Measures approx. 3 ½" x 2 ½", printed on thin glossy photo paper. In the photo, one of the privates is wearing a GTO physical fitness badge. The inscription on the verso reads "For good memory to best friend Volodka from Krikunov and Novosiltsev, 12 March 1939. Chuguyev."

In very good to excellent condition. Minute irregularities seen on the emulsion when tilting the photo to reflect a bright light are completely invisible when looking at it at a normal viewing angle. The handwritten inscription is perfectly legible.

In 1938, the small Ukrainian city of Chuguyev in the Kharkiv Region became home to the Air Force Fighter Pilots School which branched out from the Kharkiv Air Force Reconnaissance Pilots and Navigators School. In the course of 1939-40, the school prepared 923 fighter pilots, and by that time it was the largest in the entire Soviet Armed Forces. So, presumably, the two cadets on the photo were among the first graduates.

Please note that the penny in our photo is for size reference.