Background
Born November 22, 1917 in the village of Pichuga, now Dubovsky district of the Volgograd region, in the family of a peasant.
Born November 22, 1917 in the village of Pichuga, now Dubovsky district of the Volgograd region, in the family of a peasant.
Nikolai studied at School of FZU and studied at Flying club.
Since 1938 he studied at Borisoglebsk Military Aviation School of Pilots in Borisoglebsk, Voronezh, Russian Federation.
He worked in the foundry of the Stalingrad Tractor Plant as a fitter in the repair of equipment.
Since 1938, he was recruited in the Red Army, in the same year he graduated from the Borisoglebsk Military Aviation School of Pilots. After that, in the rank of Junior Lieutenant, he served in the Air Force units of the Western Special Military District.
Participant of the Soviet - Finnish war of 1939 - 1940, made several dozens of flights to attack enemy troops.
Since November 1941, Senior Lieutenant N.T. Kitaev was on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War.
Since the fall of 1942 he served as a member of the 131st Air Regiment. As a part of this regiment, Kitaev fought from Moscow to the western border of the country. He fought in the North Caucasus, fought in the Kursk operation and liberation of Ukraine.
By March 1943, the commander of the squadron of the 40th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment (217th Fighter Air Division, 4th Air Army, the North Caucasian Front) Guard Senior Lieutenant N.T. Kitaev carried out 183 flights, in 45 air battles shot down 8 planes in person and 8 - in the group.
In fierce battles during the Battle of Kursk, he proved himself as a brilliant pilot, became one of the most brilliant and talented air fighters. According to the report of the 8th Guards IAP on the results of the battles in July 1943, N. T. Kitaev personally shot down 6 enemy aircraft.
Nikolay Kitaev is called one of the best air fighters of the Soviet Air Force. By the end of 1943 he had conducted 320 flights and 100 air battles, had 27 personal and 8 group victories on his account. Kitaev's name was often mentioned in newspapers, combat leaflets and "lightnings." Glory of him thundered on all fronts.
In July 1944, commander of the 40th Guard Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment, Lieutenant Colonel N. T. Kitaev, paired with the Guards Major A. Shvar, commited the flight to reconnoiter enemy troops in the Ternopil region. On the way back, not far from the front line, they made an assault on the enemy column. At the same time, Kitaev's plane was hit by a stray shell, he landed it without releasing the chassis, but lost consciousness during landing and was taken prisoner.
In captivity, Nikolai Trofimovich did not lose his presence of spirit, with honor brought all his burdens and in 1945 was liberated by Soviet soldiers.
In 1946, Lieutenant Colonel N. T. Kitaev was demobilized. He was not reinstated on flight work, and as a former prisoner he received the minimal pension. Almost nothing is known about the postwar fate of the Hero.
Lived and worked in the village of Belynichi, Mogilev region. He died on March 24, 2000.
