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Facts About Lydia Litvyak: Female Figher Ace

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Lydia Vladimirovna Litvyak is one of, if not the most famous female fighter pilots in history. During World War II she was a fighter pilot in the Soviet Air Force. Over a period of around two years in active missions she became the first female pilot to shoot down an enemy plane.She’s the first female pilot to earn the title ‘fighter ace’. Lydia also holds the record for the greatest number of kills by any female fighter pilot.

Lydia Vladimirovna Litvyak

Here are some interesting facts about Lydia Litvyak and her military career:

  • Lydia Litvyak completed over 66 combat missions, recording at least 12 solo kills and 4 shared kills.
  • On 13th September 1942 three days after arriving in the 437th regiment, Lydia Litvyak made her first two kills. This day made her the very first female fighter pilot to shoot down an enemy plane.
  • During the summer of 1942 she flew her first official combat flights. She was part of the men’s regiment 437 IAP in Stalingrad.
  • In Soviet press releases she was referred to as the ‘White Lily of Stalingrad’, later referred to as ‘White Rose of Stalingrad’ in English publicized reports.
  • Born on August 18th, 1921 into a Jewish family Lydia Litvyak became interested in aviation at the young age of 14.
  • At only 15 years old she performed her first solo flight. She later graduated and became a flight instructor at Kalinin Air-club and went on to train 45 pilots before the war started.
  • After the Soviet Union came under attack from Germany in June of 1941, Lydia Litvyak attempted to join an aviation branch of the military but was turned away due to lack of flight hours. She soon re-applied through a different base and exaggerated her flight experience to ensure she was accepted.
  • She also fought for the all-female 586th Fighter Aviation Regiment which was founded by the famous Marina Raskova.
  • On February 23rd 1943, Lydia Litvyak was awarded the Order of the Red Star, a military medal issued in recognition of bravery. She was promoted to junior lieutenant and selected as part of an elite air tactic team called ‘okhotniki’.
  • Lydia Litvyak was attacked and shot down by German planes during the Battle of Kursk on August 1st, 1943. She was returning to base near Orel when two Bf109 German fighter planes ambushed her. A fellow pilot nearby at the time saw them all disappear into the clouds, but she never returned.
  • A search party later looked for the remains of Lydia Litvyak. Assisted by volunteers and the media, for over thee years the area believed to be where she crashed was throughly searched. In 1979, after recovering numerous remains from the area the search party found the remains of a female pilot buried in a near by village.

Although Lydia Litvyak died at just 21 years old, her accomplishments have cemented her legacy as one of the most well known female fighter pilots in history.

Her story has been fictionalised in novels, using her character and experiences as a base for romantic war time stories. Also, a stage play portraying Lydia Litvyak’s character and political thoughts was first performed in 1985 at the Edinburgh festival, and a newer production as recently as early 2013 in Glasgow, Scotland.

Facts About Vanity Fair: A Novel Without A Hero

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Vanity Fair Cover

Vanity Fair: A Novel Without A Hero was a very popular novel, written by William Makepeace Thackeray. Thackeray was English writer and this novel was published in 1847 to 1848. Vanity Fear was all about the satirizing of the society that existed in Britain during the early 19th century. William Thackeray got the name for his book from an allegorical story called The Pilgrim’s Progress that was first published in 1678. The author of this story was John Bunyan.

Couple of facts about Vanity Fair:

  • This novel is now considered to be a true classic and has even inspired several film adaptations.
  • Vanity Fair has the honor of being listed on the BBC’s The Big Read poll for the UK’s “best loved novel”.
  • The author of Vanity Fair got the idea to create the novel from reading Pilgrim’s Progress. Pilgrim’s Progress had a town called Vanity in its short story and there was a never-ending fair in this town.
  • The title page for the first edition in book form was drawn by Thackeray himself.
  • When William Thackeray first sent some chapters from his novel for publication, It wasn’t accepted at first by publishers. However, eventually it was published as a chronicle, in which parts of it would be published on a monthly basis starting in mid 1846.
  • Vanity Fair being published as a chronicle proved to be very successful.Thackeray earned a lot from this novel and became a famous.
  • His book didn’t appear in volume format until 1848.
  • The two main characters in the novel titled Vanity Fair are Amelia Sedley and Rebecca (Becky) Sharp.
  • The character of Rebecca (Becky) Sharp is that of an anti-heroine, as opposed to the character of Amelia Sedley. Becky Sharp is considered to be highly intelligent, has a gift for satire, and is able to draw people into her. Amelia Sedley is far from being a conventional heroine type character.She is described as being passive, naive, and someone who does little to help herself.


Vanity Fair is a true classic. It is a classic novel because it entertains, it teachers, and at the very same time has a profound message seldom found among other books in the literary world.

Interesting Facts About Ansoo Lake

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Ansoo Lake is a nature’s wonder located in Northern Pakistan. The lake is famous for having the shape of a tear drop. Ansoo lake and its surroundings offer a breathtaking view and is becoming an increasingly popular destination for tourists.

Facts about this lake:

Ansoo Lake during winter
Author: Sharjeel.60 / (CC BY-SA 3.0)
  • The lake is named Ansoo because it’s shaped like a teardrop. The word Ansoo means ‘teardrop’ in Urdu, hence the name Ansoo Lake. So ‘Ansoo lake’ translates to ‘teardrop lake’ in English.
  • The lake is located at a height of about 4250m near the Malika Parbat mountain in the Himalayas.
  • Before 1993 the lake was completely unknown to everyone. Even the locals were unaware about the lake.
  • It was discovered by a Pakistan Air Force pilot in 1993 who was flying low during the area.
  • The lake can be reached by trekking from either the Saiful Muluk lake or by trekking from the Mahandri village via the Manoor village. It takes about 6-12 hours to reach the lake depending on the which route one goes by.
  • The lake is however in a valley surrounded by steep ridges so it’s dangerous to go near it, especially during the winter. Even the locals discourage to go near it.
  • Sometimes during winter ice caps form on the lake. The snow surrounding the lake and the ice caps on the lake surface give it the shape of a human eye.
  • Locals have associated many stories and myths with the lake. The most famous one involves a human prince who falls in love with a fairy and a villainous giant who’s also in love with the fairy. Apparently the fairy chose to be with the prince and the giant cried in rage. One of his tear drop formed the lake.
  • One is considered lucky to get a clear view of the lake because most of the time, the lake is covered in fog or its raining.
  • So, the best time to visit the lake is during July and August.
  • The lake was partially destroyed by the 2005 Kashmir Earthquake.
  • There’s no place to stay at the lake and it’s not recommended to camp near it, because of the sudden climate changes the area is prone to.
Ansoo Lake during the summer
Author: Sarmad1296ali / (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Although it’s becoming a tourist paradise and becoming popular day by day there’s so much we don’t know about the lake’s geography. Hopefully someday it will catch the interest of scientists who are interested to learn about the lake’s geography. Maybe they can tell us more about Ansoo Lake and shed some light on how it was formed.

Facts About Attock Fort

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Attock Fort was raised in 1581 over a period of 2 years and 2 months under the supervision of Khawaja Shams-ud-din on the directive of the Mughal Emperor Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar. The main purpose of Attock was to guard the passage through the Indus River and defend the Mughal lands from Afghan invasions.

The fort was a military garrison on the western frontiers of the Mughal Empire. It remained under Mughal control up until the end of the 18th century. In 1812 the fort was captured by the Sikhs. It eventually came into British control in 1846. Under British rule the fort defenses were upgraded and it became much stronger. It remained under their control until the creation of Pakistan in 1947.

Author: Hassan Ishtiaq (Me)

The fort has 4 gates, namely the Delhi Gate, Mori Gate, Lahori Gate and Kabuli Gate. Delhi Gate is in the center of the fort and links the upper and lower parts of the fort. Mori Gate is the entry point to the upper fort in the east. Lahori Gate is an entry point to the lower part of the fort in the south. The Kabuli Gate is the fort’s gate in the south-east part.

Some Facts About the Fort:

  • The fort is an example of Mughal Architecture and was built from 1581-1583.
  • It played a crucial role during the Afghan-Sikh wars, especially during the Battle of Attock.
  • Attock Fort is about 80km away from the city of Islamabad.
  • The parameter wall of the fort stretches over 1600m.
  • The fort is accessible by the Grand Trunk Road and through a bridge from Peshawar.
  • In 1947 after Pakistan’s creation, the fort became the headquarters of the 7th Division of the Pakistan Army.
  • In 1956, the fort was handed over to the 3rd Commando battalion of the Special Service Group(SSG) called ‘Powindhas’. SSG are the special operations force of the Pakistan Army.
  • The fort was handed over to the 1 Commando ‘Yaldram’ battalion of SSG in 1996.
  • The Yaldram battalion remained at the fort until 1st April 2012 when it was handed over to the 6 Commando or the ‘Al-Samsaam’ battalion of SSG.
  • The Fort remains under the control of the Special Service Group(SSG) of the Pakistan Army.
  • Apart from this, the fort is also quite famous for being the place where Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was imprisoned after the military coup by General Pervez Musharraf in 1999.
  • As the fort is a military base, it’s closed to visitors in general. Any unauthorized personnel are not allowed to enter the base.
Hassan Ishtiaq (Me)

Facts about Astola Island

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Located approximately 25km away from the mainland, Astola is the largest offshore island of Pakistan. The island is uninhabited, and this has allowed marine and wildlife to flourish there.

The island has no hotels or place to stay, so if anyone decides to stay on the island they must bring their own camping equipment like tents, sleeping bags and blankets.

Astola Island
Author: Sakina Nazia / (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Some Info About the Island:

  • According to a Greek historian the island was discovered by Alexander the Great’s naval fleet.
  • The island has a length of 6.7km and a width of 2.3km.
  • It has an area of approximately 6.7km2
  • Wildlife flourishes on the island. Astola’s beaches are a nesting ground for the Green Sea Turtle and Hawksbill Sea Turtle. Both of these turtle species are endangered.
  • The island has little vegetation that includes just a few shrubs and trees.
  • It has an old lighthouse that’s not used anymore.
  • The water near the shore is transparent and you can see the turtles and fish swimming inside the sea.
  • Astola also has a small mosque which is used by fishermen who come from the mainland.
  • There are also the ruins of an ancient temple on the island. The temple belonged to the Hindu Goddess Kali.
  • The highest point of the island is 75m above sea level. It takes about 3 hours to reach the island from the mainland.

Unfortunately, the ecosystem of the island has been somewhat damaged. Cats and rats left behind by fishermen from the mainlands, have been a threat to turtle and bird nesting sites on the island.

Jabal Yibir (Jebel Al Mebrah): Facts about UAE’s Highest Mountain

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Although, the highest point in the United Arab Emirates is at the mountain Jebel Jais, but since the summit of Jebel Jais is in UAE’s neighbor Oman, it can’t be considered as the tallest mountain of the Emirates. So the mountain with the highest summit in UAE, which is Jabal Yibir would be considered the tallest mountain of the country.

Facts about Jabal Yibir:

  • It has a height of about 1727m.
  • The peak of Jabal Yibir on average, is about 10-15 degrees cooler than the rest of the country.
  • The mountain is a part of the Hajar Mountain Ranges.
  • The mountain is located in the state of Fujairah.
  • The parent peak of Jabal Yibir is Jebel Qihwi. Jebel Qihwi is located in Oman.
  • A proper asphalt road is built from the base of the mountain to the summit.
  • The summit of the mountain is home to a Military base, so the road leading to the summit is filled with military checkpoints.
  • Previously visitors and tourists were allowed to go up to 1300m above on the mountain. The military base is about 100m above this point.
  • However, since 2016 the mountain has been completely sealed off to the public from the ground to the summit.