Stepan Ivanovich Naumenko (, ; 7 January 1920 – 20 November 2004) was a Soviet MiG-15 pilot during the Korean War, credited as the first Soviet ace in the conflict. Estimates of his number of victories range from two to six, although most indicate five.
Early life
Naumenko was born on 7 January 1920 to a Ukrainian family in Zlynka village, Kirovgrad oblast. After completing his ninth grade of school in 1935 he worked at a labor colony in Odessa before entering the military in 1937. In 1939 he graduated from the K.E.Voroshilov Leningrad Military Aviation Technical school and went on to work at the 2nd Chakalovsky Aviation Institute as a technician. In November 1942 he became a mechanic in the 615th Night Bomber Aviation Regiment, based in the Volga Military District. In the early part of the war with Germany he was a mechanic, but in April 1942 he was sent for training to become a pilot.
Initially he studied at the 6th Voronezh Aviation School and in September he began studies at the Burma Military Aviation School of Pilots, which he completed in 1943. However, he did not return to the front until November 1944 since attended command courses after flight school. Upon his return to the front he became a flight commander in the 195th Fighter Aviation Regiment, but he did not see combat in the war. After the capitulation of Nazi Germany he transferred to the 29th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment, which was sent to China in October 1950.
Korean War
On 4 December 1950 Naumenko made his first sortie, and that afternoon he was credited with shooting down two F-80s. In the dogfight he used sharp vertical climb techniques to out-maneuver the F-80s, which could not climb as sharply and hence ended up falling into his gunfire. Two days later he shot down a B-29 bomber while flying at an altitude of 6,000 meters; when he and his flight crew found a group of five B-29s, they opened fire. They saw one get catch fire and go down, and the other four bombers tried to get away from the fighters. Two of those bombers were hit, but the MiGs did not continue to pursue them due to fuel shortages. After analysis of post-flight data, the mission was credited with taking out three B-29s, of which one was credited to Naumenko.
On 9 December he flew in a mission to seek out enemy aircraft, during which his group of jets was attacked by F-80s. However, they managed to dodge the initial attack by climbing sharply. After returning to engage the F-80s, lieutenant Serafim Volodkin lagged behind the rest of the jets, and as a result separated from his wingman Ivan Grechko. With the F-80s at a moment of strategic advantage, they rushed in to target Volodkin, who was saved by Grechko coming to his aid. After the intense dogfight the F-80s eventually disengaged. Later combats would be even more difficult due to increased US aviation presence. The next day he engaged F-80s attacking a Sensen railway station, but was soon forced to temporarily disengage after entering an unequal battle, having made several mistakes in the initial attack. When he turned around to attack the F-80 again, he managed to get a hit, but he had to leave due to a fuel shortage. No remnants of the F-80 he attacked were found, so it was not considered to be an aerial victory.