The rise of "Brewster" Bashny.Net

The story is old, but interesting. Remember how in the already distant 98th on TV local news watched report on the Finnish Flight American production times of WWII «Brewster Buffalo» tail number BW-372, which is raised from the lake in Medvezhegorsk area, and a few days later I was able to see him on the field airport near my city, where he was taken by helicopter. It struck perfectly preserved: the paint on the fuselage, the instruments were in good condition, according to a policeman guarding a fighter when it dismantled the engine, which just shone inside. Years later dug sympathetic of information about how this «Brewster» shot down, looking, raised, and what happened to him, I decided to share with yapovtsami. Total 25 photos, many letters, please do not break.





About the aircraft:
In December 1939, Finland has bought from US 44 fighter Brewster Buffalo, have created a regiment of four squadrons of eight cars each, ie a total of 32 aircraft. Hard to believe, but this looked like a barrel with an airplane wing, considered one of the worst World War II fighter planes, eventually proved to be the most effective fighting machine the Finnish Air Force.
Short, stocky and unattractive plane, "Buffalo" was put into operation in the same year that Mitsubishi A6M Zero and the Bf-109, falls far short of the two aircraft. His weight increased in the design process, resulting in the installation of heavy weapons and armor. Pilots, who served in the British and Dutch Air Force in Southeast Asia, and fly to the "Brewster" extremely unlucky. They were shot down by the Japanese "Zero" without loss to the latter. Everything else, «Buffalo» has been very unreliable in operation at high temperatures and high humidity, so characteristic of the tropics.
Pilots of the US Marine Corps called it a "flying coffin" after the "Battle of Midway" where losses become catastrophic for «Buffalo». He was quickly replaced in the US is much more efficient Grumman F4F Wildcat. However, the Finnish Air Force, "Brewster" has shown himself quite differently. Although American fighter did not shine specifications, but had a good view from the cockpit and radio in every car. The last factor facilitates guiding fighters on the ground. From 25 June 1941 to 21 May 1944 the pilots of the Finnish "Brewster" declared 477 downed at the cost of 19 cars (including 15 shot down in aerial combat and 2 killed at the airport).
In total in 1941-1944. Finnish Air Force destroyed in the air in 1567 Soviet aircraft. This was won by only 155 pilots, 87 of them - more than half (the highest percentage among the Air Forces of the world) - received the title of ace. The most productive proved: Eino Yuutilaynen (94 wins, 36 of them in the "Brewster"), Hans Wind (75, 39 of them in the "Brewster") and Eino Luukaanen (51, mostly on «Me.109»).
In the photo: Brwester BW-372 at the airport Tiksha, 25 May 1942. SA-kuva № 89190.



How was knocked down Brewster BW-372:
June 25, 1942 at 13.25 from the airport Tiksha alarm went four "Brewster", under the command of Lieutenant Ohukaynena (Pekur). They had appeared to intercept near the airport Soviet aircraft, but did not catch up with them, they went to the area of ​​Segezha, which already went dogfight. Going to the battlefield at an altitude of 5000 meters, Ohukaynen ordered a second pair of "Brewster" attack managed Soviet pilots of 609 IAP "Hurricane" at the bottom, and he, along with his wingman Sergeant Kalervo Anttila stayed on top. Fight gradually shifting south-easterly direction, towards the lake. Vygozero. Soon the couple Ohukaynen - Anttila was attacked by five "Hurricane."



Ohukaynenu managed to escape from pursuing his "Hurricane," but when he at the maximum speed at an altitude of 100 meters flew over Segozero, rear top has another pair of fighters. According to the Finnish Lieutenant, at the moment he relaxed and therefore did not notice the "Hurricane." His "Brewster» BW-372 received a series of hits, and the engine seemed to flame, was also punched and fired up the fuel tank in the left wing. However Ohukaynenu lucky, and he was able to shoot down attacking his "Hurricane": "The attacker was flying the same course and has not had time to slow down after the fire at such close range. Suddenly, his plane was right in front of me and the fuselage is completely filled my sight. I immediately pulled the trigger. "



Ohukaynen opened the canopy, but the height was too small to use a parachute. He decided to hold on to display in front of the lake. Big Kaliyarvi a couple of kilometers to the northwest of Orchenguby on Segozero because at the moment beneath him was already solid wood and downing trees meant instant death. When Ohukaynen at a height of ten meters above the water flying, his second attack, "Hurricane." At this time, "Brewster" was hit in the right fuel tank, the engine is completely stalled, and after a few moments the flames had already reached to the cabin. The pilot immediately sent a plane down, and touched the water at a speed of 250 km / h, "Brewster" rolled through the hood.



When Ohukaynen, freed from the harness, came to the surface, then immediately singed eyelashes and eyelids. Around him in the water burned fuel leaking from the punctured tank still float aircraft. "I ducked and saw burning continuously expanding frontier area. In my lung was water. I did not want to drown under the burning water. " When Ohukaynen again surfaced, he saw that the burning fuel again approaching it. "Twenty meters that I had to sail with a parachute, was the most difficult moment of my life." Being able to finally get rid of the parachute and dropping boots Ohukaynen rolled onto his back. "I got up only when my head knocked against the rocks." The plane is making a complete somersault in the water sank, as it turned out, at the deepest point Kaliyarvi at a depth of ten meters.



When he came to the western shore of the lake, Ohukaynen noticed on the opposite side of the fire, and, as it seemed at the time, the Russian soldiers. Apparently, it is so frightened him that in his socks, he ran about fifteen kilometers to the nearest reference point of the Finnish line escort in the village. Baranova Gora in the south Elmozera, breaking the path of Finnish minefields. After returning to his unit he was asked to take a two-week vacation, but chose to stay Ohukaynen. He said that he will use in accordance with a predetermined schedule, "I have seen people who have lost confidence in themselves, have experienced great difficulties in further battles after returning from vacation. I wanted to fly to fully recover before the release of its shape as a fighter pilot. "



Carried out six sorties, Lieutenant Ohukaynen in early July, still went on vacation as of July 12, has been appointed his marriage. It was then that he changed his old name Ohukaynen on Pekur. Soviet captivity Pekur still not escaped - June 16, 1944 his "Messerschmitt" was shot down over Soviet territory and the pilot had to jump with a parachute at an altitude of 100 m. During the four days he was able to walk about 60 km, but was not able to reach the front line which receded farther north. On the fifth day, at bedtime, his captured Soviet soldaty.V December 1944 Captain Lauri Pekur returned home. He weighed only 48 kg.



In 50 - 60 years Pekur part of a group of pilots who carried out the evaluation tests of jet fighters that the government of Finland to be procured. He has mastered the MiG-15, Hawker «Hunter», Folland «Gnat», «Mystere» IV, MiG-17, «Mirage» III, SAAB «Draken» and MiG-21. Flying in the English fighter "Hunter" Pekur became the first Finnish pilot to break the sound barer.V 1968 he retired with the rank of colonel, and then continued to work in the civil aviation. In 1980 Lauri Pekur moved to Spain, where he died on August 3, 1999



As searched for «Brewster»:
In 1992 he flew to «Brewster» fighter ace Heimo Lampi learned that the US National Museum of Naval Aviation would like to get to his collection of aircraft «Brewster». Lampi recalled two aircraft malopovrezhdennymi drowned in the Soviet Union, one in the sea, the second in the lake. Together with his friend Vic Saragonom and daughter Mary Lampi, he decided to create a team to try and find and take out of Russia is one of these fighters. They managed to find a sponsor - American Marvin Kottmann. He was head of the "Turbines Ltd", he had good relations with the US Navy and the museum. Kottmann, in turn, entrusted the management of prospecting for his subordinate Gary Villiardu.



Initially, it was decided to look in the Gulf of plane BW-388 pilot Jouko Lilja as the place fall into the water it was known from the words of the diver Timo Newman. However, legally all the sunken ships in the Gulf and aircraft belonging to the union "Baltic Memory", so to take out «Brewster» in the event of detection is very difficult.



At this time Villiardu and lamps joined the St. Petersburg Vladimir Prytkov search engine of the organization "Petro-Avia". To avoid any problems, decided to buy a plane Kottmann from the rightful owner, and only then forward it to the museum in Pensacola. In 1994 Prytkov Kottmann and we decide together all the financial and organizational issues, after which it was decided to start looking for the aircraft in Karelia. In a couple of years to Prytkov and lamp worked in the archives, trying to figure out the exact location of the fall of Brewster BW-372. After that, the search conducted at the alleged crash.



In 1996 Villiard Kottmanu announced that he will continue the project - without Kottmann. And their relationship to break. However, Kottmann was received fax on which Villiard Kottmann informed that if the plane is found, return the spent money during searches Kottmann and reimburse the cost of the tools and other accessories.



In June 1998, a diver Timo Nyman finally found lying at the bottom of the Grand Kaliyarvi istrebitel.V late July Villiard arrived in St. Petersburg and showed Prytkova underwater video shooting, made Timo Nyumanom. Just arrived in St. Petersburg and he Nyman, together with a lawyer Tero Erme. Villiard said that in Moscow he has friends in the association "aviation spare parts" that can help in obtaining permits to lift and export of aircraft. But the real help they received, but rather secured a huge problem in the future. The rise began in August, part of the money received from the Villiardom American Charles Hein, partly due Prytkova. The team consisted of divers from Sosnovy Bor - members of the club by name "Katran". One of the divers was an engineer and spent the necessary calculations on the reliability of the aircraft lift.



As a result, Kaliyarvi arrived mixed US-Finno-Russian group of 17ti people. The language barrier and lack of understanding are real problems at work. In addition, Newman thought that still works at Kottmann and Willard - just a mediator. Prytkov asked Newman to take him to the bank and show the place where the aircraft sank. This Prytkov took an ax. Fuck knows what Newman flashed in his head, but he decided to shift away from sin, as in ancient Finnish tradition did not trust Russian. Information on the plane, he passed through the Thermo Erme, and he went home, on the way to drop into the village of the incident and informed local police about the suspicious Russian with an ax. The policeman and the head of the local village council went to the lake, but found nothing suspicious, but information on the ongoing work on lifting the aircraft began to spread rapidly.



The aircraft sank in the Grand Kaliyarvi 15-meter depth in the cavity in the middle of the lake. The underwater environment is ideal helped to maintain the machine. 56 years after lying at the bottom of the lake is completely immersed fighter in the mud, it slowed down the corrosion process, but it has become an obstacle when the rise, complicating the gap from the bottom. The water was dark and movement in slush of mud was very hard for divers is taken a lot of effort. The working conditions were like in hell, the only difference was that at the bottom of the lake was very cold.



Russian divers worked in 8-degree water, rise to the surface only when they were blue with cold. Tina first digging shovels for the snow, and then purified by a strong jet plane vody.Vodolazy working day. At night, when they had rest, the mud settled on the aircraft and in the morning they had to clean it again with shovels. Finally, the divers managed to have ample lifting straps under the plane. This work took about two weeks.



Gary Villiard not understand the environment in which the work takes place, and asked a friend from Florida-diver underwater video camera to remove the plane. This friend also did not foresee the circumstances, divers returning from the lake completely calm, and he did not understand the language in which they speak. Villiarda each diver to Florida was terribly shocked when he found himself in the freezing, dark porridge of mud and slime. He left half dead on the surface of the lake with the words: «Cold, dark and terrible!».



Simultaneously Prytkov trying to decide legal issues, addressed to the mayor of the town of Segezha, but he refused to take any responsibility on this matter.
Then Prytkov addressed in Petrozavodsk, which seems to be given the go-ahead.



The rise of the aircraft began August 16, 1998. By plane brought tractor tire and inflated them. The aircraft was moved two meters from the surface, towards the western shore. There have already been installed winch. After 56 years of fighter again on solid zemle.Kogda the plane was on the shore, events began to develop not as conceived Villiard and Prytkov. By the way, at the time of lifting the value of the aircraft was variously estimated from 70 to 150 thousand dollars, but in the United States restored to flying condition of the aircraft of this type would be worth 2, 5-3 million dollars. Such money
attract big problems, and they have appeared.



By plane from interested bonehead "Aviazapchast" (who had no idea about the features of recovery of the US planes), which previously had the imprudence to address Villiard, also came to Karelia and Marvin Kottmann, still desiring to buy the aircraft from the rightful owner. It smells a lot of money, and the Government of Karelia also got into the game. Prytkova and Villiardu reported that the plane belongs to the state. Removed search engine is simple - Prytkova tied for illegal possession of arms and munitions and held for several days in jail, Villiard hastened to take a hike by himself. Team Prytkova, realizing that it smells like kerosene, drowned the engine from the aircraft, which, however, rose from the lake a few days later.



Kottmann invited the Government of Karelia 250 thousand dollars for the plane, but there was a question on the honest Americans have driven guys from "Aviazapchast" brazenly decided to appropriate the results of someone else's work. Kottmann, fearing the "Russian mafia", also hurried to leave the country. As a result, the plane went to the union "Aviazapchast", but what to do with it, there is not known - the documentation of the aircraft was not required for the work equipment inch scale and a few years of hard work.



Since we have to invest in perspective do not like, "Aviazapchast" recognized fighter restoration impossible and quickly sell it to a private collector in Ireland. By the way, part of the proceeds under the agreement with the Government of Karelia has been transferred to the Ministry of Culture and Ministry of Social Protection on velokresla and special vehicles for the veterans; to perpetuate the memory of the victims, the completion of the memorial "Cross of Sorrow" and the improvement of burial places of soldiers killed during the war.



While it was a question who is still owned aircraft, conservation work is not carried out, in the end it turned out that restore it to flying condition is not possible. In 2004 Ireland «Brewster BW-372" has migrated to the museum in Pensacola, and in 2008 appeared in aviamuzee in Yuvyaskelya, in Finland, where he formally belonged.



Gary Villiard wrote the book "The Great Hunt for Brewster» («Great Buffalo Hunt»), Marja Lampi, Vladimir Prytkov just published a book "In Search of the Lost Brewster» («Kadonneen Brewsterin metsästys») and shot doc. the movie "Brewster - the pearl of the sky» («Brewster - taivaan helmi»).
Currently «Brewster Buffalo BW-372" - the only surviving fighter of this type in the world.
I'm still kicking)))