Forced to bail out in parachutes, he and his crew eventually made it back to friendly territory, although the navigator was wounded.

During the Battle of Stalingrad he flew nearly 200 sorties, often making several in one day - resulting in the destruction of five trains, 15 cargo vehicles, 11 aircraft, and other equipment.

On 3 February 1943, he was nominated for the title Hero of the Soviet Union for having flown 293 sorties; by then he was a squadron commander.

[4] While flying mostly in the American-made A-20B he flew in the battles for Donbas, Melitopol, and Crimea, during which he was hit by enemy fire three times, making one emergency landing in the SB bomber and two in the A-20B.

By the time he left the front in fall 1944 to attend the Monino Air Force Academy he had reached a total of 350 sorties flying SB, Ar-2, and A-20 bombers, during which his crew shot down four enemy aircraft.

From January to June 1954 he returned to the 277th Regiment as deputy commander, during which he was demoted from lieutenant colonel to major.