Pe-2 Guards Units of World War 2

Although the Pe-2 was widely used on the Eastern Front throughout the Great Patriotic War, only the most effective units in the Air Force and Naval Aviation were given Guards status. This is their story.

Petlyakov's Pe-2 was the most numerous Soviet twin-engined bomber of World War 2, the aircraft being used as a dive-bomber, ground attack platform and dedicated reconnaissance type. The first examples entered service in August 1940, and by the time production came to end in late 1945, no few...