2: Pe

In 1937, legendary engineer was arrested during Stalin’s Great Purge for allegedly delaying design work. While imprisoned in a sharashka (a secret laboratory within the Gulag system), he was ordered to design a high-altitude heavy fighter called the VI-100 .

The story of the , famously nicknamed the " Peshka " (Pawn), is one of the most remarkable tales of aviation history, beginning not in a high-tech lab, but inside a Soviet prison. The Prison Design Bureau In 1937, legendary engineer was arrested during Stalin’s

: Its handling allowed pilots to be exceptionally accurate, with some famously able to "plant a bomb down a chimney stack". The Prison Design Bureau : Its handling allowed

: It was so fast that it could often outrun German Messerschmitts, a rare feat for a bomber. It was incredibly versatile: : Squadrons of women

The Pe-2 entered service in 1941 and quickly became the backbone of the Soviet Air Force. It was incredibly versatile:

: Squadrons of women pilots, such as those led by Maria Dolina, famously flew the Pe-2 in critical battles like the liberation of Borisov. Legacy of the Peshka Pe-2 Peshka Dive Bomber | World War II Database