In the museum of military equipment UMMC appeared aircraft, which became not only a symbol of domestic aircraft construction, but without exaggeration, the personification of the courage and courage of Soviet pilots during the Great Patriotic War. The legendary Po-2 was placed on the second floor of the museum's exhibition center (its name was "Po-2" in memory of the deceased in 1944, the aircraft designer and creator of the plane, Nikolai Nikolaevich Polikarpov, before that he was called "U-2")..

This aircraft was found near the city of Kandalaksha in the Murmansk region, which was subjected to severe bombardment already at the very beginning of the war. After that he was restored by restorers in Murmansk, and then in Moscow. Due to the fact that the aircraft was mainly made of wood and fabric, most of the fuselage and cladding was decayed. In fact, restorers had to build a new airplane around the surviving motor, control devices in the cockpit and chassis.

Initially, Po-2 (U-2) was designed and used as a training aircraft on which most Soviet pilots began to fly, for which the car even received the nickname of "flying desk". The classic biplane possessed unique flying qualities, was relatively easy to manage, cheap in production and could be used even on poorly equipped airfields. Equipped Po-2 no less successful in its design engine M-11 power of about 100 liters. The aircraft was also used to transport mail, aerial photography, in agriculture and even as a sanitary. Po-2 became one of the most massive aircraft in world history - in all, about 35,000 such vehicles were manufactured.

"His legendary fame for Po-2, he's U-2, was just during the Great Patriotic War. It was he who fought the 46th Guards Women's Taman Aviation Regiment, which was part of the Air Force of the Soviet Union, pilots whose German soldiers called "night witches". These machines were also used on other sectors of the front, their effectiveness was largely built on the tactics of combat. Small and light Po-2 were used primarily as night bombers, which "worked" on a low-level flight with the engine off from a low altitude. This not only ensured the accuracy of the bombing, but also had a very strong psychological impact on the enemy soldiers, on which the bombs fell from out of nowhere, "said the director of the UMMC military equipment museum Alexander Emelyanov.

As noted by military historians, the combat effectiveness of the Po-2 was also quite high, despite the maximum speed of only about 130-150 km / h, as well as a low maximum ceiling of about 3500 meters. The aircraft could carry, according to various estimates, only up to 300 kg of bombs, but during the night it could produce up to ten sorties and drop several tons of bombs on the enemy, which is comparable to the flights of real bombers. In addition, Po-2 became the main liaison aircraft, it was also used to send subversive groups to the rear of the enemy and supply weapons and food to partisan detachments.