An NKVD troops officer before the war, Kostitsyn became a regimental commander in the Red Army during mid-1941 and led his regiment in the Battles of Rzhev. He became commander of the 183rd Rifle Division in early 1942 but was seriously wounded, spending several months hospitalized. After briefly becoming commander of the 172nd Rifle Division following his recovery, Kostitsyn returned to the 183rd, leading it in the Third Battle of Kharkov, the Battle of Kursk, and the subsequent Soviet offensive. He was killed by an artillery shell that struck his headquarters in late July.