Aimo Allan Koivunen: The Soldier Who Overdosed in Combat

     Thanks to the Facebook algorithm, a story floated through my feed about one Aimo Allan Koivunen, a Finnish soldier who supposedly went on a drug fueled escapade across the Finnish landscape, pursued by Soviet soldiers in March 1944. Having seen such news stories be wrong before, I decided to take a deeper dive and see if there was, in fact, any truth to the wild adventure of Aimo Koivunen. Turns out, it was true!

     Aimo was born on October 17, 1917 in the Finnish town of Alastaro. His father was Frans Vihtori Koivunen and his mother Aune Sofia Koivunen. He had at least two sisters (Eila Ilona Aalto and Marjatta Koivunen) and two brothers (Tapani Vihtori Koivunen and Väinö Armas Koivunen). After his baptism in October 24, 1917, his godparents were Frans and Olga Heikkilä, a farming family. At some point in time, Aimo married Elsa Esteri. At least in the sources I have available, little is said about his early life prior to entering military service. 

     When the Winter War against the Soviets started in November 30, 1939, Aimo was already in the military, being assigned to the third battalion of Jalkaväkirykmentti 13 (III/JR 13; Infantry Regiment 13). This battalion was made up of Finnish Home Guard men from the Salon Suojeluskuntapiiri Sammatissa (Salo Conservation District in Sammat). Aimo served with the unit until May 27, 1940 (the actual combat ceased on March 13, 1940). With the prospect of war with the Soviets again on the horizon, Aimo was transferred to the sixth battalion of Jalkaväkirykmentti 35 (6./JR 35) on June 17, 1941. The Continuation War commenced on June 25, 1941 and Aimo went to battle with the battalion until July 19, 1942. After this date, there is a gap in Aimo's service history when on October 28, 1942, Aimo is listed with the fifth battalion of JR 35 (5./JR 35) until January 9, 1943 when Aimo was reassigned to the headquarters of JR 35 until April 30, 1943. On that date, Aimo was transferred to Osasto Paatsalo, Erillinen Pataljoona 4 (Department Paatsalo, Seperate Battalion 4; 4./Er.P 4).

     Er.P 4 was a special unit established on July 1, 1943 to conduct long-range patrols for the purposes of intelligence gathering on Soviet forces. The battalion was broken down into four companies, or departments, which were Osasto Vehniäinen, Kuismanen, Marttina, and Osasto Paatsalo. A fifth department, Osasto Jauri, was set up in May 23, 1944 as a transport flight for the men of the other companies. Each department was responsible for covering assigned sectors within Finland proper. 4./Er.P 4 was responsible for the eastern border of Finland stretching from Kiesting to the Arctic Ocean. Osasto Paatsalo had actually existed prior to the formation of Er.P 4, first commencing patrol activities during the Winter War. Until June 1944, 4./Er.P 4 was commanded by Kapteeni (later Majuri) Harri Paatsalon. His successor was Kapteeniluutnantti Pentti Ahola.

     On March 10, 1944, Aimo was part of a ski patrol led by patrol leader Luutnantti Norri near Kantalahti, Lapland. The overall mission was commanded by Vänrikki (2nd. Lieutenant) Rytkösen. While moving along a road during the evening, the patrol penetrated Soviet lines and a shot was heard followed by an aircraft flying overhead. The patrol thought that they had avoided the Soviets but they soon ran into a Soviet ski patrol that took the Finnish under sub-machine gun fire. Rather than engage the enemy,  Rytkösen ordered his men to withdraw. The Soviets continued to bear down on the retreating Finnish who returned fire which gave the Soviets pause. In the brief respite, Aimo was ordered to deploy mines to slow the enemy advance. Unfortunately, he got no fire support from his men to the point that he enlisted villagers from Välikankaan to keep watch for the Soviets. It was decided that if need be, the patrol would rendezvous at Kaitatunturi then continue on to Koutamotunturi to link up with another Finnish patrol led by Ilmari Honkanen.

     All told, the skirmish with the Soviets that the patrol had run into lasted ten minutes. Still, the Soviet ski troops hadn't given up the chase and although both sides exchanged fire, none of the Finnish troops were hit. As the patrol continued to withdraw, Aimo was able to seed mines along the tracks they had been using and which they expected the Soviets to follow. After several hours, Aimo and the rest of the patrol were exhausted, having been engaged for several hours but fortunately, the Soviets had stopped following them. Aimo, especially, was feeling weak, in part due to having had little to eat. He then remembered that in his tunic pocket, he had the entire patrol's allotment of Pervitin.

     What was Pervitin? It was a methamphetamine. When taken, it resulted in increased energy, reduced the need for sleep, lowered hunger cravings, and instilled a sense of immense, nearly unstoppable, confidence in the imbiber. In Germany, Pervitin was able to be purchased over the counter until 1941 when it became regulated. Soldiers were issued the drug in 3 milligram tablets, tank crews had their own version in “Panzerschokolade” (“Tank Chocolate”) which was Pervitin laced chocolate candy, while the Luftwaffe issued it to air crews to enhance their attention span but also to allow downed airmen to sustain themselves while making their way back to friendly lines. Pervitin was made illegal in 1941 but this failed to stop the flow of the drug and in fact, the German military seemed to turn a blind eye to its use despite the very real problems of addiction, overdose, withdrawal effects, and obfuscation of the senses when it came to military decision making. Like the Germans, the Finnish (as did the U.S.) also issued it to their troops to enable them to push themselves beyond their regular limits.

     Aimo, feeling the effects of exhaustion, took the bottle of Pervitin out of his tunic and attempted to shake a pill out of it to consume. Try as he might, the pills stuck together and would not come out. Aimo shook the bottle and the entire supply of pills, thirty in all, fell out into his gloved hand in a clump. Out of sight of his comrades, he downed all thirty pills at one time. In minutes, the Pervitin took effect and Aimo felt flush with energy but in taking such a massive quantity, Aimo's perception soon began to warp and he felt as if he was going to pass out. His last, unfazed thought was that he had made a terrible mistake.

     Aimo recollected that when he recovered his wits to a degree, he was at the Finnish border, alone. He was unsure if he abandoned his patrol or if his patrol abandoned him given his state. It was March 19 or March 20, 1944. Aimo was in for another shock in that not only did he not have his sub-machine gun, his backpack was totally empty. Thus, he had neither food, water, nor any change of clothing or other supplies that he had originally carried in the pack. Outside of what few items he had in his uniform pockets, Aimo was only armed with a knife. Aimo also still had his wrist compass and made for what he thought was Koutamotunturi. Along the way, he spotted the smoke from campfires in the distance. Believing it to be his comrades, Aimo skied on, using a steep slope to pick up speed. As he closed the distance, to his horror, the campfires were not surrounded by Finnish troops but Soviet ones. Originally starting to brake thinking they were allies, Aimo stopped braking and used his remaining momentum to roar right through the Soviet camp. Startled Soviet soldiers scattered as the Finnish soldier flashed through them. The return fire once the Soviets got over their surprise was ineffective. However, Aimo was not out of the woods when a ski patrol of skilled Soviet partisans picked him up and gave chase. It took everything for Aimo to keep ahead of the partisans, the distance sometimes being only 328 feet between the two opponents. Aimo came to the base of a mountain and as the snow was not as packed, it caused his skis to sink. He struggled to get up the mountain, the partisans getting as close as 65 feet. By the time Aimo crested the mountain, he managed to again put distance between him and his pursuers. By a stroke of luck, a snow storm blew in which reduced visibility to only a few feet. The storm, coupled with the coming of night, saw the partisans abandon the chase.

     Aimo spent the next day skiing to the west before he stopped and set up a campfire, managing a tea from a packet that he had found in his pocket. After the tea, he used his hands to dig out a pit to get into and sleep. Rising in the evening, Aimo continued, scooping up pine cones along the way and putting them in his backpack. With these, he made a soup for sustenance as he carried on with his trek. At one point, he had to fend off a wild wolf with his knife but in the fight, his wrist compass was broken. As Aimo went on, at some point, his backpack was lost. By now, he had been moving for days, driven on by lucid dreams of his comrades. As he traveled, Aimo came upon a small shack and after going inside, he set up a small fire on the floor, using a tin cup he found to warm snow into water. Likely due to his state of mind, Aimo was not at all shocked when the shack started to catch fire. As the fire spread along the wooden floor, Aimo simply shifted further away, trying to sleep. Eventually, the entire shack burned to the ground and Aimo simply carried on, moving to a sauna near the shack, starting a fire there until he was able to sleep. Without his compass, Aimo navigated using the North Star. To add to his discomfort, the fingers on one of his hands were beginning to succumb to frostbite. 

     Aimo found a well-used trail and road that led to a German position. There were dugouts and barbed wire emplacements but while Aimo called out, there was no answer. Unhitching from his skis, Aimo walked into the position and then stepped on a anti-personnel mine with his left foot. The resulting detonation shredded his foot and lower left leg. So as not to freeze, Aimo crawled towards the nearest dugout. With a ski pole in his left hand, he reached the dugout and with his right hand, grabbed a door handle to the entrance into the dugout's covered section. He passed out, the handle having broken off the door. When he awoke, Aimo used his knife to carve wood chips out of the door to make a small fire with and used the tin cup to melt snow to drink. Aimo remained there, in and out of delirium, the only food coming from a jay bird that came within grasping distance. Aimo ate it raw. After seven days, an aircraft flew overhead and Aimo put a scrap of his snowsuit on his ski pole and waved it around. Fortunately for Aimo, the aircraft was Finnish and the pilot noticed him and waggled the plane's wings in acknowledgment before it flew away. In time, a Finnish patrol arrived and evacuated Aimo to a field hospital in Salla. Upon arrival, Aimo's heart-rate was 200 beats per minute which was well over the average 60 to 100 beats per minute and his weight was down to 94 pounds. He also survived temperatures of 20 to 30 below zero. In two weeks, Aimo had skied from Kaitatunturi to the abandoned German position some 30 miles north of Salla for a total distance of 248 miles.

     Aimo survived the war, being discharged on April 1, 1944. He ended the war with the rank of Alikersantti (Corporal). The photograph of Aimo shows him with, most likely, the green with white border collar tabs of the infantry. Because the collar tab is devoid of any stripes, the rank shown in the photograph is that of Sotamies, or Private. If he had his Alikersantti rank at the time of the picture, there would have been a single yellow chevron, running vertically, in the center of each tab. The medals on his right upper tunic pocket are skill badges. The top row consists of a unidentified skill badge while the one nearest the tunic buttons is a grade of  the Ampumamerkit (Shooting Badge) for Kivääri (Rifle). The badge centered on his pocket is the Vartiotehokkuusmerkki (Civil Guard Efficiency Badge).

     Aimo passed away on August 2, 1989 at the age of 71 in Jyväskylä, Finland. He was laid to rest in Pylkönmäki.

Primary Source:

Koivunen, Aimo (1978, April 14) Pervitiini-Partio, Kansa Taisteli, 126-132.

 

The Lahti-Saloranta M/26: Finland's Machine Gun Miscalculation

 

     A view from a Finnish machine gun position somewhere in a forest in Finland. To the right of the photograph are two M32 varsikäsikranaatti (stick grenades) and to the left is a Lahti-Saloranta M/26 light machine gun. The M/26 was first developed in 1925 and after being successfully tested before the Finnish Army, production commenced at the Valtion Kivääritehdas (State Rifle Factory) in 1927 with the weapon entering service soon after. Chambered for the Finnish 7.62×53mm round, the M/26 used a 20-round magazine or could be fitted with a 75-round drum for anti-aircraft use. The M/26 fired from an open bolt, was short-recoil operated, and had a cyclic rate of fire of up to 550 rounds per minute though the weapon could also fire single shots. 

     In action, the M/26 was found wanting by many soldiers who used it. As was typical for many machine guns, changing barrels was a means to lower the rate of wear by allowing it to cool after a certain number of rounds were fired. With the M/26, the bolt came out with the barrel which meant it took longer to change the barrel (about 30 seconds) and this was not always a desired thing when under fire. Also, the M/26 was made up of 188 parts which meant cleaning the weapon was not an easy task. It was also found that dirt and extreme temperatures tended to foul the M/26 but this was attributed to improper cleaning of the packing grease applied at the factory. Finally, the M/26 was picky about the ammunition it used, requiring more powerful firing caps in order to operate reliably. This earned the M/26 the nickname “Kootut Virheet” which meant “Assorted Mistakes”. The M/26 remained in production until 1942 but in the field, troops much preferred captured Russian Degtyaryov DP-27 light machine guns over the M/26. Nevertheless, the M/26, in the right hands, proved reliable and robust and so it saw action throughout World War Two and a small number remained in service until 1985 as training weapons. 

     The M/26 was served by two men, a gunner and assistant. Typical equipment used included special canvas ammunition pouches for the magazines, a spare barrel with carrier, and a canvas pouch containing tools, gun oil, and spare parts to service the weapon. It was intended to offer the M/26 for export sale but large scale sales never came. China was the only customer, ordering 30,000 M/26 weapons chambered in 7.92×57mm Mauser in 1937 but only 1,200 of them ever arrived in China before Japanese diplomatic pressure on the Finns stopped further shipments.

Kapteeni Jorma Karhunen: Finnish Brewster Ace

Taken in June 1943, Karhunen poses with his Brewster B-239E (serial BW-366) with 31 kill marks on the tail.

    Sitting on the horizontal stabilizer of his Brewster B-239E (serial BW-366) is Kapteeni (Captain) Jorma Karhunen of the Ilmavoimat (FAF; Finnish Air Force). Upon the vertical stabilizer are the markings for his 31 confirmed kills against the Soviet Air Force (Voyenno-Vozdushnye Sily; VVS). The photograph was taken in June 1943 when Karhunen was made the commander of Lentolaivue 24 (Fighter Squadron 24; LLv 24) under Lentorykmentti 2 (Flight Regiment 2). The location of the photograph was Suulajärvi on the Karelian Isthmus.

    Karhunen was born in Pyhäjärvi, Finland on March 17, 1913 and after he graduated from secondary school (equivalent to high school in the United States) in 1933, he turned around and enlisted into military service, seeking to be an aviator. He was sent to the Ilmasotakoulu (Air Force Academy) and in 1936, he successfully completed the training and graduated as a Vänrikki which was the most junior rank of flying officer. Flight training had been done at the Lentosotakoulu (Training Air Wing) which was located in Kauhava, Finland. His first posting was to Lentoasema 1 (Air Station 1) but by January 1, 1938, the unit designation changed to Lentorykmentti 2.

    On November 30, 1939, the Soviet Union invaded Finland in what became the Winter War. Karhunen, at this time, had the rank of Yliluutnantti (equivalent to a 1st. Lieutenant) and was the deputy commander of 1. Lentue (1st. Flight) of LLv 24. The flight was equipped with six Fokker D.XXI, a Dutch built monoplane fighter which first flew in March 1936. Karhunen’s personal Fokker carried the serial FR-112 and in this plane, he scored 4 confirmed kills through January 30, 1940. On this date, he assumed command of 2. Lentue (2nd. Flight) of LLv 24 but he would not fly in combat for the remainder of the Winter War, which ended on March 13, 1940. Although the Soviets gained some territory from Finland after the signing of the Moscow Peace Treaty, Finland was able to give the Soviets a very bloody nose which went far to stinging the pride of the Soviet Union in the eyes of the world.

    Returning to Karhunen, he had been sent to Trollhättan, Sweden where representatives from the Brewster Aeronautical Corporation had arrived with the first six of 44 Brewster B-239E fighters. These were de-navalized U.S. Navy Brewster F2A-1 fighters which had the tail hooks, life raft containers, and other navy specific equipment taken out. The B-239E also did not have cockpit armor nor self-sealing fuel tanks. The aircraft did, however, have a more powerful motor, the 950hp Wright R-1820-G5 radial engine, and had the ability to carry up to four machine-guns rather than the F2A-1’s two machine-guns. Karhunen flight tested the first example completed in February 1940 but unfortunately, being unfamiliar with the aircraft, managed to burn out the engine during a low altitude, high speed run. He belly landed the Brewster into a snow covered field, damaging the propeller and crumpling numerous belly panels. Despite this inauspicious start, as the Finnish pilots became more aware of the capabilities of the Brewster, they grew to appreciate the aircraft and used it to great effect against the VVS. The Finnish gave the portly plane nicknames such as the ”Lentävä Kaljapullo” (”Flying Beer Bottle”) and ”Taivaan Helmi” (“Sky Pearl”) among others.

    When Germany invaded Russia on June 24, 1941, Finland joined in on the invasion the following day. Called the Continuation War, many justifications have been given for Finland’s actions which included seeking to take back the territory it lost to the Soviet Union following the Winter War and even to take Karelia. While Finland was on the Axis side, it did not sign the Tripartite Pact and thus was not officially a part of the Axis which included Germany, Italy, and Japan. It did, however, sign the Antikominternpakt (Anti-Comintern Pact) in 1941. Karhunen returned to LLv 24 and was put in command of 3. Lentue (3rd. Flight). He was now flying his Brewster (BW-366) and on July 4, 1941, he earned his fifth kill by downing a Soviet SB bomber. This made Karhunen an ace and saw him promoted to Kapteeni (Captain). Karhunen continued to lead his flight through the remainder of 1941 and 1942. On September 8, 1942, Karhunen was awarded the 92nd. presentation of the prestigious Mannerheim-Risti (Mannerheim Cross) to recognize both his leadership and his tally of 25 confirmed kills. As the Continuation War moved into 1943, the pilots flying the Brewster were encountering improved Soviet aircraft such as the Yakovlev Yak-1, Lavochkin La-5, and even Lend-Lease Supermarine Spitfires. In addition, Soviet pilots had gained in experience and ability. In many cases, the obsolete Brewsters came out on top due to the superior skill of the Finnish pilots who understood both their own aircraft and that of their enemy in order to maintain superiority. For Karhunen, he achieved his 31st. kill by downing a Polikarpov I-153 on May 4, 1943. On June 1, 1943, Karhunen was made the commander of LLv 24 and in September 1943, he was promoted to Majuri (Major) and in so doing, his frontline flying career was over after having flown 350 combat sorties. In addition to the Mannerheim Cross, Karhunen also received the Vapaudenristin Ritarikunta (Order of the Cross of Liberty) 2nd. Class with Swords and the German Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse (Iron Cross 2nd. Class). On September 19, 1944, the Continuation War came to a close. LLv 24, in total, had 763 confirmed kills for the loss of only 30 aircraft (of which 26 was due to enemy action) which meant an astounding kill ratio of 29 enemy kills for every one loss.

    Karhunen remained commander of LLv 24 until December 4, 1944 when, following a reorganization, LLv 24 became Lentolaivue 31 (LLv 31). After World War Two ended, Karhunen became the deputy commander of the Ilmavarasto (Air Depot) from 1946 to 1949. During that time, Karhunen returned to the Ilmasotakoulu from 1948 to 1949 and was soon promoted to Everstiluutnantti (Lieutenant-Colonel) and given command of a flight regiment. In 1952, Karhunen became the commander of 2. Lennosto (2nd. Air Force) until his retirement in 1955.

    During his retirement, Karhunen became a prolific author, writing on the topics of the air war during the Winter War and Continuation War. In 1967, he was made a Eversti (Colonel) and in 1994, his writings earned him the Harmon-Patsas (Harmon Statue) which was presented to him by the Suomen Ilmailuliiton (Finnish Civil Aviation Association). Karhunen would pass away on January 18, 2002 at the age of 88 in Tampere, Finland.

    As for LLv 31, it remains in operation to this day, currently flying McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet fighters. It is commanded by Everstiluutnantti Inka Johanna Niskanen who was the first Finnish female fighter pilot and the first woman to achieve the rank of Everstiluutnantti. The unit flies out of Siilinjärvi Rissala.