.
Konstantin Kokkinaki served as the deputy commander of the 401st Special Fighter Regiment which was composed of former test pilots.
11.
Konstantin Kokkinaki retired from the air force in 1950 in the rank of colonel.
12.
Konstantin Kokkinaki continued to work as a test pilot, testing dozens of new aircraft.
13.
On 21 August 1964, Konstantin Kokkinaki was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for his achievements as a test and fighter pilot.