In 1925 his family moved to the city of Krivoy Rog, where he completed his tenth grade of school in 1940 before entering the military in November.

[1][2] Having arrived at warfront in April 1943 as a pilot in the 566th Assault Aviation Regiment with the rank of senior sergeant, he did not fly his first combat mission until 12 July.

However, once he experienced his baptism by fire he quickly began to accumulate more sorties, totaling five missions in one day on 26 July.

By the end of the war he was credited with 188 combat sorties, taking out 35 tanks, two ammunition depots, 8 anti-aircraft artillery batteries, five steam locomotives, 19 rail cars, 114 trucks, and shot down one FW 190.

He then briefly worked as a flight inspector for the combat training department for the air force of the Moscow Military District before becoming the deputy commander of a research aviation regiment in April 1953; however, he left in July for the position of senior flight inspector at the 4th Air Force Combat Use Center, where he remained until 1958.