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MiG Menace Over Korea: Nikolai Sutiagin, Top Ace Soviet Of The Korean War
Nikolai Vasil'evich Sutiagin, the top-scoring Soviet air ace of the Korean War, flew his MiG-15 in lethal dogfights against American F-86 Sabres and Australian Meteors. He is credited with 22 'kills'. Yet the full story of his extraordinary achievements has never been told.
Only now, with the opening of Russian archives, can an authoritative account of his wartime exploits be written. The authors use official records, the reminiscences of Sutiagin's comrades and his wife's diary to reconstruct in vivid detail the career of one of the great fighter pilots.
Only now, with the opening of Russian archives, can an authoritative account of his wartime exploits be written. The authors use official records, the reminiscences of Sutiagin's comrades and his wife's diary to reconstruct in vivid detail the career of one of the great fighter pilots.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published September 17, 2009
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 23, 2018
A good read for Korean War buffs
This is one of a few accounts which have become available in recent years of the Soviet air forces involvement in the Korean War.
The main subject of the book is Nikolai Sutiagin one of the highest scoring aces of the Korean War. He vies for top ace slot with Yevgeny Pepeliaev.
The translation is reasonable if occasionally stilted.
It is a good view of the war from the other side with good descriptions of the air battles and the operational problems encountered.
It will not settle the arguments over UN v Korean/ Russian/ Chinese kill ratios. Bear in mind that it is written from a Russian perspective which explains some of the comments in the text which clash with "our" view of the air war and the kill claims made.
All in all a valuable account and well worth reading.
This is one of a few accounts which have become available in recent years of the Soviet air forces involvement in the Korean War.
The main subject of the book is Nikolai Sutiagin one of the highest scoring aces of the Korean War. He vies for top ace slot with Yevgeny Pepeliaev.
The translation is reasonable if occasionally stilted.
It is a good view of the war from the other side with good descriptions of the air battles and the operational problems encountered.
It will not settle the arguments over UN v Korean/ Russian/ Chinese kill ratios. Bear in mind that it is written from a Russian perspective which explains some of the comments in the text which clash with "our" view of the air war and the kill claims made.
All in all a valuable account and well worth reading.
April 21, 2023
This biography of a Russian pilot in Korea is an interesting enough take on the air war in the Korean War from the ‘other’ side. Nikolai Sutiagin starts out as a low-ranked pilot, and we are taken on his voyage through the ranks, ending up as a general.
Whilst some of the detail is interesting, this lacks some of the insight and emotion of some of the memoirs I have read recently (especially They Gave Me a Seafire), but to be fair that might be a function of the different cultures, so I do not want to be too harsh. For me, there is a bit too much ‘listing’ of events, such as “On day X twelve planes took off and shot down two Sabres.” This is not to say there are not excellent passages – it is just a bit dry in some areas.
Whilst some of the detail is interesting, this lacks some of the insight and emotion of some of the memoirs I have read recently (especially They Gave Me a Seafire), but to be fair that might be a function of the different cultures, so I do not want to be too harsh. For me, there is a bit too much ‘listing’ of events, such as “On day X twelve planes took off and shot down two Sabres.” This is not to say there are not excellent passages – it is just a bit dry in some areas.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews