A 1942 IL-2 Sturmovik Pilot Training Manual in Russian

Flying Tank - NATO Name "Bark"

To Shturmovik pilots, the aircraft was simply the diminutive "Ilyusha". To the soldiers on the ground, it was the "Hunchback," the "Flying Tank" or, the greatest of compliments, the "Flying Infantryman", the postwar NATO reporting name was "Bark". The Il-2 aircraft played a crucial role on the Eastern Front, and in Soviet opinion it was the most decisive aircraft in the history of modern land warfare. Joseph Stalin paid the Il-2 a great tribute in his own inimitable manner: when a particular production factory fell behind on its deliveries, Stalin sent a cable to the factory manager, stating "They are as essential to the Red Army as air and bread."

WARNING - DOCUMENT IS IN RUSSIAN LANGUAGE ONLY!

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