Tactical and technical characteristics in comparison with analogues. Combat use and operation

Fighter aircraft made a significant contribution to the victory. Despite the fact that the German air force was equipped with such powerful combat vehicles as the Messerschmitt Bf 109G and Focke-Wulf FW 190A, Soviet aviation dominated the skies. The Wehrmacht's air vehicles were significantly inferior to the product of Soviet designers, which was the La-5FN fighter.

In what ways was German aviation inferior?

When maneuvering vertically and horizontally, the Soviet La-5FN fighter was significantly better than the main German Messerschmitt Bf 109G fighter, since after several turns it could get behind the enemy and fire aimed fire. This was possible even with almost identical speed indicators that these two rival models possessed.

The La-5FN fighter left absolutely no chance of victory for the German Focke-Wulf FW 190A. This model was even inferior in speed. The FW190A-8 fighter, which appeared in the Wehrmacht armed forces, had no maneuverability advantages over the La-5FN, which had high speed characteristics and good maneuverability, which, together with the pilot’s experience, ensured victory in an air battle. According to the instructions issued by the German command to the flight personnel, the Soviet La-5FN fighter was considered the most dangerous enemy, in a battle with which exceptional care and composure were required from Wehrmacht pilots.

Start of creation

In 1941, designer S.A. Lavochkin modernized the LaGT-3 aircraft, a fighter that at that time no longer met all the requirements. There was an urgent need for a new model capable of withstanding modern air combat. LaGG-3 was taken as the basis.

It was decided to use new car propeller engine group ASh-82FN with a power of 1700 hp. and synchronized twenty-millimeter ShVAK cannons. At one time, designers such as A.I. tried to equip their aircraft with this engine. Mikoyan, S.V. Ilyushin, V.M. Petlyakov and A.S. Yakovlev. But best of all it took root in S.A.’s aircraft. Lavochkina.

Initially, the ASh-82FN engine did not fit into the fuselage of the aircraft, since it was developed for the M-105 model. But the designers managed to equip their product with a two-row radial engine, so that the design, geometry and dimensions of the LaGG-3 airframe adopted as the basis remained unchanged.

Thanks to the ASh-82FN engine, the La-5FN fighter received improved maneuverability and speed, which was especially reflected in the quality of deep turns and vertical maneuvering. The presence of twenty-millimeter ShVAK cannons in the Soviet La-5 made it possible for pilots to take an offensive rather than a defensive position in air battles with German aircraft.

Application in the design of a new engine

Shvetsov's uprated ASh-82F engine began to be used in fighters such as the La-5F (which was reflected in the aircraft's abbreviation) and La-5FN. The abbreviation of the latter means that it belongs to forced models with direct fuel injection.

According to legend, equipping this Soviet fighter with a powerful engine was caused by Stalin’s dissatisfaction with the technical capabilities of the ASh-82 in afterburner mode. They were enough for a few minutes. On Stalin's instructions, one such engine was started in this mode and worked until it failed. The recorded time demonstrated a long service life - it exceeded 50 hours.

These are good indicators for combat fighters. In the La-5FN this engine produced 1750-1850 hp. and maintained the afterburner mode for at least ten minutes. With a large supply of fuel, the period of this regime could be extended.

Testing

The La-5FN fighter is one of the modifications of the La-5 aircraft. In the spring of 1942 in Lyubertsy they underwent comprehensive testing, after which their design was approved. The testing involved an improvised air battle between a La-5FN and a captured Bf 109G-2. After the battle, conclusions were drawn: the Soviet fighter is ideal for operating at low and medium altitudes, which were the main ones for aviation on the Eastern Front.

In April of this year, the State Defense Committee gave permission to begin mass production, which resulted in the production of several modifications of the La-5, including the La-5FN fighter. The photo below represents the design features of this aircraft.

What flights was it intended for?

Air battles at low altitude are considered main task, for which the La-5FN fighter was designed, the design and controllability of which made it the best model in Soviet aviation of those times. The efficiency of the ailerons and the rate of climb of the La-5FN surpassed those of the German FW 190A-8, which was much heavier and had low acceleration characteristics. But the enemy fighter had the ability during dive maneuvers to high speeds make a combat turn to attack the La-5FN fighter.

Controllability provided that it evaded attacks by diving at high speeds and itself moved into an attack position in a gentle climb. This was possible because the La-5FN, in comparison with the FW 190A-8, had a better rate of climb, which made it possible to overtake a German fighter on a steep slope. Among the recommendations given to pilots by instructors in flight schools in case of a collision in the sky with the FW 190A-8 was a ban on prolonged maneuvering and reducing speed. In addition, the pilots should have remembered that the aircraft was not intended to perform long afterburners, since the engine power was designed for less than forty minutes.

Permissible speed

The aircraft could reach speed at cruising power and afterburner. They had different acceptable parameters and differed for land and sea levels.

• The La-5FN fighter above sea level in afterburner could reach speeds of up to 520 km/h.
• At this level of cruising power the speed was 409 km/h.
• Above ground level, afterburning was allowed at a kilometer distance. The speed was 540 km/h. It was acceptable for cruising power, but already at an altitude of 2400 meters.
• For a distance of 5 thousand meters, cruising power increased to 560 km/h.

The design of the engine with which the La-5FN fighter was equipped was not suitable for afterburner at a distance exceeding two kilometers. This is due to the characteristics of the throttle air channel, the flow area of ​​which did not provide maximum engine power.

Fighter La-5 FN. Characteristics

The aircraft was highly appreciated by both Soviet, German and British aviation specialists. The La-5FN fighter aircraft was considered the best among all analogues on the Eastern Front.

• the aircraft cabin was designed for only one pilot;
• the weight of the fighter was 3290 kg;
• dimensions (length and wing size) - 8.67 x 9.8 meters;
• wing area - 17.5 sq. m;
• the load on one wing per square meter was 191 kg;
• the design was equipped with one M-82FN engine with a power of 1750 hp;
• at an altitude of 6250 meters the machine developed a flight speed of up to 634 km/h;
• service ceiling (maximum altitude) for a fighter is 10,750 meters;
• average rate of climb - 16.6 m/s;
• tanks are designed for 460 liters;
• oil weight - 46 kg;
• two twenty-millimeter ShVAK cannons were equipped with the La-5FN;
• the fighter is capable of withstanding a bomb load of up to 100 kg;
• the aircraft was intended for distances not exceeding 930 km.

La-5FN fighter. Device

• The design of this aircraft is characterized by direct injection of fuel into the cylinders.
• Instead of exhaust manifolds, the aircraft used individual pipes, of which there were seven on each side.

• The upper part of the hood contained a special air intake.
• The fuselage canopy was lowered, and the shape of the canopy was also changed (they were designed based on Yakovlev's A.S. Yak-9 aircraft).
• The use of the instrument panel made it possible to carry out flights at night and in poor weather conditions.
• A number of improvements were made that affected the internal sealing and thermal insulation of the La-5FN cabin. The fighter received improvements in overall aerodynamics.
• To improve visibility, the aircraft was equipped with a new canopy, which was supplemented with an easily removable sliding part especially for an emergency.
• The design was equipped with a tail wheel. It could be retracted during flight, and self-oriented during taxiing.
• The double-spar wings had plywood skin and contained automatic duralumin slats, which, with the help of landing flaps, could be deflected by 60 degrees if necessary.
• Birch veneer was used in the production of the fuselage and keel. It was made of several layers, which were covered with canvas.
• For the installation of a double-row radial engine ASh-82FN, a welded motor mount made of steel pipes. The engine itself was located in a container, which was constructed from easily removable duralumin panels. This provided free access to the motor during repair or maintenance.

What was the plane covered with?

Most variants of the La-5 model combat aircraft had an all-wood construction, which was constantly being improved. Despite the fact that the tree was fire resistant, the strength of this material was not enough. In the La-5FN model, the developers paid special attention to protecting the pilot and engine. Wood was replaced with duralumin and iron, which ensured uninterrupted and reliable operation of the engine even in the event of fragmentation hits. The fuel tanks were not armored, which made them very vulnerable in the event of an attack. The wooden wing spar was replaced with a metal one. For the safety of the pilot and fuel tanks, the production of the fighter began to use a thickness of 57 mm for the frontal part of the cockpit. The armored headrest (68 mm) was made from this material. The armored back was made of steel 0.7 cm thick.

Arrangement of the cockpit

The upper hemisphere of the cabin provided good visibility and all-round visibility. Forward visibility was limited. This is due to the low seating position of the pilot. The operation of the engine left a large plume of exhaust gases behind the aircraft. The pilot used a high-altitude oxygen system, which was a diaphragm direct-flow economizer (the idea was taken from German system economizer).

If earlier the pitch of the propeller, radiators, blinds, trimmers, etc. were controlled by various manual rods - levers, which was a disadvantage, since during the battle the pilot was distracted by moving the rods to accelerate, then in the La-5FN everything was automated. The pilot could easily control all units of the propeller-engine group, fire, and control the operation of the guns without interrupting the combat. Only the power plant was controlled by levers; everything else was done automatically.

How does takeoff happen?

During the launch of a fighter, permissible power fluctuations are observed in its engine. A small distance is provided for the take-off run of the aircraft. When taking off, the tail of the fighter slowly rises. Piloting is currently difficult because the clearance from the vehicle's propeller to the ground is small.

Causes of stalls

Any aircraft has its own characteristics and disadvantages during flight. One of the latter is stalling. The La-5FN fighter is not without this drawback. The stall characteristics were analyzed by specialists and taken into account when creating the next, more advanced generations of aircraft. Reasons for stalling:

• Reduced speed. When the landing gear and flaps are retracted, the slats extend at a speed of 200-210 km/h. As speed decreases, the effectiveness of the ailerons decreases. Sliding or braking a fighter at 180 km/h leads to it falling onto the wing, since at such a speed it is difficult for the pilot to dampen the roll. A stall can also occur with the landing gear and flaps extended if the pilot continues to pull the lever toward himself as the fighter reaches its maximum achievable angles.
• Performing sharp turns. When the La-5FN quickly deploys, the air flow on the wing is disrupted. As speed increases, the reduction in aileron effectiveness becomes more noticeable. When the fighter accelerates to 320 km/h and reaches an altitude of 2400 meters, at which a full turn is performed for 30 seconds, the structure of the vehicle receives an overload of 2.6G. If there is a need to make sudden movements with the ailerons, then it is natural for the handle in the cockpit to move in the direction of rotation.

To prevent the aircraft from stalling, there are instructions about how long it takes to make a full turn at a certain altitude. So, for 2400 meters 28 seconds are provided, and at a kilometer altitude the turn should be completed in 25 seconds.

Flight stability

The fighter is characterized by high stability in any position of the landing gear, flaps and during climb. The effort on the handle is negligible. They increase as the aircraft makes a deep turn. The rudder direction is considered satisfactory, but it may decrease as a result of the low speed at which the La-5FN fighter moves. Controllability of guns in such conditions is not difficult. When the rudder is deflected, the nose of the aircraft rises or falls. These fluctuations, also called the Dutch step, are corrected by moving the steering wheel.

End of flight

A value of 200 km/h was considered optimal for the speed at which the La-5FN fighter descended. The landing was carried out at three points. Its implementation was simple on a flat surface. Otherwise, it was difficult to keep the car running. The cause of the difficulties was uneven braking of the wheels. Very often, a fighter would nod off when landing, as a result of which the propeller could be damaged, since this aircraft had a limited distance between it and the surface of the earth. Strong gusts of crosswind also made it significantly more difficult for the pilot to hold the fighter. In such situations, it was impossible to cope using only the steering wheel. Therefore, when landing, they often resorted to wheel braking.

Despite the existing problems in the design, the La-5FN fighter was one of best models Soviet aviation technology, which, among its analogues, provided domestic aircraft with a dominant position in the wartime skies and made a significant contribution to the cause of victory.

Thus, tests of La-5 No. 37210404 at the Air Force Research Institute in October 1942 showed that when flying at the best speed and altitude of up to 2000 m, the aircraft’s range did not exceed 960-970 km. In summer next year the range of La-5 No. 37212124 decreased to 820 km, and on La-5F No. 37212501 - to 580 km. In both cases, the fuel supply in the fuel tanks was the same - 340 kg, but in the second, deteriorating aerodynamics became an additional reason for the reduction in range.

In February 1943, a serial copy of La-5 No. 37210514 was installed on the scales of the full-scale wind tunnel T-101 of the Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute in Zhukovsky. The power of the electric motors that drove a pair of tube fans was such that tests were carried out exclusively at night - otherwise it would have to would disconnect an entire city from the power grid.

Studies have shown that if you seal the aircraft outside and inside the cabin from all kinds of air flows and cover the domes of the landing gear with flaps, you can, by reducing aerodynamic drag, increase the speed by about 35 km/h. The greatest increase in speed (24 km/h) was achieved by sealing the fighter.

It should be said that in some flight modes the La-5 wing had the lowest coefficient value among domestic fighters lift. As it turned out, the opening of the hood flaps, which regulated the engine temperature, led to a disruption of the flow in the center section and, as a consequence, to a drop in the lift coefficient of the wing. The diagnosis of the La-5 “disease” was made accurately; all that remained was to develop a method of “treatment” for it.

In March - April 1943, the La-5 with a sealed engine hood and oil cooler tunnel, with an air intake moved under the fuselage (behind the fifth frame), was studied in the TsAGI T-104 full-scale wind tunnel. The results were encouraging: this event alone gave an increase in speed of 25-30 km/h, and a number of smaller improvements added another 10-15 km/h. Moreover, it has improved temperature regime engine, since air flow through the oil cooler has increased by almost a quarter.

Thus, another step was taken towards the emergence of one of the the best fighters World War II - La-7.

While the Design Bureau was finalizing the La-5 in accordance with TsAGI recommendations, production vehicle No. 37212282 with a retractable tail wheel was presented for control tests. Eight flights were enough to conclude that the vehicle’s flight data fully complied with the GKO decree of December 9, 1942, although the domes (recesses in the wing for the wheels) of the chassis were still uncovered, and the mast of the radio station’s antenna was still raised.

At the beginning of 1943, instead of a carburetor, the M-82 engine was equipped with equipment for direct injection of gasoline into the cylinders. The take-off power of the engine, designated M-82FN, increased by 150 hp, and the nominal power, at an altitude of 1650 m, by 90 hp. At the same time, the motor itself became heavier by only 30 kg. Soon the M-82FN was put into mass production and began to be installed on the La-5.

In April 1943, the Air Force Research Institute received a “double” of the La-5FN fighter (“type 39”, with an emblem on the hood in the form of a rhombus, inside of which “FN” is written) with metal wing spars. However, he first went into production with old delta wood spars, which were later (since 1944) replaced with metal ones. A month later, a brand new serial La-5FN No. 39210104, still smelling of paint, arrived for state testing.

Plant No. 21 was not yet ready to introduce all the innovations, and combat vehicles intended for the front continued to use wooden spars and non-retractable crutch wheels. And yet they were different from the previous “La”. Thus, the area of ​​the elevator has increased, and the total sector of its deflection has decreased from 55° to 40°. Changes also affected the lateral control system: if previously the ailerons deflected symmetrically up and down, now the angle of deflection up and down has been increased, which has a positive effect on their efficiency. Pneumatic fire control from the cannons was replaced with pneumoelectric, the front shutters were removed from the motor, and a number of other smaller, but nevertheless important, changes were made.

The leaders in testing the “understudy” were engineer A.S. Rozanov and pilot A.G. Kubyshkin. And although the plane became heavier, its flight characteristics, due to a more powerful engine, improved compared to the La-5F. The maximum speed at the second altitude limit (5800 m) reached 610 km/h, and the time to climb to 5000 m was reduced by almost a minute. According to pilots A.G. Kubyshkin and V.E. Golofastov, the technique of piloting the fighter did not differ from piloting the serial La-5. Elevator control was easy, aileron loads were normal. Despite the fact that it was still hot in the cabin, the Air Force Research Institute gave the car a positive assessment.

Air battles, still in the test zone of the Moscow region, between the La-5FN and one of the best German fighters Me-109G-2 with three points of small arms, carried out by test pilots of the Air Force Research Institute in 1943, showed that Lavochkin’s machine up to an altitude of 5000 m had advantages over the Messerschmitt in vertical maneuver. In horizontal battles, the La-5FN came into the enemy’s tail after 4-5 turns.

In May 1943, the first production La-5FNs began to leave the assembly shop of plant No. 21. The spread of fighter take-off weights and their flight data remained high. Apparently, the lightest was La-5FN No. 3811022 with metal spars, produced by plant No. 381 in February 1944 (weighing 3145 kg, it reached a speed of 595 km/h at an altitude of 5950 m), and the heaviest was Gorky’s La-5FN No. 39210206 (3445 kg).

From series to series, the La-5FN was constantly improved. If earlier this was associated with minor changes that mainly reduced the complexity of manufacturing the machine, then at the beginning of 1943 the Design Bureau made another attempt to improve all the characteristics of the aircraft. In August 1943, fighter No. 39210109 was rolled out of the assembly shop and the experienced eye of aviators immediately noted the innovations: the suction pipe was moved from the top of the engine under the hood, and the protruding “beard” of the oil cooler was placed between the third and fifth frames. In addition, instead of a sliding canopy, it became a side-opening one, as on the Me-109, and additional flaps completely covered the retracted wheels of the main supports. On the plane, the shape of the joint between the wing and the fuselage was improved (the so-called “fairs”), the exhaust manifolds were replaced with individual pipes, the hood was modified and the sealing of the aircraft was improved. The axial compensation of the elevator increased to 20%, reducing the load on the aircraft control stick, and the PBP-1 sight was replaced with the BB-1. The armament remained the same - two synchronized SP-20 cannons, and the cabin equipment did not change.

In this form, the aircraft entered state tests, which took place from September 30 to October 18, 1943. According to the general opinion of leading pilots A.G. Kubyshkin and I.M. Dzyuba, as well as flight pilots P.M. Stefanovsky and A.G. Proshakov, the aircraft in terms of piloting technique was no different from production aircraft, but the visibility from the cockpit to the sides deteriorated due to abrasion of the plexiglass of the side movable flaps, which complicated landing and take-off from limited areas. Moreover, the canopy that opened to the side made it difficult for the pilot to enter the cockpit, and emergency release with both hands turned out to be inconvenient. But the forward visibility, thanks to the relocation of the air intake under the hood, has improved, making it easier for the pilot to aim.

The speed increased to 630 km/h, the turn time was reduced by 1-2 seconds, and the altitude gain during a combat turn increased to 120 m. Better sealing and ventilation made it possible to reduce the temperature in the cabin. Although the fighter did not go into production, many technical solutions, embedded in it, migrated to the future La-7.

In the spring of the same year, a new M-71F radial engine was installed on La-5 No. 39210204. The use of that engine on various types of aircraft, both fighters and bombers, was always accompanied by failures. Despite the fact that the engine passed 50-hour bench tests, both the M-71 and its forced modification constantly broke down in flight. La-5 was no exception. In addition, the M-71F was large in size and made the fighter heavier. However, its great power (at takeoff it developed up to 2200 hp) did its job: flight tests carried out at the LII from April 28 to June 4, 1943 showed that the fighter’s maximum speed increased to 685 km/h at an altitude of 5500 m.

To find out ways to further improve the characteristics of the machine, it was studied in the TsAGI T-101 tube. The conclusion of the specialists from the Aerohydrodynamic Institute was optimistic - improving the aerodynamics of the aircraft, especially the shape of the engine hood, will allow the maximum speed to be increased to 720 km/h. But the development of the La-5M-71 was delayed, and it did not enter production. A fighter with an M-90 radial engine with a take-off power of 1,750 hp was designed, but never completed.

As is known, in accordance with the order of the NKAP dated October 10, 1942, production of the La-5 was established at Moscow plant No. 381, and the first vehicles were assembled from units of plant No. 21. In 1944, a small team of the serial design bureau of plant No. 381 proposed installing it on the serial La -5F power plant with engine mount from La-7. In April, on car No. 3811507, the ASh-82F carburetor engine was replaced with an ASh-82FN with direct fuel injection. At the same time, the exhaust manifolds from the predecessor were retained and the side flaps were modified. The aircraft, which received the official name “Hybrid,” was tested at the Air Force Research Institute in May 1944. Engineer V.I. Alekseenko and pilot A.I. Kubyshkin were in charge of the aircraft. Compared to the “backup” La-5FN from plant No. 21, it had significantly worse flight characteristics. For example, its maximum speed turned out to be 68 km/h lower, which is apparently due to the weight of the car and the worse finish of its external surface.

As a result, the aircraft failed the test. The Air Force Research Institute recommended only as a last resort to use the installation of ASh-82FN engines when repairing the La-5F in field conditions.

From January 30 to February 11, 1944, control tests of the serial La-5FN with three UB-20 guns were carried out at the flight test base of plant No. 21. The maximum horizontal speed at the ground at nominal engine operation did not exceed 596 km/h. Based on the operating experience of a number of aircraft, it was assumed that when the engine is boosted, the ground speed will increase by 30-35 km/h and will be 630 km/h.

At the end of 1943, in parallel with the three-gun version, they developed a vehicle with a pair of VYa guns and one BS machine gun, but this project remained on paper.

Beginning in the summer of 1943, on La-5 No. 2124, they began to study the combined control of propeller pitch and engine gas. The results were considered satisfactory, but the automation required improvements. In November, research continued on the La-5F aircraft No. 39213956, and in the spring of 1944 on the La-5FN. But this innovation did not reach the production La-5; it was requested only for the La-7.

And one more interesting touch from the biography of La-5. At the beginning of 1945, M.L. Mil, later a famous helicopter designer, proposed using landing flaps to improve the maneuverability of the fighter. In March of the same year, the vehicle underwent research at the LII, which showed that the turn time at an altitude of 1000 m was reduced by 1.5-2.5 s, and at an altitude of 4000 m - by 2.5-3.5 s. At the same time, the radius of the turn decreased by 15-20 m and 50-60 m, respectively. They planned to use this idea on La-7 aircraft produced by plant No. 381. The war was already coming to an end, the proposal remained unimplemented, but has not lost its relevance to this day.

Military tests of the La-5FN took place in July-August 1943 in the 32nd Guards Aviation Regiment on the Bryansk Front. Over the course of a month, 14 Soviet pilots in 25 air battles shot down 21 FW-190s, three each Me-109G-2 and He-111, five Ju-88s and one Ju-87. Our losses amounted to four vehicles.

The La-5FN began to be used in large quantities in battles on the Kursk Bulge. The already familiar 201st Air Division of Colonel V.A. Skryvkn also found itself on this front, opening a combat account with the La-5FN on July 21, 1943. On that day, six La-5FN captain V.F. Mistyuk, accompanying Il-2 attack aircraft, shot down three Me-109s and one Ju-88.

On August 3, ten La-5FNs, led by senior lieutenant S.D. Gorelov and accompanying attack aircraft, were attacked by 35 enemy fighters. In the ensuing battle, the enemy was missing eight Messerschmitts, of which squadron commander S.D. Gorelov and flight commander B.P. Rogov shot down a pair each.

On August 12, the squadron of Senior Lieutenant P.L. Gnido met 30 enemy bombers and fighters in the Maksimovka-Olshany area. In this battle, Soviet pilots destroyed 10 aircraft, and four of them fell to the commander. But already on the way home the pilot’s plane caught fire, the pilot escaped by parachute. This was the group's only loss.

Speaking about the La-5FN, one cannot ignore the feat of senior lieutenant, deputy squadron commander of the 88th Guards Aviation Regiment A.K. Gorovets, who was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. In one of the July battles on the Kursk Bulge, Horovets shot down nine dive bombers Iu-87 (such a case was the only one in the history of the Great Patriotic War), but on the same day, returning to his airfield, he died in a battle with four enemy fighters.

La-5FN fighter at the airfield of the Air Force Research Institute.

La-5FN fighter in the parking lot.

La-5FN fighter in the parking lot.

La-5FN fighter in the parking lot.

La-5FN fighter in the parking lot.

In July 1943, there was relative calm on the fronts, the armies were preparing for the greatest battle, which would later be called the “Fire” or Kursk Bulge, after the name of a nearby city. Trains with equipment reached the theater of operations; thousands of tanks and hundreds of aircraft had to prove the right of one of the parties to exist.

It was there, in the burning sky of the Kursk Bulge, that two irreconcilable opponents collided - the Soviet La-5 and the German Focke-Wulf 190. The victory was won by the genius of the Soviet aircraft manufacturer S.A. Lavochkina.

History of creation

The La-5 aircraft is considered one of the best fighters of the USSR on the Eastern Front. His positive qualities are considered:

• Speed;
• Rate of climb;
• Vitality;
• Armament.

The interesting thing is that La-5 was born thanks to a miracle. During the testing period in 1942, it bore the name LaGG-5, inherited from its predecessor, the LaGG-3 fighter.

In 1939, having creatively processed the experience of the Spanish Civil War, the leadership of the Soviet Union came to a consensus: the military aviation fleet needed to be updated.

The basis of fighter aviation at that time was the I-16 high-speed monoplanes various types and I-153 biplanes.

The adoption of two different types of aircraft was interpreted by the concept of interaction in air combat between a maneuverable and high-speed fighter.

But the battles in Spain showed that the maneuverable but low-speed biplanes I-15 and I-15bis were inferior in battle to the faster Fiats and early models of the Bf.109. The I-16 could still fight with them on equal terms, but it had practically exhausted its modernization reserves.

As a result of the work of the Armaments Commission, it was formulated terms of reference to create new high-speed monoplane fighters, not inferior to modern Western models.

At the same time, with strict restrictions on time and the main structural material - wood, already at that time there was a shortage of aluminum in the country. This was further aggravated by the lack of powerful engines; the industry at that time could only offer AM-35 and M-105 engines.

12 design teams took part in the competition. But only three design bureaus won a convincing victory:

• I-26, future Yak-1, M-105 engine, truss steel frame, covered with canvas and plywood. Armament: 1x20 mm motor cannon and 2x7.62 mm ShKAS machine gun;
• I-200 Mikoyan and Gurevich, based on the developments of Polikarpov, this aircraft had excellent performance characteristics, but weak weapons: 1x12.7 mm UB machine gun and 2x7.62 mm ShKAS. It was let down by the engine, the AM-35, the lines for its production were subsequently required for;
• I-301 (LaGG-1) is the fruit of the labor of the triumvirate of Lavochkin, Gorbunov and Gudkov; innovative solutions at that time were used in its design; composites - delta wood and wood - were widely used. Armament in the project: 1x20 mm motor cannon, 2x12.7 mm machine guns and two 7.62 mm ShKAS.

The I-301 was created collectively; all three designers had significant experience in aircraft construction. Lavochkin and Gorbunov managed to work under the leadership of Tupolev, Gudkov worked in aircraft production since 1928.

The aircraft received the index 301 from the number of the plant where it was created; it was at plant 301 that the triumvirate was given a workshop to build and fly the prototype.

In 1941, all the designers received the Stalin Prize for the creation of this aircraft, but their paths diverged. Lavochkin created his own design bureau, Gorbunov and Gudkov designed airplanes, but did not achieve fame.

Interesting! In 1941, Gudkov was the first designer to modernize the LaGG-3 by installing a Shvetsov engine, but for an unknown reason the project was frozen and the Gu-82 aircraft was scrapped.

Tests

A prototype of the new fighter entered testing in the spring of 1940. On March 28, he made his first flight. The car was piloted by military test pilot Alexey Nikashin.

To improve flight characteristics, the surface of the aircraft was varnished and carefully polished.

It acquired a dark cherry color, which is why it was nicknamed “piano” by airfield jokers.

In total, the machine performed several dozen test flights. During testing, the fighter reached a speed of 605 km/h, and despite some shortcomings it was of interest to the air force.

After the return of the purchasing commission from Germany in 1940, Soviet designers and engineers had the opportunity to evaluate the performance characteristics and combat parameters of German combat vehicles, which included the Messerschmitt Bf.109E, "Emil".

Modern Soviet fighters could fight with this aircraft almost on an equal footing. But no one knew that in the Luftwaffe the Emil was replaced by more modern Friedrichs (Bf.109F), which had higher flight characteristics.

In 1941, mass production of the LaGG-3 began, changes were made to its design from series to series, but one thing remained unchanged - too much weight for the M-105 engine, making the fighter “sluggish”; additionally, with the beginning of the war, the quality of production dropped, as a result the aircraft's performance characteristics decreased.

LaGG-3 accelerated slowly, behaved unsatisfactorily in the vertical and slightly better in horizontal maneuvering. Further, other aircraft factories in the cities joined production:

• Bitter;
• Taganrog;
• Leningrad;
• Tbilisi;
• Novosibirsk

After the start of the Great Patriotic War, the pilots noted that “Beauty,” as the LaGG was nicknamed in combat units, did not feel very good in air combat, it got to the point that they wanted to discontinue it.

At that moment, S.A. Lavochkin remembered the M-82A, Shvetsov’s powerful air-cooled engine. Almost “on the knee” this engine was installed on a linear LaGG-3 with a modified engine mount and a new hood.

After testing, when the new aircraft showed its performance, it received the name LaGG-5, which was soon shortened to La-5.

In June 1942, a new fighter aircraft went into production - it was the legendary La-5.

Design

Structurally, the La-5 was the same as the LaGG-3 fighter, the changes mainly affected the engine mount and weapons. The engine mount itself was welded from steel pipes, behind it there was a fire bulkhead and an expansion tank, the armament was installed above the engine and consisted of two 20 mm ShVAK cannons.

Glider

The fuselage is monocoque, with load-bearing skin, on a frame of 15 frames made of delta wood or high-strength plywood.

Interesting! Delta wood is a composite of several layers of birch veneer impregnated with phenol-formaldehyde resin and hot pressed. There is a legend that when Gorbunov presented delta wood to the top leadership of the USSR. Stalin tried to set the sample on fire with his pipe.

The wing is made of plywood, the wing frame is entirely wooden, metal is used only in the center section for its spar and root ribs.

The consoles are detachable, allowing for quick replacement. The wing mechanization consisted of automatic slats, ailerons and landing flaps.

Protected fuel tanks are located in the cavities of the wing and center section. Besides additional protection the fire was prevented by a system for filling them with CO2.

The pilot's cabin is located behind the engine. La-5, inherited from LaGG, had a developed gargrot with cut out transparent “ears” for viewing the rear hemisphere. The lantern consisted of a visor with armored glass and a sliding part. To protect the pilot there was an armored back.

DZ-3 bomb racks were placed on the planes.

For all operations related to starting the engine and reloading weapons, the aircraft's own pneumatic system was used.

Chassis

The aircraft used a three-wheel landing gear setup. The supports under the wings are equipped with hydraulic shock absorbers. The wheel size is 650x200 mm with an air-chamber braking system connected to the pilot's foot control pedals.

The rear support wheel, measuring 300x125, is not steerable, and is attached to the 12th frame of the fuselage body. The mechanism of the retractable landing gear and rear wheel is hydraulically driven.

The retracted landing gear is rigidly fixed with hydraulic locks, which also secure the extended landing gear. In case of a hydraulic emergency, the landing gear could be released using manual cable control.

Power point

The La-5 fighter was equipped with the M-82A engine, which at that time was produced for Su-2 and Tu-2 bombers. The engine was a two-row 14-cylinder air-cooled star with a power of 1650 hp.

To regulate the cooling of the cylinders, a simplified system of louvers and sliding flaps at the rear of the hood was used.

The oil cooler on the La-5 was under the hood. A VISH-105V variable pitch propeller was used.

The launch was carried out either by a starter, by turning the engine shaft, or by air, from an airfield compressor, or from an on-board cylinder.

Hydraulic system

This system was responsible for retracting the landing gear into the wheel well or releasing the support when landing the aircraft, and its task also included adjusting the propeller pitch. To create the required pressure of 150 kg/cm², the following was used:

• Hydraulic pump driven by drive power plant;
• Oil tank;
• Pipes and hydraulic accumulator.

Anti-icing system

To operate an aircraft in winter period or in areas of the far north an anti-icing system was provided. It consisted of a 16-liter tank into which a water-alcohol mixture was poured in a 50/50 ratio. If necessary, the mixture washed the cockpit canopy and the propeller blades.

Electrical equipment

The power supply system was designed for direct current voltage of 12 or 27V. The electric generator generated current due to the drive from the power plant. The plane was equipped with a battery. It was possible to connect power to the machine from the outside; for this there was a connector for airfield service.

High altitude equipment

To avoid oxygen starvation of the pilot, the La-5 cockpit is equipped with a standard KPA-3bis device with a connection to an oxygen cylinder, which was located in the fuselage, behind the pilot’s cockpit. The oxygen supply was calculated for 1.5 hours when flying at an altitude of 8,000 meters and above.

Navigation and radio-electronic equipment

Communication between the pilots and the flight command center was carried out using the RSI-4 simplex radio station with the VHF band. The station housing was mounted on the instrument panel in the pilot's cabin, and the transmitting device was mounted in the rear of the fuselage. For access there was a technological opening in the rear fuselage.

The antenna of the radio complex is two-beam, cable. The wave reception range is within a radius of 90 km when a La-5 fighter is flying at an altitude of one kilometer. Navigation was carried out using a compass.

Armament

Two synchronous 20 mm caliber guns were installed in the forward part of the fuselage above the engine. Ammunition was supplied from belts located in cartridge boxes; the total capacity of the belts was 340 shells.

Aircraft cannons were installed on the engine mount, and cartridge boxes were also installed there.

Accessibility for maintenance was ensured by hinged hood panels.

The fire was carried out using a PBP-1 collimator sight or a simplified BB-1, installed in the cockpit. The alignment was clarified by shooting on the ground. The guns were reloaded using a pneumatic system.

Interesting! Due to poor ergonomics, the PBP-1 sight was deciphered by army comedians as “The sight that hits the pilot once.” In reality, during an emergency landing, the pilot quite often hit his face on an excessively close sight.

Flaws

A significant drawback of the La-5 aircraft was the unbearable heat in the pilot's cabin and the gas pollution in the cabin. These are derivatives of defects in the aircraft; later modifications managed to get rid of this defect.

The plexiglass of the lantern turned yellow from the influence of sunlight and lost its transparency, but at that time this was a problem for the entire industry.

It is also worth noting the somewhat unfortunate location of the controls and the low degree of automation on the plane; to regulate or change any parameter it was necessary to use several toggle switches and switches.

Modifications

In addition to minor, serial modifications - during production, improvements and changes were constantly made, both technical and technological, there were the following models of this aircraft:

1. La-5F, an M-82F engine is installed, with an afterburner function, in other words, with the ability to operate in takeoff mode for some time, thereby increasing the speed characteristics of the aircraft during this time. Changes also affected the fuselage; some La-5F aircraft were produced with a high gargrot, and some with a low garrot, which improved visibility of the rear hemisphere.
2. La-5FN, with a forced engine and direct fuel injection, this engine allowed a short time significantly increase engine power for catching up or sudden maneuver in air combat. Subsequently, the engine was named after the designer and became known as ASh-82FN.
3. La-5UTI, an aircraft with a double cabin intended for training pilots on the La-5, in order to preserve the performance characteristics of the fighter, the following were removed from the aircraft: one cannon with a b/c, bomb release devices and oxygen equipment. The management of the flight school appreciated the La-5F fighter converted for training flights. Aircraft designers added an additional instructor cabin with redundant controls. The basis for the production of UTIs were aircraft that had exhausted their combat life and were removed from the front.

The production of aircraft directly depended on the availability of engines, so for some time the La-5F and La-5FN were assembled simultaneously. As soon as the engine crisis was overcome, the La-5F was removed from the lines, and the freed capacity was switched to the production of FN.

Performance characteristics in comparison with analogues

Named aircraft

During the Great Patriotic War, citizens of the Soviet Union contributed cash to the Defense Fund or directly to the cash desk of the equipment manufacturing plant. To build airplanes, ordinary people More than 2 billion 860 million rubles were transferred.

It was with this money that 2,565 military aircraft rolled off the production line. Soviet army pilots destroyed more than 20,000 enemy aircraft and ground equipment. The hopes of the Soviet people were justified. Each fighter donated by the people keeps a history and counts dozens of exploits.

"Funny boys"

Two personalized aircraft were built with the savings of People's Artist of the Soviet Union Leonid Utesov and his creative team. The singer personally handed over La-5F fighters to the personnel of the fifth GIAP in November 1943.

The inscription: “Cheerful guys, from the jazz orchestra of L. Utesov” adorned the side of the fuselage. Both fighters actively fought and served until the end of the war. Twice Hero of the Soviet Union V.I. flew on one of the planes. Popkov, who has the call sign “Maestro”.

He flew more than 475 combat missions, participated in 117 air battles and shot down 41 enemy aircraft.

"Squadron of Valery Chkalov"

This inscription adorned five squadrons of 12 fighters. The cars were built with money from V. Chkalov’s fellow countrymen and were a gift from the working people.

Hero of the Soviet Union Ivan Kozhedub fought on one of these named planes. He was sent to the 240th IAP after the Chuguev military school, where he served as an instructor.

"Mongolian Arat"

The fighters arrived at the second GIAP on September 25, 1943 from working citizens of Mongolia. The total number of donated aircraft with the inscription “Mongolian Arat” is 13 units.

Hero of the Soviet Union A.I. Mayorov fought on one of them. He flew more than 465 combat missions and conducted 68 air battles. He personally shot down 17 enemy aircraft and ten in a group attack.

"Captain Belyasnik"

A student of the Kachinsky Aviation School, Pyotr Nikiforovich Belyasnik, gave 40,000 rubles for the construction of the La-5 aircraft. He addressed the Party Central Committee with a letter in which he vowed to defeat the enemy on his plane. The party committee granted the request and handed him a personalized plane with tail number 40 and the inscription - Captain Belyasnik.

And there were such named planes a large number of, they arrived in batches, creating squadrons, or were awarded individually to heroes of air battles.

Combat use and operation

Fighter sorties regularly revealed all sorts of shortcomings, which were taken into account and corrected in a timely manner. The installation of a new ASh-82FN engine and a closed canopy with improved glazing helped it catch up vertically and horizontally with the German Messerschmitt-109. Airplanes began to be equipped with the latest radio stations at that time.

During a combat mission on October 14, 1943, two flights of 8 La-5FN aircraft met a large group of enemy aircraft.

Soviet fighters noticed the enemy earlier and managed to gain speed; an attack from the direction of the sun shot down 3 bombers and two enemy fighters.

The feat of Alexei Maresyev is known to many from the book “The Tale of a Real Man,” but there is a little-known fact that after the amputation of his legs he had the opportunity to fight in an LA-5FN. On the second day of the Battle of Kursk, Alexey Maresyev took to the air to carry out a combat mission as part of a group of the 63rd Guards IAP. Twice a day, entering into an air battle, Maresyev managed to shoot down.

Records

On July 5, 1943, a flight of La-5 fighters patrolled the airspace of the Belgorod region. Unexpectedly, Soviet pilots encountered a very large group of German aircraft, about 50 in total.

Enemy Ju-87 bombers flew on a combat mission, accompanied by Bf-109 fighters. Senior Lieutenant Alexander Gorovets decided to attack the bombers, and a flight of comrades entered into battle with the escort aircraft.

In that battle, Alexander destroyed nine enemy aircraft. Having set an absolute record among Soviet aviation pilots for the destruction of enemy aircraft alone. The last plane, a bomber, was shot down by a Soviet pilot with a ram.

Returning to the airfield, Horovets' La-5 was shot down by four enemy fighters. Senior Lieutenant Alexander Gorovets was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, posthumously.

Heritage

Further work by OKB No. 21 to modernize the La-5FN led to the appearance of a modified fighter model with a new designation La-7. In October 1943, with production capacity The Gorky plant produced a prototype of a new generation.

After flight tests, the fighter entered production, and by the spring of 1944, the La-7 began to arrive at the front. The conveyor gradually moved to the production of a new model, completely completing the production of the La-5FN aircraft by November 1944.

It became a worthy successor to its prototype and also gained a reputation as one of the best front-line aircraft.

The designers practically did not change the body of the fighter, only the wing spars were made of metal.

The plane became more maneuverable and carried powerful weapons. Significant changes were made to the design to increase survivability. Until the end of World War II, USSR arms factories built 5,753 Lavochkin-La-7 fighters.

Video

S. V. Ivanov
Soviet aces pilots LaGG-3, La-5/7
(War in the Air - 96)

Introduction

Fighter pilots are always very strict about the aircraft they fly into battle. The debate about which aircraft is better is as old as aviation itself. It turned out that the pairs of competitors were formed historically: the Spitfire is compared with the Bf.109, the Mustang with the Fw-190. And you can endlessly choose the best aircraft from the “model” range of “Spitfire”, “Mustang”, “Thunderbolt”, Fw-190 and Bf.109. The debate on this topic is endless, each aircraft has its adherents. In the Soviet Union, and now in Russia, there are debates about which is better, the Yak or the La.

The initial versions of the famous aircraft families, the Yak-1 and LaGG-3, were equipped with the same liquid-cooled M-105P engines designed by engineer Klimov. Throughout the war, Yakovlev did not change Klimov’s engines in any major way, while Lavochkin installed the M-82 air-cooled star designed by engineer Shvetsov on his plane.

Yakovlev's fighter quickly gained popularity and reputation as a thoroughbred horse, but the LaGG was not loved by the troops. In reality, both aircraft had similar characteristics and both were inferior to Luftwaffe fighters. What was more critical was not the characteristics of the aircraft, but the low level of training of Stalin’s falcons. From the point of view of an inexperienced pilot, the easier-to-fly Yak looked like just a “thoroughbred horse” compared to the heavy LaGG. After a series of modernizations carried out in 1942–1943. in terms of its characteristics, the LaGG was on par with the Yak, clearly superior to the latter in terms of combat survivability. However, in the second half of the war, the LaGG-3 was no longer the main type of fighter aircraft of the Soviet Air Force. The plane received (mainly through the efforts of “democratic” historians) the nickname “Vacquered Guaranteed Coffin,” while it was on this “coffin” that the first aces of the Soviet Air Force during the Great Patriotic War achieved success. At LaGG-3, the most successful ace Igor Kaberov won most of his victories. Yes, it was heavy and sluggish in maneuver, but in capable hands it could easily compete with any enemy: on February 3, 1942, A.A. Gubanov shot down three Bf 109s in one battle on a LaGG-3. Another example - according to domestic data On March 21, 1942, in the Rzhev area, five LaGGs took on 30 Luftwaffe aircraft; our fighters shot down five German aircraft without losses on their part. Luftwaffe ace No. 2 Gerhard Barkhorn recalled that in 1942 on the Stalingrad front he “spun the carousel” with a single LaGG for 40 minutes, the opponents turned out to be worthy of each other - not a single plane was shot down. Apparently, Barkhorn fought with Alelyukhin. Alexey Vasilyevich also fought another extremely difficult battle on the Stalingrad front: one against four Bf. 109. He emerged victorious, having shot down one fascist fighter. So, despite all its shortcomings, the LaGG was not at all a hopeless aircraft and was far from the easiest enemy for Luftwaffe pilots.

The aircraft's reputation changed radically after replacing the M-105 liquid-cooled engine with an M-82 air-cooled engine. The aircraft received the designation La-5. The La-5 fighters of the first series were still inferior to their opponents from the Luftwaffe, but it was obvious huge potential La-5. In mid-1943, the La-5FN appeared, in the design of which this potential was partially realized. The La-5FN had obvious superiority over the Yak-9 and, at a minimum, was not inferior to the German Fw-190A.

LaGG-3

In 1939, Stalin personally took up the problems of fighter aviation - the Air Force did not have modern single-engine monoplane fighters. An unprecedented competition was announced, in which, along with venerable designers, completely unknown young people with diplomas in aviation engineering took part. Dozens of projects were presented, some of them were implemented in the form of prototype aircraft. There were three winners aircraft: MIG-1, LaGG-1 and Yak-1. The LaGG-1 aircraft was designed under the guidance of three specialists from the People's Commissariat of Aviation Industry, Vladimir Gorbunov, and designers Semyon Lavochkin and Mikhail Gudkov. Subsequently, only Lavochkin remained from the triumvirate, the designation of the aircraft changed from LaGG to La.

MiG and Yak fighters had a mixed design traditional for that time: wood, metal, percale. LaGG was made entirely of wood, from the so-called “delta wood” - wood impregnated with special resins. The design turned out to be heavier, but also more durable, more resistant to combat damage and much less fire hazardous (delta wood did not burn, but only charred). Engine - liquid-cooled motor M-105P with a power of 1100 hp. The initial version of the weapons included a 23-mm MP-6 cannon and two 12.7-mm UB machine guns designed by Berezin. The prototype made its first flight in March 1940, and in December serial production of the LaGG-3 began. By the beginning of the invasion of the Nazi aggressors, few combatant regiments managed to receive and master the LaGG-3. State tests of the LaGG-3 fighter ended just a few days before the start of the war; combat units had the fewest aircraft of this type, according to various estimates from 29 to 75. Fighters of this type began to be used in battles only from the end of July - beginning of August 1941.

The first LaGGs entered service with the 19th Fighter Aviation Regiment (IAP) of the Leningrad air defense system. Later this regiment will be transformed into the 176th Guards. The second and third regiments that saddled LaGG were the 157th and 24th IAP, which were part of the Moscow air defense system. Germany in 1940–1941 was officially a state friendly to the USSR, while in the Far East, since the time of Khalkhin Gol, a hotbed of tension remained. The Soviet leadership did not rule out a large-scale war with Japan, so the majority of LaGG-3 was aimed at Far East. As a result, on June 22, 1941, the Air Force of the western military districts had almost no LaGG-3 fighters, but already in July they appeared at the front in significant numbers. New aircraft, fresh from factories, arrived to make up for the severe losses suffered by the Red Army Air Force in the first weeks of the war.

LaGG-3 turned out to be inadequate as a fighter. First of all, the aircraft had insufficient maximum speed flight, the magnitude of which also decreased from series to series. The decrease in the aircraft's speed characteristics is due to the deterioration of technological discipline at factories and the increase in weight due to the installation of an armored back, additional fuel tanks, and a radio station. The rate of climb in production aircraft dropped by 50% compared to the prototype.

Still, the main contribution to the decline in flight performance was made by production. Too many unfavorable factors coincided: evacuation aircraft factories to the East, shortage of materials, decline in workers' qualifications. Defects such as unconnected pipelines were very often noted. A number of bolts and rivets are missing, a tool forgotten on airplanes. The quality of finishing of the external surfaces of the airframe sharply decreased, resulting in an increase in drag and a drop in flight speed. Controlling the fighter was difficult, the angular velocity of the roll was clearly insufficient, and the aircraft vibrated strongly during a dive. Not all was well with Klimov’s engines. They were constantly heating up and “spitting” oil. The oil layer caused dirt to stick to the airframe, which further increased drag. The oil on the cockpit canopy sometimes limited the pilot's view to such an extent that he could not see anything in the sight.

Even the clean cockpit canopy was cloudy. The glazing was made of nitrocellulose, which lost transparency when exposed to sunlight. It is not surprising that pilots want to fly with open canopies, and an open canopy again means an increase in the aircraft's drag and a further decrease in speed.

There were a lot of defects in the fighter's hydraulic system; there were cases of LaGG landing gear spontaneously retracting while parked, or the landing gear spontaneously released in flight.

The newest best military aircraft of the Russian Air Force and the world photos, pictures, videos about the value of a fighter aircraft as a combat weapon capable of ensuring “superiority in the air” was recognized by the military circles of all states by the spring of 1916. This required the creation of a special combat aircraft superior to all others in speed, maneuverability, altitude and the use of offensive small arms. In November 1915, Nieuport II Webe biplanes arrived at the front. This was the first aircraft built in France that was intended for air combat.

The most modern domestic military aircraft in Russia and the world owe their appearance to the popularization and development of aviation in Russia, which was facilitated by the flights of Russian pilots M. Efimov, N. Popov, G. Alekhnovich, A. Shiukov, B. Rossiysky, S. Utochkin. The first domestic cars of designers J. Gakkel, I. Sikorsky, D. Grigorovich, V. Slesarev, I. Steglau began to appear. In 1913, the Russian Knight heavy aircraft made its first flight. But one cannot help but recall the first creator of the aircraft in the world - Captain 1st Rank Alexander Fedorovich Mozhaisky.

Soviet military aircraft of the USSR during the Great Patriotic War sought to hit enemy troops, their communications and other targets in the rear with air strikes, which led to the creation of bomber aircraft capable of carrying a large bomb load over considerable distances. The variety of combat missions to bomb enemy forces in the tactical and operational depth of the fronts led to the understanding of the fact that their implementation must be commensurate with the tactical and technical capabilities of a particular aircraft. Therefore, the design teams had to resolve the issue of specialization of bomber aircraft, which led to the emergence of several classes of these machines.

Types and classification, latest models of military aircraft in Russia and the world. It was obvious that it would take time to create a specialized fighter aircraft, so the first step in this direction was an attempt to arm existing aircraft with small offensive weapons. Mobile machine gun mounts, which began to be equipped with aircraft, required excessive efforts from pilots, since controlling the machine in maneuverable combat and simultaneously firing from unstable weapons reduced the effectiveness of shooting. The use of a two-seater aircraft as a fighter, where one of the crew members served as a gunner, also created certain problems, because the increase in weight and drag of the machine led to a decrease in its flight qualities.

What types of planes are there? In our years, aviation has made a big qualitative leap, expressed in a significant increase in flight speed. This was facilitated by progress in the field of aerodynamics, the creation of new, more powerful engines, structural materials, and electronic equipment. computerization of calculation methods, etc. Supersonic speeds have become the main flight modes of fighter aircraft. However, the race for speed also had its negative sides - the takeoff and landing characteristics and maneuverability of the aircraft sharply deteriorated. During these years, the level of aircraft construction reached such a level that it became possible to begin creating aircraft with variable sweep wings.

Russian combat aircraft to further increase flight speeds jet fighters exceeding the speed of sound, it was necessary to increase their power supply, increase the specific characteristics of the turbojet engine, and also improve the aerodynamic shape of the aircraft. For this purpose, engines with an axial compressor were developed, which had smaller frontal dimensions, higher efficiency and better weight characteristics. To significantly increase thrust, and therefore flight speed, afterburners were introduced into the engine design. Improving the aerodynamic shapes of aircraft consisted of using wings and tail surfaces with large sweep angles (in the transition to thin delta wings), as well as supersonic air intakes.

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