From Alaska to Siberia: At Full Throttle!

We're happy to announce that the Warplanes to Siberia Project has successfully taken off!

During World War II, American aircraft were sent to the small city of Great Falls, Montana under a cloak of secrecy. They were destined to be delivered to the U.S.S.R., via Alaska, under the Lend-Lease Program that provided arms and munitions for the war against Germany. This month, hangars built even before World War II sprung back to life with the return of old friends set to retrace the Lend-Lease delivery route to Russia. A P-51 Mustang, P-63 Kingcobra, and other living legends arrived in Great Falls for a farewell party with the Warplanes to Siberia Project participants—an AT-6 Texan and a Douglas C-47 Skytrain.

One of the pilots particpating was none other than Sergey Burkatovskiy, Wargaming’s Vice President of game design.

A passionate military history enthusiast, Sergey is fond of not only tanks, but warplanes as well! He completed a flying
course especially to co-pilot the AT-6 Texan and his inspired account of his experience flying sounded like a dream come true.

Veterans and special guests alike attended the project’s takeoff, including the Montana State Senator, the Mayor of Great
Falls, and the Russian Ambassador to the U.S., who arrived accompanied by the Consul General. The project participants, guests, and spectators enjoyed a warm and relaxed atmosphere as they paid tribute to the courage of their forbearers.

After extensive preparations, our flight team departed for Fairbanks, Alaska. Their journey ran through Canada, following the historic route taken decades before. The route took them over a vast wilderness, largely the same as it was during World War II, with a lack of infrastructure that necessitated fuel to be delivered by dog sled!

Harsh weather conditions required the flight group to split up, and the aircraft arrived in Fairbanks seperately, but accounted for.

They've still got plenty of ground left to cover and there's no turning back! Stay tuned and follow our adventures on the project website!