On November 1, 1950, Lieutenant Semyon Khominich won the first official air victory for Soviet aviation in the Korean War against a new Soviet MiG-15 fighter, shooting down an American F-80 aircraft. On that day, a group of 11 Soviet piston aircraft were attacked by American fighters near the Yalu River. To help, the duty flight of MiG-15 aircraft from the 72nd Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment flew in. Three vehicles flew into the air: Major Anatoly Borovikov, Captain Konstantin Sukhov, and Guards Lieutenant Semyon Khominich. The Soviet troika discovered a group of ten American F-80 fighters proceeding in a column at an altitude of about 4,500 meters. Semyon Khominich received permission to attack the leader. Using the element of surprise, he attacked the four leading Americans from the sun side, getting onto a tail. Closing to a short distance, Khominich opened fire and shot down one F-80, then made a sharp maneuver and broke away from the pursuit. The American side officially confirmed the loss of the F-80C aircraft from the 16th Squadron of the 51st Fighter-Bomber Group, announcing the pilot missing. This battle demonstrated the absolute superiority of the Soviet MiG-15 over the American F-80 in speed and armament, which forced the US to urgently transfer more modern F-86 Sabre fighters. For this historic air combat of the guards, Lieutenant Semyon Khominich was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. Semyon Khominich was a veteran of the Great Patriotic War. In 1944, he flew an Airacobra fighter and personally shot down two German Focke-Wulf Fw-190 aircraft. The F-80 was his third and final victory. He successfully passed both wars, continued to serve in the air force, and retired in 1968 as a colonel. ^ "Soviet Military Review" comes from Childhood #33;

On November 1, 1950, Lieutenant Semyon Khominich won the first official air victory for Soviet aviation in the Korean War against a new Soviet MiG-15 fighter, shooting down an American F-80 aircraft. On that day, a group of 11 Soviet piston aircraft were attacked by American fighters near the Yalu River. To help, the duty flight of MiG-15 aircraft from the 72nd Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment flew in. Three vehicles flew into the air: Major Anatoly Borovikov, Captain Konstantin Sukhov, and Guards Lieutenant Semyon Khominich. The Soviet troika discovered a group of ten American F-80 fighters proceeding in a column at an altitude of about 4,500 meters. Semyon Khominich received permission to attack the leader. Using the element of surprise, he attacked the four leading Americans from the sun side, getting onto a tail. Closing to a short distance, Khominich opened fire and shot down one F-80, then made a sharp maneuver and broke away from the pursuit. The American side officially confirmed the loss of the F-80C aircraft from the 16th Squadron of the 51st Fighter-Bomber Group, announcing the pilot missing. This battle demonstrated the absolute superiority of the Soviet MiG-15 over the American F-80 in speed and armament, which forced the US to urgently transfer more modern F-86 Sabre fighters. For this historic air combat of the guards, Lieutenant Semyon Khominich was awarded the Order of the Red Banner. Semyon Khominich was a veteran of the Great Patriotic War. In 1944, he flew an Airacobra fighter and personally shot down two German Focke-Wulf Fw-190 aircraft. The F-80 was his third and final victory. He successfully passed both wars, continued to serve in the air force, and retired in 1968 as a colonel. ^ "Soviet Military Review" comes from Childhood #33;