PILOTS from Ukraine

Top 5

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Ukrainian Pilots of all time. This list of famous Ukrainian Pilots is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.

1. Ivan Kozhedub (1920 - 1991)

With an HPI of 60.52, Ivan Kozhedub is the most famous Ukrainian Pilot.  His biography has been translated into 38 different languages on wikipedia.

Marshal of Aviation Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub or Ivan Mykytovych Kozhedub (Russian: Иван Hикитович Кожедуб; Ukrainian: Іван Микитович Кожедуб; 8 June 1920 – 8 August 1991) was a Soviet World War II fighter ace. Universally credited with over 60 solo victories, he is considered to be the highest scoring Soviet and Allied fighter pilot of World War II. He is one of the few pilots to have shot down a Messerschmitt Me 262 jet, and the first Soviet pilot to have done so. He was made a Hero of the Soviet Union on three occasions (4 February 1944, 19 August 1944, and 18 August 1945). After World War II, he remained in the military and went on to command the 324th Fighter Aviation Division during Soviet operations in the Korean War.

2. Janina Lewandowska (1908 - 1940)

With an HPI of 55.22, Janina Lewandowska is the 2nd most famous Ukrainian Pilot.  Her biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Janina Antonina Lewandowska (22 April 1908 – 22 April 1940) was a Polish World War II pilot murdered in the Katyn massacre by Soviet forces.

3. Igor Volk (1937 - 2017)

With an HPI of 54.49, Igor Volk is the 3rd most famous Ukrainian Pilot.  His biography has been translated into 34 different languages.

Igor Petrovich Volk (Russian: Игорь Петрович Волк, Ukrainian: Ігор Петрович Волк; 12 April 1937 – 3 January 2017) was a Russian test pilot and former Soviet cosmonaut in the Buran programme.

4. Polina Osipenko (1907 - 1939)

With an HPI of 51.32, Polina Osipenko is the 4th most famous Ukrainian Pilot.  Her biography has been translated into 27 different languages.

Polina Denisovna Osipenko (Russian: Полина Денисовна Осипенко, Ukrainian: Поліна Денисівна Осипенко, romanized: Polina Denysivna Osypenko; 8 October 1907 – 11 May 1939) was a Soviet military pilot who, with Valentina Grizodubova and Marina Raskova on 24–25 September 1938, performed a nonstop flight between Moscow and the Sea of Okhotsk, setting a new women's nonstop flight distance record. For this, they were the first three women made Heroes of the Soviet Union on 2 November 1938.

5. Natalya Meklin (1922 - 2005)

With an HPI of 48.25, Natalya Meklin is the 5th most famous Ukrainian Pilot.  Her biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Natalya Fyodorovna Kravtsova née Meklin (Russian: Наталья Фёдоровна Меклин; 8 September 1922 – 5 June 2005) was a flight commander in the 46th Taman Guards Night Bomber Aviation Regiment, one of the three women's aviation regiments founded by Marina Raskova after the German invasion of the Soviet Union. The regiment later came to be known as the "Night Witches" by German targets. She was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union in February 1945 for completing 840 sorties and gained significant publicity.