The work of pulling an American plane that took part in the 1945 Kuril Islands landing operation from the bottom of a Kamchatka lake has begun. Most likely, this is one of the 32 planes that stopped on the peninsula during the war, the regional branch of the Russian Geographical Society in Kamchatka told TASS.
„This work is being carried out by our federal colleagues from the Russian Geographical Society. Most likely, this is one of the 32 American planes that stopped in Kamchatka for refueling or repairs. Those that were able to be repaired have flown away, but some have been abandoned. "Most likely, this is one of the planes that remained here," the regional branch of the Russian Geographical Society reported.
Specialists have already managed to separate the tail of the plane and raise it to the surface of the lake in the Kronotsky nature reserve. The plane in question is a P-63 Kingcobra fighter. The USSR received it from the United States under the Lend-Lease agreement. The military plane crashed during a training flight. The inspection showed that the tail of the fighter was broken off, the propeller was twisted, and the cabin was partially covered with silt, but was preserved.
On August 18, 1945, a military landing operation of the Soviet army began from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky to liberate the Kuril Islands.