The best allied fighter pilots have been the soviets

[Ambush Commander]

Bergströms mentioned

It is a fact that the most experienced and most successful fighter aces on the Allied side in WW II were the Soviet top aces. It is interesting to note that the P-39 Airacobra was rejected by both RAF and USAAF pilots.

Is this true? I have never heard about that. To me that sounds like a joke. Also in the USAAF aces list i can' t find a single soviet fighter. Not even a polish and i think there must be polish fighters served with the USAAF.

Does there exists a kill list for those men or maybe a web page to get some more infos about this point?

Thanks in advance.


----EDIT-----

Or does he mean the USSR fighter pilots? He wrote ALLIED...

[Graham Boak]

The comment applies to Soviet pilots in the Soviet air force, not to Soviet pilots in the USAAF, who were (by definition) zero. There are several websites and a number of good books dealing with the Soviet aces: look in particular for Ivan Kojedub with over 60 kills, the top claiming Allied ace of WW2. (Beware that the name may appear in different transliterations from the Cyrillic.)

Mike Gladych was certainly one Polish ace serving WITH the USAAF, but not IN the USAAF. There were many USAAF pilots of Polish origins, but I don't think that is what you mean.

[Ambush Commander]

Thanks Graham, you have been much to fast with you response. I just edited my #1 post. You are right he means the USSR pilots and not the USAAF.

[Evgeny Velichko]

Originally Posted by Graham Boak

...look in particular for Ivan Kojedub with over 60 kills, the top claiming Allied ace of WW2. (Beware that the name may appear in different transliterations from the Cyrillic.)...

Иван Кожедуб could be as "Ivan Kozhedub", and he had 63 victories.

Григорий Речкалов, Grigory Rechkalov, had 61+4, most of them (not less then 50) - flying P-39.

Also, there were great amount of "20+" or even "30+" aces, who flew in P-39.

But of coarse they didnt serve in USAAF

[Dénes Bernád]

Originally Posted by Ambush Commander

Or does he mean the USSR fighter pilots? He wrote ALLIED...

USSR (and, implicitely, the Soviet pilots) was a member of the 'Allies'.

A more interesting question though is can the Finns be also considered as part of the 'Allies' after their about-face of Sept. 1944? If so, then the most successful Allied fighter pilot was a Finn. Next in line is a Rumanian...

[Kutscha]

Lists of aces found using Google,
http://www.1000pictures.com/aircraft/aces.htm
http://aeroweb.lucia.it/rap/RAFAQ/aces.html

There was 23 USAAF aces who scored at least one kill in the P-39.

[Evgeny Velichko]

Originally Posted by Dénes Bernád

...Next in line is a Rumanian...

Hahaha

"I knew You will say that", (c) Judge Dredd

[VoyTech]

Originally Posted by Dénes Bernád

USSR (and, implicitely, the Soviet pilots) was a member of the 'Allies'.

You mean, after their (forced) about-face of June 1941?

A more interesting question though is can the Finns be also considered as part of the 'Allies' after their about-face of Sept. 1944?

Finns can certainly be considered as part of the Allies in 1939-1940, long before the USSR changed sides.

[Frank Olynyk]

William Frederick Fiedler (5 victories) was the only non-Russian ace on the P-39 that I am aware of. He flew in the 347th FG based on Guadalcanal in the 1942-43 period.

Frank.

[Graham Boak]

re Finns and Romanians: only counting kills scored whilst on the Allied side?

How about French/Vichy pilots? (OK, none with so large a number of claims....)