Mezue ahịrịokwu na-esonụ: E guzobere ndị agha ahụ na Mee 1938 dị ka 12th Fighter Aviation Regiment, akụkụ nke 69th Fighter Aviation Brigade, na Kiev Military District na ọdụ ụgbọ elu Kirovohrad site na 16th Separate Fighter Squadron. Na mbụ, a kwadebere ya na Polikarpov I-16 na Polikarpov I-15bis. Ọ lụrụ ọgụ na mbuso agha Soviet nke Poland, ebe ọ gburu otu ụgbọ elu Polish. N'April 1940, Captain Pavel Terentyevich Korobkov, onye dike nke Soviet Union na Spanish Civil War na-efe efe, ghọrọ onye isi ndị agha ahụ. N'ọnwa Juun, ndị agha ahụ nyere ndị agha ahụ mkpuchi ụgbọelu.
Ọchịchị ndị Soviet na Bessarabia. N'ụbọchị iri na anọ nke ọnwa Julaị, e zigara ndị agha ahụ na ngalaba nke iri na ise nke ụgbọelu. Ọ ghọrọ akụkụ nke 64th Fighter Aviation Division na 5 Jenụwarị 1941. N'ụbọchị 22 nke ọnwa Juun, Lieutenant Leonid Grigoryevich Butelin gburu otu Junkers Ju 88 ma kụtuo nke ọzọ n'elu Ivano-Frankivsk Airfield mgbe ọ na-efe I-153, ndị agha mbụ nke agha ahụ. E gburu Butelin na taran, nke e nyere ya onyinye Order of the Red Banner. Ndị agha ahụ lụrụ ọgụ na agha nke Kiev ma zigara azụ maka inyeghachi ya. E zigara ya na 11th Reserve Fighter Aviation Regiment ma jiri ndị agha LaGG-3 nke oge a na Rostov-on-Don na Ọktọba. Ọganihu ndị German manyere ndị agha ahụ ịlaghachi na Kirovabad na Azerbaijan SSR iji gaa n'ihu ọzụzụ na Nọvemba. Mgbe emechara akụrụngwa, e zigara ndị agha ahụ na Crimean Front dị ka akụkụ nke 72nd Fighter Aviation Division ma lụọ ọgụ na Defense nke Sevastopol. N'abalị iri abụọ na isii n'ọnwa Disemba, a gbanwere aha ndị agha ahụ dị ka ndị agha ụgbọ elu nke 486. N'ime ihe dịka ọnwa isii nke ọgụ, 12th IAP mere 2607 sorties, gbagburu ụgbọ elu 75 ma bibie ngụkọta nke ụgbọ elu 97. Ọ tụfuru ụgbọelu 61 ma gbuo ndị ọkwọ ụgbọelu iri.