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Hello
I tried to use a neutral term for Germany and SU relationship after the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, bacause I would like to keep this thread focused on history to airwar.
Yes, there are defeats and defeats. Finns were compelled to give up appr. one tenth of its area but kept its independency and kept out a puppet government. In 40s, when the real defeat meant a place in a cattle wagon on the way to East to tens of thousands Balts (our southern neighbours) and to hundreds of thousands Jews, Gipsies etc in Western Europe, it wasn't a small accomplisment.
Back to air forces. Even if the VVS didn't succeed during Winter War very well it had only a few months early won a battle over JAAF during the Nomonhan (spelling isn't probably absolutely correct) Incident. IIRC correctly VVS had some sort of numerical superiority at the later part of that battle but anyway it had achieved at least some sort of control over the battlefield. Losses were, at least that was the conclusion around year 2000, appr. 200 a/c on both side. So in different circumstances VVS had done well against a good airforce. What this shows IMHO is that one must be careful when trying to apply conclusions from one war to an another. Was the FAF better than JAAF in autumn 1939, I don't know. At least it was much smaller.
Juha
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