Jesau Airfield (Nivinskoye). Past and Present. (Issue 25)
Former Jesau Airfield. In 1939, 33 Bf-110 fighters were based here. On September 1st, squadron pilots shot down five Polish PZL-P.11 fighters. Also in 1939, the JG-131 (Jesau) BLACK HE-51 fighter squadron was based here. On July 13th, a JU-88 bomber made an emergency landing. In 1944, 12 brand-new ME-163v fighters were delivered here by rail for further testing. In August 1942, German ace Heinrich Kraft (78 victories) flew his FW-190 A3 here, serving with JG-51 of the elite Melders air group.
After the war, it was considered one of the best airfields in the northwest, home to the 689th Guards Sandomierz Order of Alexander Nevsky Fighter Aviation Regiment named after A.I. Pokryshkin. Two air defense aviation regiments were stationed there. The air defense division headquarters was in Baltiysk. Yak-25s, MiG-17s, MiG-19s, Su-27s, and helicopters were on combat duty. It was later reduced and transformed into the 143rd Fighter Aviation Squadron, without its historical designations or Pokryshkin's name. The airfield was abandoned and completely looted, and its dead Su-27s are rotting in Chkalovsk.