Alexey Maresyev was a Soviet fighter ace during World War II.
He was badly wounded but managed
to return to Soviet-controlled territory on his own.
Both of his legs were amputated below the knee but he wanted to return
to his fighter pilot career.
He exercised hard to walk on
prosthetic legs and was able to return to combat in June 1943.
In total, he completed 86 combat flights and shot down 11 German
warplanes.
He always said that he was a man, not a hero.
He was a very modest man.