Granting Ivan Kuzmich Dryanov yet another general’s rank drew the attention of many journalists. Among them was the correspondent of the newspaper “Pravda,” Alexander Krinitsky. Being personally acquainted with the general and representing the country’s main party newspaper, he managed to secure a personal meeting with Dryanov. Answering the journalist’s questions, Ivan Kuzmich noted that although he had managed to carry out a brilliant military operation, one should not forget that such successes happen for generals only when their subordinate soldiers fight bravely. By the way, then he recalled Chonkin and described the feat of this fighter in detail. Since the participants of the conversation were quite drunk, and the journalist, on the way to the editorial office, lost his notebook, trying to reconstruct Dryanov’s account, he remembered that Chonkin was guarding an airplane—so Krinitsky decided that Chonkin was a pilot. He then filled in the missing material with flights of his journalistic imagination, and an essay appeared about the heroic deed of pilot Chonkin, which the editorial office declared the best piece of the week. A little later, it was read by the well-known Nura, who, comparing all the facts, understood that it was about the very Ivan Chonkin she had experienced so much with at the beginning of the war. The article listed the unit number where the brave pilot served. Nura immediately sent a letter there.