Top 10: Soviet Combat Aircraft of World War 2
Despite being the world’s largest air force, the Soviet Air Force (Voenno-Vozdushnye Sily or VVS) was caught on the back foot by the German invasion on 22 June 1941.
On the first day alone, an astonishing 2000 Soviet aircraft were destroyed on the ground. Emerging from this calamity over the brutal years of the Great Patriotic War, the VVS returned with ever more potent aircraft in increasing numbers. Soviet combat aircraft tended to be tough, able to endure the roughest airfields and climatic extremes, and easy to manufacture in enormous numbers. Here are ten of them.
(A transport aircraft of critical importance to the Soviets was the American Douglas C-47, and the inferior Soviet copy, the Lisunov Li-2, and these certainly merit a passing mention.)
10: Bell P-39 Airacobra
The radical Bell P-39 Airacobra was an American aircraft that proved unpopular in US and British hands but proved ideally suited to the Eastern Front, and was the most successful of the Land-Lease fighters serving with the USSR. It proved formidable and earned the affectionate nickname of Kobrushka (‘Little Cobra’).
The P-39 was unlike any other World War Two fighter in having the engine behind the pilot combined with another at time unconventional feature, a tricycle undercarriage. Today, all fighters have a tricycle undercarriage with the smaller central landing gear at the front, but in the war, the norm was to have it at the rear in the ‘tail-dragger’ configuration.
The sturdy P-39 had a combination of a heavy-hitting 37-mm cannon in the nose, forgiving take-off and landing characteristics from rough airfields and excellent manoeuvrability. Its lack of high-altitude performance was little issue on the Eastern Front, where most combat occurred at low altitudes.
As Soviet aircraft production facilities fled eastward, there was a temporary shortage of fighters, and the delivery of the P-39s was extremely timely. Ultimately, the P-39 story became largely a Soviet affair, with around half of all the P-39s produced serving in the USSR. Soviet fighter pilot Grigory Rechkalov (1920-1990) shot down 48 enemy aircraft while flying the P-39.
9: Ilyushin Il-4 (DB-3F)
The DB-3 was the first all-metal long-range bomber used by the Soviet Air Force. Though impressive in many ways, it was far from perfect and took an enormous effort to build: 30,301 man-hours per aircraft. To rectify this, and enhance performance and reliability, the DB-3F was created.
Embracing new construction techniques, learned from American designs, and a raft of other improvements, the F soon became a radically new design in its own right. The DB-3F took far less time to build, with man hours per aircraft more than halved to a figure of 14,331 (and later reduced even more dramatically).
9: Ilyushin Il-4
Pushed into an unsuitable emergency tactical role following the invasion, the DB-3F endured high losses. As a long-range bomber it was used to attack Berlin. The DB-3F was redesignated ‘Il-4’ in early 1942. The Il-4’s impressive range enabled it to be used for strategic missions.
The DB-3 and IL-4 both had torpedo bomber variants known as the DB-3T and Il-4T respectively. The Il-4T proved capable in both Western operations and fleeting (but frenetic) action in the Pacific in the closing days of the war. A total of 5256 IL-4s were manufactured
8: Lavochkin La-5FN/ La-7
Lavochkin reinvigorated the lack-lustre LaGG-3 fighter, by replacing its inline 1260 horsepower (940kW) Klimov-M 105PF engine with the Shvetsov M-82 radial engine. The new aircraft, the La-5, was massively improved with this new 1649 horsepower (1230kW) engine. The first La-5 was completed in December 1941, just two months after design work began.
It was further improved with the addition of the M-82FN (FN short for fosirovanny meaning boosted). The new fuel-injected engine was a beast, with 1850 horsepower (1380kW) at take-off. Faster than 400mph, the La-5FN proved formidable in combat. It was the mount of the greatest Allied ace, Ivan Kozhedub (1920-1991), for the most of his victories.
With delays in the development of the all-metal La-9, the La-7 was only intended as an interim fighter. However, the relatively low-key refinements and timing of world events meant this ‘interim’ fighter became the ultimate Lavochkin fighter of World War 2, as well as the last new fighter of largely wooden construction.
Though formidable in many ways, Lavochkin took the La-5FN and further improved it. They started by removing the supercharger air intake from the top of the engine cowling and repositioning it on the port wing root. This improved the pilot’s view as well as reducing drag. The oil cooler was also moved. This new cleaned-up aeroplane was impressive with a top speed greater than 410mph.
7: Tupolev Tu-2
Andrei Tupolev (1888-1972) designed the Tu-2 medium bomber while he was serving a prison sentence for espionage and sabotage. The twin-engined aircraft was initially known as ‘Aircraft 103’, such was the stigma attached to Tupolev’s name. Despite the challenging conditions of its conception, the Tu-2 was excellent.
With a top speed of 395mph (635km/h) the initial version, which first flew on 29 January 1941, was faster than virtually any operational fighter of the time. It was powered by two Mikulin AM-37 inline engines rated at 1500 horsepower each (1119kW).
The AM-37s were unreliable, and replacement by the more dependable Shvetsov M-82 radial engines drastically reduced the top speed to 328mph (adding to the performance loss of an earlier change to increase the crew from three to four). But at 328mph (528km/h), it was still an extremely fast medium bomber and a challenging target for enemy fighters.
It was later up-engined to the 1850 horsepower (1380kW) Shvetsov Ash-82FN to create the formidable Tu-2S. Well-armed with up to 6600Ib (3,000kg) bombs, three defensive heavy machine-guns and two cannons the Tu-2 proved extremely effective.
6: Petlyakov Pe-8
The P-8 was a heavy four-engined bomber that first flew at the end of 1936. It was an extremely ambitious project offering double the performance of the aircraft it was built to replace, the Tupolev TB3 (ANT-6).
It was powered by four Mikulin AM-35 V-12 inline engines, each rated at 1340 horsepower (just under 1000 kW) for a total of 5360 horsepower (around 4000kW). Defensive armament consisted of two light machine guns in the nose turret, two heavy machine guns (one in each of the inner engine nacelles) and two 20-mm cannon (one in the tail and one in the dorsal turret).
It could carry up to 11,000 Ib (5000kg) of bombs and had a range of up to 2300 miles (3,700 km). It bombed Berlin from 1941 onwards and initially enjoyed a very good survival rate, though this declined as German air defences improved.
Four-engined long-range bombers were at odds with the Soviet doctrine of tactical air power above all else, and despite its impressive reach and decent top speed, only 93 P-8s were made. Though a relatively rare type, it was made famous internationally by Foreign Minister Molotov’s use of the type to travel to Washington (via the UK) in 1942.
5: Polikarpov Po-2
The ‘Night Witches’ were an all-female bomber regiment much hated by the Axis forces that endured their sleep-depriving harassment raids. The ‘Night Witches’ flew the Polikarpov Po-2, a simple biplane that proved frustratingly difficult to intercept. To frozen bewildered Axis ground forces, the Night Witches seemingly appeared from nowhere, dropped their bombs, strafed, and disappeared.
The aircraft was small, and deployed at night at low altitude, with little engine sound (the engines were throttled back or even switched off for the attack run) and flying below the stalling speeds of German fighters. It was virtually undetectable to contemporary radar due to its flight profiles, size, and wood and canvas construction.
Just before sunset, Po-2s (initially known as U-2s) were deployed to forward operating bases, under cover of darkness the aircraft performed their short-range harassment raids. They then returned to re-arm and then re-deploy; on one occasion U-2 crew Yekaterina Ryabova (1921-1974) and Nadezhda Popova (1921-2013) flew 18 missions in one night!
The Po-2 had excellent short take-off and landing (STOL) performance and was easy to manufacture, both extremely useful in a huge, desperate war. No biplane has been produced in greater numbers than the Po-2, with estimates of the total number built ranging up to 32,000. The Po-2/U-2 was used in many roles, including training, medevac, reconnaissance, army liaison and ground attack.
4: Petlyakov Pe-2
The Pe-2 was conceived as a high-speed high-altitude fighter with the notable technology of a pressurised cockpit, designated Vi-100. The Vi-100 first flew in December 1939. With high-altitude bombers not considered a credible threat, authorities requested the Vi-100 being converted to a dive bomber. The conversion was achieved in a bewilderingly short 45 days, and included the removal of the pressurised section and superchargers.
The twin-engined Pe-2 was astonishingly fast, with a top speed of 360mph, matching the best-performing fighters in service in 1940. Its fighter was also blessed it with superb manoeuvrability (the wing having been radically redesigned from that of the Vi-100). Stalin considered the aircraft so vital that mass production was started before the prototype had flown.
Initially thrown into combat with almost reckless alacrity, the Petlyakov Pe-2 suffered high losses. But as crews grew in experience, the Pe-2 proved itself to be one of the most effective tactical aircraft of the war. A total of 11,074 Pe-2s were manufactured.
The most famous achievement of the Petlyakov Pe-2 was an attack on the Romanian Ploiești oilfield. The raid occurred in July 1941 and destroyed a quarter of a million tons of oil. Romanian authorities claimed the raid was by 100 aircraft, in reality, it was carried out by six Pe-2s, led by one Captain. A. Tsurtsulin.
3: Polikarpov I-16
In the early to mid-1930s, the stubby Polikarpov I-16 was likely the best fighter in the world, with a phenomenal climb rate and top speed. It ushered in the era of cantilever monoplane fighters with retractable undercarriages and enclosed cockpit, a form which would dominate by the 1940s.
Huge numbers of I-16s were constructed in the lead-up to the Second World War, and fought over China and Mongolia against the Japanese. They also saw much action against the Finns in Karelia. Though the I-16 was hot stuff in the 1930s, by the time of the German invasion of the USSR in 1941, it was beginning to show its age.
It was slower than Ju 88 bombers it was expected to intercept. In terms of speed and firepower, it was considerably outmatched by the Messerschmitt, Bf 109. But though the I-16 was at a disadvantage, thanks to its agility, it could hold its own when in the hands of an experienced pilot.
It is worth noting that the Polikarpov bureau also created the finest Soviet fighter that failed to reach frontline units, the spectacular I-185. Extremely fast (with a 390mph top speed), well-armed (with three 20-mm cannons), and a joy to fly, the I-185 lost out to the inferior, but more mature La-5.
2: Yakovlev fighter series
The designer Alexander Yakovlev (1906-1989) so impressed authorities with his I-26 light fighter that he was awarded the Order of Lenin, 100,000 Roubles and a car. The fighter was very small and extremely manoeuvrable, and, importantly, easy to manufacture. Within a few weeks of the prototype first flying in 1940 it was ordered into mass production as the Yak-1.
When Germany invaded the Soviet Union in 1941, the Yak-1 was there to fight. But the haste in which it had been ordered meant the Yak-1 was an immature design requiring 1000s of individual improvements. Though inferior to the Messerschmitt 109 in most respects, an experienced Yak-1 pilot could hold his or her own (the great female fighter pilot Lydia Litvyak (1921-1943) flew the Yak).
The Yak-7 fighter was created from a two-seat trainer and courier variant of the Yak-1, with a larger wing and tail surfaces. A fighter variant of the Yak-7 was proposed when it was realised the changes made to the two-seat Yak-7 meant a single-seat Yak-7 would be superior to the Yak-1, though a second seat was kept for the weaponised Yak-7 and proved useful. The ultimate expression of the Yak-7 series was the phenomenal Yak-9.
The Yak-1 was further refined to become the superb Yak-3 (pictured), which flew in 1943 and was the match of any contemporary Luftwaffe fighter. With a 20-mm cannon in the nose and two 12.7mm machine guns in the cowling, the Yak had bite and could outrun almost anything else.
1: Ilyushin Il-2
For the British, the Spitfire is of immense symbolic value; for Russia, and before it, the Soviet Union, the Ilyushin enjoys the same iconic status, standing as a totem for the sacrifice and achievements of the Soviet Air Force in the Second World War. The tough Il-2 is remembered for changing the tide of war in the East.
The aircraft was a ground attack aircraft dedicated to supporting the Red Army. In the roles of Close Air Support aircraft and Anti-Armour (tank-busting), the Il-2 proved instrumental, thrown into the fray in colossal numbers and meting out a vast destructive effect on Axis forces.
