Ozdoev totaled 69 combat sorties during which he gained three aerial victories, including a high-altitude
Focke-Wulf Fw-189 which had been labeled by the Soviet Air Forces as a difficult target. Throughout the war he piloted
Po-2,
LaGG-3,
Yak-1,
Yak-7B and
Yak-9 aircraft. During the
Battle of Kursk, he shot down two
Fw 190s in one sortie while escorting a group of
Petlyakov Pe-2 dive bombers. In Autumn 1943 he provided air support in the
Polotsk and
Leningrad-Novgorod offensives. While escorting a group of bombers on 25 January 1945 his plane was hit by an anti-aircraft missile from the ground, and he was presumed dead by his comrades who saw him shot down. In reality he had actually survived, unbeknownst to his colleagues, but was severely wounded and had been captured by the Germans. After he was captured by the Germans he was sent to a prison camp in Lodz, Poland and later relocated to a different prison camp in the Czech Republic. Throughout his imprisonment he attempted to escape twice but was unsuccessful; after both attempts he was tortured and badly beaten. On 8 May 1945 Soviet forces took over the prison camp and in June he was allowed to return to his regiment. Upon return he was welcomed by his comrades who were shocked he had survived the war, but he was soon demobilized in 1946. == Later life ==