Last Flight of Surhin's Katyusha (a Homage to Soviet Airmen)

 

Our orders came in December
Volunteered to fight in Spain.

Flying Tupolev SBs - an advanced Soviet Plane.

Our Spanish comrades welcomed us

with a warm embrace,

But times were obviously desperate

I read in the commander's face.

 

Our job was to bomb the Fascist lines on the front near Teruel.

For Spain it was a bitter winter, for men in trenches a frozen hell.

Our fighter escorts were Ishaks that could buzz around like flies,

But there were seldom enough of them to control the Republic's skies

We'd flown on several missions, Latyshev, Gorelev and me

Seldom meeting resistance from 109s out on a spree.
But all that was to change, one dark February day.

When we ran into the Condor Legion who just happened to be in our way

 

Their bombers turned around slowly, but their fighters streaked ahead

We knew those Messerschmitt pilots aimed to see us dead.

Our escorts fought so valiantly, outnumbered one to five.

It would take nothing short of a miracle to get out of there alive.

We were taking heavy losses, several crews went down in flames.

Men I'd broken bread with and comrades I could not name.

Gorelev did his best to defend us, his machine gun rattled his ire.

But they holed our fuel system: we were dealing with a fire.

 

We were losing height when we bailed out, I was blistered from the heat

As we parachuted to safety, my heart skipped a beat.
A Nazi plane was firing at men hanging helpless in the sky.

An act which decent pilots worldwide would all decry.

Lucky for me, I free-falled to get out of his field of view

But Latyshev was killed before the Nazi swine withdrew.

Gorelev had pulled his ripcord too near the plane, I know

´cos his chute went up in flames and he plunged to the earth below.

So now I stand at the graveside of my comrades brave and true

And that of another airman, shot in his parachute too.

That single act of evil showed our side were in the right.

We fought against the darkness, they to extinguish freedom's light.

...........................................................

 

Últim vol del Katyusha de Surhin (un homenatge als aviadors soviètics)

 

Les nostres ordres van arribar al desembre:

ens vam oferir voluntaris per lluitar a Espanya.

Vam pilotar els Tupolev SB, un avió soviètic avançat.

Els nostres companys espanyols ens van rebre amb una càlida abraçada,

però els temps eren òbviament desesperats, com vaig veure a la cara del comandant.

 

La nostra feina era bombardejar les línies feixistes al front prop de Terol.

Per a Espanya va ser un hivern amarg, per als homes en trinxeres un infern gelat.

Els nostres caces d'escorta eren Ishaks que podien maniobrar com mosques,

però poques vegades n'hi van haver prou per controlar els cels de la República.

 

Havíem volat en diverses missions, Latyshev, Gorelev i jo,

rarament vam trobar resistència dels Messerschmitt 109 de patrulla.

Però tot allò havia de canviar, un fosc dia de febrer,

quan ens vam trobar amb la Legió Còndor, que eren al nostre camí.

 

Els seus bombarders es van girar lentament, però els seus caces van avançar.

Sabíem que aquells pilots de Messerschmitt ens volien veure morts.

Els nostres escortes van lluitar tan valentament, superats en nombre d'un a cinc.

Caldria només un miracle per sortir d'allà viu.

 

Estàvem patint grans pèrdues, diverses tripulacions van ser abatudes en flames;

Homes amb qui havia compartit el pa i companys que no coneixia bé.

Gorelev va fer tot el possible per defensar-nos, la seva metralladora representava la seva ira.

Però van fer un forat al nostre sistema de combustible: estàvem davant d'un incendi.

 

Estàvem perdent alçada quan vam sortir amb paracaigudes i vaig tenir cremades pel cos.

Quan vam sortir no podia creure els meus ulls:

Un avió nazi disparava contra homes penjats indefensos en el cel.

Un acte que qualsevol pilot decent denunciaria.

 

Per sort per a mi, vaig caure lliurement per sortir del seu camp de visió

Però Latyshev va ser assassinat abans que el porc nazi es retirés.

Gorelev havia obert el paracaigudes massa a prop de l'avió,

aquest es va incendiar i ell va caure en picat a terra .

 

Així que ara estic davant de la tomba dels meus companys valents i lleials

i a la d'un altre aviador, també disparat en el seu paracaigudes.

Sols aquest acte bàrbar ja em va demostrar que la nostra causa era correcta.

Vam lluitar contra la foscor, ells per apagar la llum de la llibertat.