The birth of Soviet assault aviation. The history of creating "flying tanks" 1926-1941

The Soviet assault aviation played an outstanding role in the Great Patriotic War, becoming an indispensable means of aviation support for terrestrial troops in offensive and defensive operations. This paper shows the process of the emergence of assault aviation in 1920-1930, the emergence and first implementation of the idea of ​​assault actions, a difficult path passed to the creation and development in the production of a flying tank - an airplane-attack aircraft. The book analyzes the features of the organizational structure of assault aviation as part of the Air Force in the pre-war period, showing the evolution of theoretical views on its combat application. On specific examples of external and internal armed conflicts, in which the USSR participated, the changes in the organization and tactics of the use of attack aircraft are analyzed