3. The highest scoring non-German fighter ace was a Finn
Finland’s air forces fought against the Soviet Union during the Winter War (1939-1940) and the Continuation War (1941-1945). During the former the Finns fought against the Soviets alone. In the latter, material and logistical support for the Finns came from Germany, though most military operations were independent of the Wehrmacht. During the Finnish-Soviet conflict, the Finnish Air Force operated airplanes which were obsolescent against the frontline German fighters of the period. Nonetheless, they performed well against the Soviets. Later, in the Continuation War, bf-109 fighters from Germany augmented the Finnish effort.
In the hands of Ilmari Juutilainen, a Finnish officer and pilot, the aircraft provided were particularly deadly to the Soviets. Ilmari claimed 126 air-to-air victories against the Red Air Force, but stringent conformation standards of the Finns resulted in his being officially credited with 94 victories, flying 437 combat missions. He is the highest-scoring non-German fighter ace in history. All of his victories came against the Soviets, with his last occurring in September 1944. Fighting between the Finns and the Soviets ebbed as the Germans collapsed westward toward the end of 1944. Juutilainen continued to fly as a professional pilot for a decade following the war, and died at his home in 1999, on his 85th birthday.