The Finnish Air Force:

Notes to Myself

Brewster B-239 (Buffalo)

44 Brewster Model 239s were delivered between 1 March and 1 May 1940. 38 were ex-US Navy F2A-1s and 6 were taken from the Belgian order for Model 339Bs, but all were stripped of government property, including the engines, and converted to B-239s with engines identical to that used by the DC-3. Initially armed with 3x .50 caliber and 1x .30 caliber machineguns. This latter was later upgraded to a .50. Upon arrival they were assigned to LeLv 22 which actually attempted to make one interception dueing the Winter War, but was unsuccessful. In April they were transferred to LeLv 24, the highest-scoring unit of the Winter War. Two were lost in accidents before the Continuation War began.

On 25 June 1941 the Soviets attempted to neutralize the Finnish Air Force with airfield attacks by 150 unescorted bombers. This didn't go well as the Finns intercepted them with 24 fighters which shot down 26 bombers. 7 Brewsters accounted for 10 of the Soviet aircraft. This incident caused the Finns to declare war.

The Bresters were deployed to cover the Finnish advance in Karelia and claimed 135 victories for the loss of only two aircraft, one that crashed on take-off and the other shot down by flak. The first loss in air to air combat came on 26 February 1942 when 8 Brewsters mixed it up with 17 MiG-3s. Six MiGs were shot down for the loss of 1 Brewster. Attrition forced LeLv 24 to consolidate from 4 flights of 8 aircraft to 3 flights of 8 on 11 February 1943. It also changed its tactics to emphasize mass formations to counter ever larger Soviet numbers of aircraft. Operations picked up in the spring of '43 with 81 victories for the loss of 3 Brewsters in aerial combat and one to flak in April and May. Things slowed down afterwards and the Finns limited the Brewsters to the quieter area east of a line drawn from Viipuri to the Oranienbaum Bridgehead to preserve the dwindling numbers of Brewsters. At the beginning of 1944 LeLv 24 had only 18 left. Opportunities for combat were few in the early part of the year and LeLv 24 only claimed 3 aircraft before converting to the Me 109G beginning in April. It claimed 468 victories for the loss of 12 Brewsters in aerial combat, a ratio of 38 to 1! 3 others were lost to flak, 4 to accidents and 2 by bombing.

The survivors were handed over to HLeLv 26 and organized into flights. It remained in the quieter side of the Karelian Isthmus. By the time of the truce with the Soviets HLeLv 26 claimed 18 kills for the loss of 4 Brewsters in aerial combat and another three bombed out. The terms of the truce dictated that the Finns expel all remaining German forces from Finland and the long range of the Brewsters made them ideal for missions over Lapland. HleLv 26 mustered 10 Brewsters on 2 October when it was deployed to Lapland. Opportunites for aerial combat were scarce and only 2 Stukas and a Ju 88 were shot down. The main opposition was radar-directed flak that accounted for 4 Brewsters with another pair being lost in accidents. 7 survived to go into storage at war's end.

Bristol Blenheim

18 Mk I delivered mid-38 from UK. 12 Mk IV delivered 17 Jan 40. 12 Mk I delivered 26 Feb 40.
Finnish production of 15 Mk II (not a typo) delayed by Winter War and deliveries didn't commence until 15 Jun 41 and were finished in 7 months. 30 more Mk II were delivered between July and November 43. 10 Mk IVs were delivered by 15 April 44 with major components sold by Germany from captured Yugoslav stocks.

LeLv 44 and LeLv 46 were the initial operators of the Blenheim Is. LeLv 46 gave its Blen Is to LeLv 44 when it got the new Blen IVs. LeLv 42 was formed to fly the British-supplied Blen Is from January 40. Seven were shot down and 4 lost in accidents during the Winter War.

In June '41 LeLv 42 had 9 Blens, LeLv 44 had 8, and LeLv 46 had only 3. The latter was deactivated shortly after the Continuation War began. Only 7 Blens were operational at year's end despite deliveries of 15 new Blens. 20 Feb 43 LeLv 44 converted to the Ju 88A-4. LeLv 48 re-equipped with new Blens on 15 November 43. When the Soviet offensive began only 29 Blens were available. 33 Blens were lost on operations during its career.

Bristol Bulldog

17 Bulldog IVAs acquired pre-war. 10 were assigned to LeLv 26 when the Soviets invaded in 1939. Replaced by G.50s and Gladiators on 2 February 1940. 3 Bulldog IIAs donated by Sweden on 15 December and used as trainers, but one was used for spare parts. Used as trainers and hacks after phase out and one survived the Continuation War. Claimed 2 I-16s and 5 SB-2s for the loss of 1 Bulldog during the Winter War.

Curtis H-75A Hawk

7 ex-French H-75A-4 delivered to LeLv 14 during the spring of 1941. In July they were transferred to LeLv 32. By August all the D. XXIs had been replaced by 14 newly arrived ex-French H-75A-3s and 8 ex-Norwegian H-75A-6s. In early 1943 12 ex-Vichy H-75A-2s and A-3s delivered by Germany with another 3 in 1944.

Another source claims that Finland received 6 H75A-1, 8 H75A-2, 10 H75A-3, 7 H75A-4 and 13 H75A-6. Also that four surviving A-4s were reengined with Twin Wasps in 42-43.

Dornier Do 17Z

15 Do 17Z donated by Göring in early 1942. First operational in April 1942 with LeLv 46. Only 9 survivors by June of '44.

Dornier Do 22K

4 supplied in 1941, possibly from Latvian contract. Served with LeLv 6.

Fiat G.50

The Finns placed a contract for 25 G.50s on 23 October 1939 as the Italians promised immediate delivery. The first reached Finland on 18 December, but deliveries were slow as Germany refused to allow the aircraft to be transhipped after Soviet protests about the first two. An order for a further 10 was placed immediately upon the Soviet attack.

LeLv 26 received its first G.50s on 11 February 1940, claiming its first kill on 26 February. Only 26 reached LeLv 25 before the end of the war, but 11 kills were claimed for the loss of only 1 G.50 in combat. Another had been destroyed in a landing accident and two had been lost prior to delivery.

The G.50 was retained by LeLv 26 until March of 1944 when it gave the 11 survivors to HLeLv 30 and then T-LLv 35 for fighter conversion training. It claimed 88 kills for the loss of only four in aerial combat during the Continuation War. Another was shot down by flak, and 7 through accidents

Fokker C.Ve

14 served with LeLv 14 during the Winter War. Swedes donated 3 that probably went to LeLv 16. No combat losses in the Winter War, but two were lost to accidents. Promptly replaced by two refugee Norwegian C.Vds in April 1940.

By the Continuation War LeLv 10 had 4, plus those still assigned to LeLv 14 and 16. 1 was shot down by an I-153, but no other combat losses. Finally retired in 1945 from tactiacl recon and light bombing role.

Fokker D. XXI

42 D. XXIs were in service when the Soviets invaded with LeLv 24. 12 were lost to all causes, but about half were in aerial combat while claiming the majority of the 200 kills inflicted on the VVS. 29 survived the Winter War.

The Finns placed it back into production in 1941 albeit fitted with a Twin Wasp engine rather than the Mercury of the original batch. These were underpowered compared to the originals, but the Blenheims had priority on the supply of Mercurys. 50 were delivered in 1941.

They equipped both LeLv 32 and LeLv 30 in part when the Continuation War began. They were relegated to the tactical reconnaissance role shortly after the war began with LeLv 12 and LeLv 14. 5 were assembled from spare parts in 1944.

Gloster Gauntlet

25 Gauntlets were shipped to Gothenburg between 25 January and 14 February 1940. After assembly 9 were flown to Finland between 10 March and 12 April. The rest were shipped to Finland and assembled after arrival on 16 May. As the Winter War was over they were assigned to LeR 3 for advanced training purposes. They stayed in that role until 1945 when they were finally retired. 9 were lost in training accidents.

Gloster Gladiator

Twenty Gladiator IIs were purchased by Finland in late 1939 and arrived in Gothenburg between December 39 and January 40. The UK donated 10 more that arrived at the same time. Thirteen arrived in Finland in January and the rest by 17 Feb. They were assigned to LeLv 26.

By March 1 all surviving Gladiators had been handed over to LeLv 12 and Le Lv 14 for army cooperation duties. This didn't prevent the Finns from using them in their intended role when opportunities arose. LeLv 14 claimed 3 kills for one loss.

Gladiators claimed 37 kills for 14 losses, 12 of them in combat during the Winter War. Most were lost on 29 February when 3 were shot down while taking off and another pair in the ensuing combat. Only 1 of the perpetrating I-16s was shot down while another crashed into the trees.

The Swedes supplied a "volunteer" unit, Flygflottilij 19, that included a dozen Gladiator IIs. They arrived at Kemi on 10 January 1940 for the defense of Lapland. They flew 464 sorties, shot down 8 aircraft for the loss of 2 Gladiators and 3 Hawker Harts.

LeLv 14 had 4 on strength and LeLv 12 retained three when the Continuation War began. All were transferred to LeLv 16 by 7 July 1941 as Curtiss Hawk 75As were delivered. Despite 2 losses strength was up to 9 by the end of 1942 as aircraft returned from the depot. Only one kill was recorded when an R-5 was bounced on 15 February 1943. Only two survived when they were finally retired on 31 July 1944.

Hawker Hurricane I

12 were sold to Finland, but only 11 arrived sometime in January 1940. Served in LeLv 22 and did fly some missions during before the end of the Winter War. Still need to go over sources, but served in LeLv 30 during the Continuation War. One ex-Soviet Hurricane IIB was put into service in 1942.

Ilyushin DB-3M and Il-4

The Finns salvaged 5 DB-3Ms during the Winter War and assigned them to LeLv 46. One of these was in Germany when the Continuation War began. 2 were lost to accidents within days of war breaking out. The survivors were supplemented by 6 purchased from Germany and arrived on 12 September. Most of these were delivered to LeLv 48 where they were often used for reconnaissance work. Only 4 survived when all remaining aircraft were turned over to PLeLv 45 in late 1944 and then to PLeLv 43 in February 1945.

The Finns purchased 4 Il-4s in October 1942 from German war booty stocks, but one crashed on the delivery flight. The others didn't finish overhaul until summer, 1943. They were initially delivered to LeLv 48, but were transferred to LeLv 46 on 15 November. One crashed on 17 June 1944 and the two survivors were transferred to PLeLv 45 on 4 December of that year. One made a forced landing on 3 January 1945 and the last was withdrawn from service the following month.

Junkers Ju 88A

The Finns received 24 new Ju 88A-4 in two batches on 10 April and 20 April 1943 although one was lost enroute. They were assigned to LeLv 44 although late deliveries of the bombsights and the required training on them delayed their first bombing mission until 20 August.

When the Soviets attacked only 13 were in service with PLeLv 44. Two were shot down, one each by the Germans and Soviets, and 9 were lost to accidents in less than 700 sorties, including the Lapland War.

Messerschmitt Bf 109G

30 Bf 109G-2 were delivered in 2 batches on 13 March 43 and 10 May 43. Losses were replaced through 1 June 44 for a total of 48 G-2s delivered. 30 Bf 109G-6s were delivered by 1 May 44. Additional aircraft were delivered once the Soviet offensive against Finland kicked off on 9 June 44. 41 were delivered in June, 19 in July and 24 in August, but three were lost enroute. Deliveries totalled 111 G-6s and 3 G-8s.

LeLv 34 was organized to fly the new fighters and combat operations commenced 24 March when a Pe-2 was shot down over the Gulf of Finland. 100 victories was reached on 4 October for the loss of 4 Messers in air combat and 1 to anti-aircraft fire. HLeLv 30 had no more than 4 Messers for operations over the Gulf. As the G-6s arrived the G-2s were transferred to HLeLv 24 which converted from the Brewster F2A-1 (Buffalo). HLeLv 28 received its first Messers on 1 July 44.

Total claims were 663 for 27 lost in aerial combat, an exchange ratio of 25 to 1! 102 Messers survived the war.

Morane-Saulnier MS 406

30 MS 406s were delivered from French stocks in the winter of 39-40 to LeLv 28. It first flew combat missions in February '40. Only one was lost before the Winter War ended. Another 27 MS 406s and 410s were delivered in 1941 by the Germans.

The Finns adapted the MS 406 to take the Soviet M-105P engine that was a much improved descendant of the Hispano-Suiza 12Y normally used. This was more powerful and performance benefitted greatly. Only 15 were converted before the end of the Continuation War, but deliveries had commenced in June 1944. 121 kills were claimed from '41 to '44.

Polikarpov I-153

8 had landed behind Finnish lines during the Winter War and another 3 were captured during the initial stages of the advance to the Svir. These were placed into service withteh 3rd flight of LeLv 6 as cover for that unit's maritime patrol missions. That flight became the second flight of LeLv 30 on 16 November 1942. Prior to that it claimed the destruction of four surface ships and 5 aircraft while losing 4 I-153s, but only two of these were in combat.

In November 1942 the Finns purchased another 11 captured by the Germans and these equipped the first flight of LeLv 30 in March-April 1943. LeLv 30 specialized in reconnaissance. In February-March 1944 both flights transferred their aircraft to the third flight and later some were received by TLeLv 16 in late June of 1944. LeLv 30 lost 7 I-153s, but only one in aerial combat. 8 survived the war.

Tupolev SB-2

5 SB-2s had been salvaged from aircraft shot down over Finland during the Winter War by 25 June 1941. They were assigned to LeLv 6 for anti-shipping missions. Most of these had M-103 engines, commonly, but incorrectly, called SB-2bis. 3 more were delivered during the late summer of 1941 while one crashed on 2 August. 16 were purchased from Germany, but delivery was very protracted and almost all needed thorough overhaul before they were usuable. All were brought up to the same standard, even the sole SB-2 with M-100 engines.

During 1942 they were on anti-submarine patrols, sinking 2 and damaging several others. The first flight of LeLv 6 converted to the SB-2 by October 1942. Occasionally they were flown on ordinary bombing missions, but not often. Not one was lost on operations, but 7 were lost through accidents during the Continuation War. They ended their service by hunting German U-boats in the Baltic. Not suprisingly without success.

VL Myrsky II

Finland decided to develop an indigenously built fighter that had better performance than the license-built D. XXI prior to the Winter War, but that conflict forced any such efforts to be postponed. Development began in earnest after the end of the Winter War and the first flight was on 23 December 1941. Not suprisingly for a first effort the Mysrsky suffered from many teething problems that included wing failure in a dive and compression problems that resulted in the port elevator being torn off in a dive. A number of structural modifications had to be made to aircraft on the production line that further delayed its introduction into service. The three pre-production aircraft were referred to as the I series and the remaining 47 aircraft on order comprised the II series. 14 of these were completed by the end of July 1944 and another 16 by the Armistice on 4 September with production being completed by 30 December. An additional batch of ten had been ordered as Myrsky IIIs in early 1944, but this was cancelled after the Armistice.

The Myrsky's performance didn't compare to the Bf 109G's and it wasn't wanted by the fighter units, especially after all its structural problems during flight test! However the reconnaissance units were in no position to be so picky as they were extremely short of aircraft and TLeLv 12 received some 20 aircraft before the Armistice. It flew 66 sorties before that date with no losses recorded and only a couple of Soviet fighters claimed damaged. TLeLv 16 also received 6 Myrskys before the Armistice, but wasn't yet operational when it took effect.

TLeLv 12 flew reconnaissance missions against the Germans in Lapland, but no combat resulted, one Myrsky being lost in a landing accident.

Culled from the pages of Air Enthusiast/International. Information on the D-XXI and the MS 406 is very old and not especially reliable.

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