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Who Were The Night Witches?

Подготовила учитель английского языка

Бенджюнене Ольга Вячеславовна

Who Were The Night Witches? Soviet Female Soldiers in World War Two

The people we are proud of

• Women, who were mostly in their twenties, came from all over the Soviet Union in hopes that they would be selected to help their country beat back the Nazi threat.  Not only the pilots of the 588 th  Regiment were all women, so were its mechanics and bomb loaders.
• In 1942, 3 of the 588 th  planes took off on the regiment’s first mission.  Although the Night Witches would unfortunately lose 1 plane that night, they were successful in their mission of bombing the headquarters of a German division.
• In the Nazi-occupied Soviet Union, German soldiers had a very real fear of witches.

WHY “NIGHT WITCHES”

• The Night Witches were the first all-women’s combat regiment in modern history. Their official name was the 588th Night-Bombing regiment, and on paper their mission was simple: drop things . They dropped bombs, leaflets, bricks, and railroad ties—anything that would keep the Germans from sleeping.
• They flew inferior biplanes (which were made of wood and canvas) that were so slow, enemy aircraft couldn’t even catch them; planes that tried had to slow down so much that their engines stalled. The Night Witches flew so low to the ground they could be shot by your average German with a gun, and their planes were so flammable that usually one shot was all it took to bring them down. Nevertheless, they were dubbed Nachthexen by the Germans for their deadly silence and precision.

The way the pilots used their gliding technique reminded the German soldiers of a witch’s broomstick and so they called the stealthy assailants the Night Witches. The Germans became so afraid that they refused to light their cigarettes at night so as not to reveal themselves to the Night Witches. The 588th Regiment heard about their nickname and adopted it as a badge of pride.

• Detect – обнаружить
• Expect – ожидать
• Flaw – изьян
• Flawless vision – безупречное зрение
• Perfect – идеальный, совершенный
• Perfected - усовершенствованный
• Cast – бросать
• Regiment – полк
• Foe – противник, враг, недоброжелатель
• Canvas – холст, брезент
• Retreat - отсупать

Questions:

• 1. Who were the Night Witches?
• 2. Why did Germans call them so?
• 3. Judging by this song were they detected and expected?
• 4. What were the biplanes made of?
• 5. What was the tactics of the pilots in order to stay undetected?
• 6. Does this song reflect the feat of 588 th Regiment?
• 7. Did you like this song?