What you see is a couple of Russian ladies from the all-female 588th Night Bomber Regiment out for a quiet evening’s bombing. Their technique was simple. Three aircraft approached the target, gliding with engines off. When the searchlights found them they would break away and one would then bomb from a silent sky. Later the engine was restarted and a second approach made. This time one of the other two would bomb. The enemy was rarely allowed to sleep as up to eighteen missions a night were common for each group of bombers. It must have been most unnerving to have bombs coming down from a silent sky. Thus the name ‘Night Witches’ (nachthexen) was coined. The Po-2 was quite slow, with its 120 hp engine but extremely manoeverable making it difficult to hit by a fighter. Over 40,000 of these aircraft were built, for a huge range of uses, such was its value to the Russian forces. That's the history bit over now, students. My better half, (now almost recovered thankyou), says you lot will murder me over this. I said, probably, but it won't matter because I'm on to something else anyway. rat. P.S. I have reliable info that the Shuttleworth lot have nearly mended one of these.
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