Ilyushin IL-2 Sturmovik
Over 36,000 Ilyushin IL-2 Sturmoviks were manufactured by the Soviet Union. The front fuselage of the aircraft was essentially an armored “bathtub”, the armor plate ranging in thickness from 5-12mm (2-5 inches), designed to protect the engine, the pilot’s cockpit, the coolant and oil radiators, and the fuel tanks.
Reliable and tough, but relatively slow (top speed was only about 250mph) and not especially maneuverable, the Sturmovik was armed with two forward firing 23mm cannons and two 7.62mm machine guns. The air-to-ground armament of the IL-2 included rockets, which were very inaccurate, and small “shaped charge” 1.5 kg (3.3 lb.) bomblets, which were first used on a large scale during the Battle of Kursk in July 1943, and which could easily penetrate the upper armor of the German heavy tanks. The IL-2 could carry up to 192 of these weapons in four external cluster bomb dispensers or up to 220 in the inner wing panels’ internal weapon bays. The Type 3M variant of the IL-2, which was intended as a specialist anti-tank aircraft and was also first used operationally during the Battle of Kursk, carried two 37mm cannons in conformal gun pods mounted under the wings, instead of the original smaller-caliber cannons.
Standard tactics of the Soviet Sturmovik formations, usually of anything from four to 12 aircraft, were to race across the enemy positions at low level (50 meters/160 feet) bombing and strafing, or to attack from several thousand feet, from a “circle of death,” in a 30-degree dive. The Sturmovik was an effective ground-attack, close-support aircraft, feared by the Wehrmacht troops on the ground and a formidable opponent for the Luftwaffe fighter pilots.
As if to prove the point, Kittel was airborne again later the same day and claimed yet another Sturmovik flying at 700 meters (2,300 feet) at 1341 hours, bringing his total score to 70 enemy aircraft destroyed. He was set to go on to accrue the highest victory score of any pilot in the Fw 190.
Otto Kittel—early years
Otto Kittel was born at Kronsdorf in the Sudentenland (now Krasov in the Czech Republic) on February 21, 1917, to parents who were part of the German-speaking population of the area. Fascinated by aviation from a young age, Otto longed to become a pilot. Sudentenland was annexed to Nazi Germany in 1938 and a year later, he joined the Luftwaffe at the age of 22.
By February 1941, Kittel had completed the extensive and impressive Luftwaffe pilot training program and was assigned to II./JG54 with the rank of Unteroffizier, flying Bf 109s, initially from Le Mans in France. All his operational flying would subsequently be with JG 54.
Kittel—the man
Small in stature with a reserved and thoughtful personality, “Bruno” Kittel did not fit popular perceptions of a typical fighter pilot. He was a quiet and calm young pilot who spoke slowly and softly. Those who knew him at that time described him as being modest, taciturn even, and rather too serious, but he was wellliked. They also recognized in him an unshakeable calm, great presence of mind and speed of reactions, and a strong sense of duty. Kittel like to be well-rested and fully alert for all his flights, and he took every opportunity to get the necessary sleep, even between sorties. He quickly developed a reputation for total reliability which, with his other personal attributes, drew the admiration of both his superiors and his peers.
In June 1942, Kittel married his sweetheart, Edith, by Ferntrauung (distance wedding) at a proxy wedding ceremony conducted for him on the Eastern Front. During the war, special rules were signed
off by Hitler enabling the long-distance marriage of service personnel to their brides at home when both could not be present in the same place. A Ferntrauung ceremony was held in the field with the bridegroom’s service colleagues present as witnesses and usually with a photograph of the bride on the table in front of them. Once completed, the paperwork was sent back to the bride for her part of the ceremony in her home town registry office. If the worst should happen, the wife was then entitled to a widow’s pension. Despite being officially married, Otto and Edith were not to see each other for several months.
Junior fighter pilot (Bf 109s)
When the German invasion of the Soviet Union, Operation “Barbarossa,” began on June 22, 1941, JG 54 was tasked with supporting Army Group North on the Eastern Front, where it was to serve for the rest of the war. Two days later, on June 24, Kittel, flying a Bf 109F, claimed his first two kills, both against Soviet Air Force Tupolev SB-2, Katyushka, twin-engine light bombers. On June 30 he claimed his