[Andrei Demjanko]

I have details of Sergey Ivanovich Gritsevets' early service as follows: Gritsevets joined RKKA in 1931. He was sent to 3rd Military School of Pilots and Observers at Orenburg and graduated as a pilot in 1932 In September 1932 he was posted to Kievsky Fighter Aviation Detachment and in 1933 to the 1st Red Banner Fighter Aviation Eskadrilya im.Lenina in the Transbaikalsky Military District, were he served as Flight (Zveno) commander. In 1935 he led record flight of six I-16's on the Bochkarevo-Spask Dalny route with landing at Khabarovsk, completing this flight in 3 hours ten minutes. In 1936 Gritsevets was posted to aerobatic and air combat course at the 8th Military School of Pilots in Odessa, and after completing the course he remained at this school as instructor. In 1938 St. Lt Gritsevets was posted to 20th Military School of Pilots at Kirovabad were he trained Spanish airmen to fly Soviet fighters. It's there he had volunteered for service in Spain.