Near Volgograd found missing 80 years ago bomber Pe-2

The crashed Soviet bomber Pe-2 was found near the farm Panshino in Gorodische district of the Volgograd region.

According to “Volgogradskaya Pravda.ru” the head of the search association “Uranus” Dmitry Kufenko, the discovery of the wreckage of the aircraft in the field became known from local farmers. In early October, excavations were carried out at the site indicated by them. The remains of the crew and numerous fragments of the bomber were removed from the ground, including a radiator, part of the engine, fragments of the landing gear with a tire, armor and a suspended set for two parachutes. It was also possible to find some personal belongings of the pilots: a buckle with a star, a two-spin buckle of a belt, a penknife and a heel stuffing.

But the most valuable find is a metal plate with the aircraft number, thanks to which it was possible to establish the names of all crew members.

According to searchers, the plane with tail number 6/94 flew on August 22, 1942 in the area of the village of Nizhny Akatov, now the eponymous farm in the Ilovlinsky district of the Volgograd region. The pilots were tasked with destroying enemy crossings.

The crew of the bomber consisted of three people: pilot junior lieutenant Velikanda Grigory Yakovlevich, gunner-bomber Lieutenant Kovtun Afanasy Trifonovich, air gunner-radioman Senior Sergeant Boykov Boris Efimovich. All of them have not returned from combat missions and are missing.

Pe-2 Soviet dive bomber of World War II, the most massive bomber of Soviet production. Structurally, this is a two-engine free-carrying monoplane with a low-lying wing and a spaced two-keel vertical plumage. The chassis is three-pointed, retractable, with a tail support. Created in the design bureau of Vladimir Mikhailovich Petlyakov.