761st Training Aviation Regiment

The 761st Fighter Aviation Regiment (Russian: 761-й истребительный авиационный полк) was a fighter regiment (IAP) of the Soviet Air Force during World War II that became part of the Soviet Air Defense Force (PVO) during the Cold War as the 761st Fighter Aviation Regiment PVO. Converted to the 761st Training Aviation Regiment in 1965, it became part of the Russian Air Force after the Dissolution of the Soviet Union and was disbanded in 2009 as a result of military reforms before being re-activated as part of the Russian Aerospace Forces.

World War II

The regiment began forming on 4 January 1942 at the railway station of Geok Tepe near Ashgabat in the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic from instructor pilots of the evacuated Odessa and Chernigov Military Aviation Schools of Pilots. Assigned to the Air Forces (VVS) of the Central Asian Military District, it included two aviation squadrons with an authorized strength of twenty combat aircraft. Equipped with obsolete Polikarpov I-15bis biplanes, it became part of the 136th Mixed Aviation Division of the district VVS at the end of its formation on 28 January.

The 761st IAP remained in Central Asia until January 1943, when it was reorganized to include three aviation squadrons with an authorized strength of 32 combat aircraft (ten per squadron with two in headquarters flight). Leaving its biplanes to the 385th Fighter Aviation Regiment, it departed for retraining on the newer Yakovlev Yak-7B with the 5th Reserve Aviation Brigade of the Siberian Military District, arriving there on 5 March.

After the end of its retraining, the 761st IAP was sent to the Voronezh Front, where it was assigned to the 294th Fighter Aviation Division (IAD) of the 4th Fighter Aviation Corps (IAK) of the 2nd Air Army between 9 and 28 July, but did not participate in combat missions. During this period, on 11 July, the regiment turned over all of its Yak-7Bs to the other regiments of the 294th IAD, after which its pilots departed for new Yak-7Bs, which were received at Kuznetsk from the 13th Reserve Fighter Aviation Regiment of the Volga Military District on 21 July.

The 761st transferred to the 259th IAD of the 3rd Air Army of the Kalinin Front (1st Baltic Front from 20 October) on 29 July, and began flying combat missions on 1 August; it would serve with the 259th and the 3rd Air Army for the rest of the war. Its first known aerial victory came three days later, when Lieutenant M.A. Krylov downed a Focke-Wulf Fw 189 reconnaissance aircraft southeast of Usvyaty.