Lilya Litvak is the female Ace-of- Aces with 13 confirmed kills, 3 probables, and 1 observation balloon to her credit. She fought briefly with the VVS in defense of Stalingrad, routinely fending off large amounts of Messerschmitts that wanted to kill her escorted IL-2 Sturmoviks. She was shot-down twice, but recovered (although the latter injury may have hurt her fighting skills). She was nicknamed "The White Rose of Stalingrad" for her love of flowers in her cockpit and for warning the Soviet defenses of approaching German tanks. Her last mission found her hunted by 8 Me Bf 109s that were relentless against her low-level Yak-1b. They got her and she plunged inverted into the ground. Her body was not discovered until decades later and Mikhail Gorbachev awarded her the "Hero of the Soviet Union" title. She died early in life- in her 20s.

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