Yak-1 - Soviet fighter plane of the Great Patriotic War. He was the first combat vehicle designed at the Yakovlev Design Bureau, and the first model of a series of aircraft that became the basis of Soviet fighter aircraft in the Second World War. Let's get acquainted with the history of the Yak-1 and its technical parameters!
general characteristics
The Yak-1 aircraft was adopted by the USSR in 1940. For four years of production, almost 9 thousand copies of the fighter were built and several modifications were developed. At first, production facilities were placed within a tight timeframe, which led to a number of flaws in the design of the aircraft. Nevertheless, the pilots were very fond of this fighter. He beat the enemy from the first days of the Second World War. The aircraft was distinguished by its unpretentiousness in maintenance, ease of control and high flight and technical characteristics, thanks to which it was able to withstand German fighters Bf.109 and Fw.190 without any problems.
In addition to the Soviet pilot-ace, the legendary Pokryshkin, Alexander Ivanovich, aircraft of the Yak-1 model were piloted by such famous pilots as Alelyukhin, Koldunov and Akhmet-Khan-Sultan. It was on this plane that the signs of the Normandie-Niemen regiment entered the battle. In addition, the only female Red Army air regiment fought on the fighter.
Prerequisites for creating
At the end of the 40s of the last century, the Soviet fighter fleet began to need updating. The country needed a new fighter capable of at least competing against foreign counterparts. The I-16 was a "star" in the mid-40s, and the USSR was the first state to adopt a high-speed monoplane fighter. For a long time, the I-16 was a real leader in the Spanish sky, until in 1937 a new German aircraft Bf.109 was sent there. Of course, the first series of the German fighter were far from ideal, however, they had a large modernization resource, which the Soviet flagship had completely exhausted. In those days, aviation began to develop at a special speed, and the aircraft, created five years ago, was considered already obsolete.
Development
Work on the creation of a new Soviet fighter began at once in several design bureaus: Yakovlev, Lavochkin and Polikarpov. In 1940, the design bureau was taken away from the latter along with an almost finished project of the aircraft, which later will be called the Mig-1.
At that time, the leadership of the Soviet Air Force already realized that the main air confrontation of the near future would take place at a high altitude, so the designers had to create fighters capable of showing themselves well at an altitude of more than 5000 meters. The future aircraft was to develop 600 km / h speed, have 11-12 km of practical ceiling and fly 600 km.
At that time, one of the most serious problems of the Soviet aviation industry was motors, the supply of which fell sharply before the war. Another difficulty was the lack of duralumin. The bulk of this material went to the production of bombers, so the designers of fighters and attack aircraft had to actively use plywood, wood and canvas in their work.
Design Bureau of Alexander Yakovlev set about creating a fighter in May 1939. Previously, it was engaged in sports and training aircraft. A new car was created on the basis of the sports model I-7. Design work was carried out at plant number 115.
The prototype of the fighter was named I-26. January 13, 1940 he made his first flight. The piloting of the new fighter was entrusted to test pilot Yu. I. Piontkovsky. The first flight was successful, and the second led to an accident, as a result of which the pilot died and the car crashed. It was later revealed that the cause of the disaster was a manufacturing defect. Despite the accident, no one doubted that the Yakovlev plane deserves attention. As a result, even before the end of state tests, the fighter was decided to be put into mass production. At this moment, he received the name Yak-1.
Competitors
The rest of the Soviet aircraft of the Second World War, which participated in the pre-war competition, the fate was a rather interesting way. All of them were adopted and put into series. However, soon the war put everything in its place.
Mig-1 proved to be quite good at an altitude of more than five kilometers. The main battles on the Soviet-German front were much lower. In addition, the car had weak weapons. Soon it was discontinued, and the aircraft built were transferred to the air defense.
The military path of the LaGG aircraft was even shorter. The car was completely built of wood, which adversely affected its weight. The characteristics of the aircraft also left much to be desired. In the end, the country's leadership ordered to stop the production of this aircraft and transfer the vacant capacity for the release of Jacob.
Production
At the time when the aircraft began to be mass-produced, war was gaining momentum in Europe. Because of the rush, the production aircraft was "raw", so right in the production process, some adjustments were made to the design. This led to a regular change in the drawings, the creation of new equipment, and in some cases altogether to the alteration of finished units and assemblies. The most serious improvements concerned the oil system and the chassis design, which overheated during braking. The air system of the fighter, its engine and armament also needed refinement.
In early autumn 1940, the military transferred the first batch of the Yak-1 aircraft, which consisted of 10 copies, which immediately went to military tests. November 7 of the same year, five fighters participated in the parade, which took place on Red Square. At the factories, meanwhile, the aircraft was being finalized in full swing, taking into account the comments received during the tests. In total, from June 1940 to January 1941, 7 thousand changes were made to the drawings of the aircraft.
By the beginning of the Second World War, Soviet industrialists managed to produce a little more than four hundred copies of the Yak-1 fighter, but not all fell into the troops. Only a part of the aircraft released was mastered by pilots of the western military districts. The first year and a half of hostilities, the aircraft, of course, was the best Soviet fighter. He was distinguished by simplicity of design, cheapness, ease of control, good flight parameters and powerful weapons. The peak of production occurred in 1942, during which 3.5 thousand aircraft were produced.
Production was completed in the summer of 1944, and operation continued until the end of World War II.
Yak-1B
In the summer of 1942, the release of the first modification of the fighter, which received the 1B index, was launched. From the basic version, it was distinguished by a more powerful motor of the M-105PF brand. With the new power plant, the fighter accelerated to almost 600 km / h and could complete a turn in 19 s. In addition, the armament of the aircraft also received some changes. The fighter was armed with two automatic 20 mm ShVAK guns and one 12.7 mm UB machine guns.
The upgraded version of the aircraft was able to adequately withstand the latest modifications of the German fighter Me-109. In a horizontal battle, the Soviet aircraft outnumbered the enemy, and in the vertical, it was slightly inferior to it. In addition to these improvements, the aircraft received a new lantern, providing a good overview of the rear hemisphere and front armored glass.
Yak-1M
In November 1942, Yakovlev Design Bureau began work on a machine that could confidently fight all types of German fighters. For these reasons, the original design of the Yak-1 aircraft was subjected to serious revision. On February 15, 1943, the first instance of the Yak-1M fighter was built. It differed from the serial model in the first place in the reduced scope (9.2 m), and the wing area (14.83 m). Thanks to a number of design measures (reducing the number of fuel tanks, reducing the tail area, and others), the flight weight of the aircraft was reduced to 230 kg. In addition, due to the transfer of the oil cooler, the improvement of the external forms of the water cooler and the use of individual exhaust pipes for each cylinder of the engine, the aerodynamic drag of the aircraft significantly decreased, and the speed increased. Due to the large number of design changes, the aircraft more likely resembled the Yak-3 model (the next aircraft in the series) rather than its basic version.
Design
The Yak-1 fighter was built according to the normal aerodynamic scheme and was a monoplane with a half-monocoque fuselage and a low wing location. The landing gear was tucked into the floor.
The design was mixed, as it had elements of metal, wood and canvas. The supporting frame of the fuselage was built of steel pipes welded into a single element with a motor frame. Its main elements were 4 spars fastened with a dozen frames. Between the first two frames was the cockpit. Here were the connecting nodes of the fuselage and wings. A lantern frame would be welded to the upper side members.
The front of the aircraft was lined with duralumin, and the rear - with a canvas. On the bow was the hood, which in the first versions had side “gills” for blowing the power unit.
In the rear of the fighter, on the fuselage, top and bottom were installed gargot, improving its aerodynamic parameters. The gently sloping upper garrot became a characteristic feature of the appearance of the Yak-1 aircraft. In subsequent modifications, it was redone to improve the pilot's view of the rear hemisphere.
The trapezoidal wings of the fighter were made of wood. The power frame of the wing included two spars and a set of ribs with stringers.
The wings were sheathed with bakelite plywood and canvas. Ailerons frames, landing flaps, landing gear flaps and wing laps, were made of duralumin. The tail of the aircraft also had a mixed design: the keel and stabilizer made of wood, elevators and turns - from duralumin.
The cabin was closed by a plexiglass lantern, the middle part of which moved backwards along special runners. The pilot's seat was protected by a 9 mm armored back. The seat had a parachute bowl. Recent modifications to the model were equipped with an emergency flashlight reset system, allowing the pilot to quickly leave the combat vehicle.
The fighter had a retractable landing gear, which rested on two struts and one tail support. The chassis was equipped with oil-air cushioning and air shoe brakes. The chassis was retracted using a pneumatic system. The niche in which it was placed was closed by two shields during the flight. In addition to the usual landing gear, a ski landing gear could be put on the plane.
Equipment
The machine worked due to the water-cooled M-105P engine. In later versions it was changed to more powerful engines M-105PA and M-105PF. The aircraft was equipped with a three-blade propeller, with a variable pitch. In front, it was closed with an easily removable streamlined coca. Motor control was carried out by means of cables. The power plant was launched using compressed air.
The fuel system included four tanks with a total capacity of 408 liters. All of them were located in the wings of the car. The fuel pump, driven by the main engine, was responsible for the fuel supply. The oil system had a 37-liter tank. The radiator for cooling was placed in a special tunnel under the power plant of the fighter.
The cockpit was equipped with an altimeter, speedometer, boost indicator, direction indicator, coolant temperature sensor and ABP clock. From radio equipment, the car was equipped with a Baby receiver, an Eagle transmitter, and a radio ammunition.
Armament
As weapons, Alexander Yakovlev’s plane received a 20-mm ShVAK gun and a pair of 7.92-mm ShKAS machine guns. The gun was installed in the collapse of the engine. She shot through the hollow shaft of the screw and the hub of the gearbox. Machine guns were located above the engine, on the sides of the fuselage. The possibility of bullets getting into the screw was excluded due to the use of a synchronizer. The gun and machine guns could be recharged both manually and through a pneumatic drive. The ammunition of the machine gun consisted of armor-piercing incendiary, explosive, tracer and sighting cartridges.
Combat operation
At the beginning of the Second World War, the Yak-1 single-engine fighter was the best fighter of the Red Army. The main problem associated with the operation of the aircraft is its poor development on the part of the personnel. The car was new and appeared in parts just a few months before the start of operation. Pilots were forced to relearn directly during the battles.
The plane was easy to fly and "friendly" to the pilots. For those who managed to fly the I-16, transfer to the Yak-1 was a real event. Test pilots, after the first flights, wrote in the conclusion that this machine is available for a pilot with a lower than average qualification. Nevertheless, it is one thing to raise a fighter into the air and put it on the ground, and another to oppose one of the best fighters of World War II, the German Bf-109. The first Yak-1 models were significantly heavier than the enemy aircraft, and had a less powerful power plant. Because of this, they lost to the opponent in speed and climb. In addition, the Soviet fighter initially had a number of "childhood" diseases, which were caused by a rush in production.
The main technical problems of the Yak-1:
- Overheating of water and oil when the motor is running at peak power. Spraying oil through poor seals. The oil not only splashed the fuselage, but also stained the cockpit lantern, blocking the pilot's view. In addition, due to oil leaks, the motor could overheat, so the pilot had to slow down to cool it. In a battle, this could lead to disastrous consequences.
- Uneven fuel production from different tanks.
- Leaks in the pneumatic system.
- Jamming and warping of machine-gun cartridges .
- Self-tapping screws due to strong vibration.
- Until 1942, the aircraft was not equipped with a walkie-talkie.
Over time, the fighter lost these problems, but many pilots had to pay for it with their lives. Frankly, the Yak-1, which we are reviewing, was inferior to German fighters throughout the war, and only later versions of the aircraft could outperform opponents. It should be understood that the outcome of an air battle often depends not on the characteristics of the aircraft, but on the skills of the pilots and an adequate calculation of forces. At the beginning of the war, Soviet pilots had big problems, but over time they gained experience and realized their full potential.
In such large-scale conflicts as World War II, one more thing should be taken into account - the ability to quickly make up for the loss of equipment and personnel is more important than the technical perfection of technology. In this regard, the USSR had total superiority. It is much more profitable to have a hundred pilots and a simple cheap fighter than a dozen aces and resource-intensive fighter.
The advantages of the Yak-1 aircraft include the following:
- Relative simplicity and cheapness;
- Compliance with the technological base that the USSR had at that time.
- Acceptable technical and flight parameters.
- Easy to operate and accessible for pilots trained on an accelerated program.
- Great modernization resource.
- Unpretentiousness and maintainability.
- Wide gauge allowing the use of unpaved airfields.
Parameters
The main technical characteristics of the Yak-1:
- Wingspan - 10 m.
- Height - 1.7 m.
- Length - 8.48 m.
- The wing area is 17.15 m 2 .
- Take-off weight - 2700 kg.
- Motor power - 1180 liters. from.
- The maximum speed is 592 km / h.
- Practical range - 850 m.
- Practical ceiling - 10,000 m.
- Rate of climb - 926 m / min.
- Crew - 1 person.