My favorite Soviet fighter from WWII is the Yak-3 with 3x 20mm Berezin B-20 cannons. Plenty of punch in such a tiny bird. Just to notice: Berezin B-20 was about 25kgs, the ShVAK cannon was about 42kgs and delivered about the same performance. ;)
Yak-3 with one 20mm Shpitalny and two 12.7mm Berezin. Yak-3P are prodiction in april 1945, out of war. Compare with FW-190D9 (with number of shells), Me-109K, Tempest.
I have a thing for the aesthetics of the Polikarpov I-16, She just looks like the last of the seat of your pants fighters & comes from an age before everything had to beat the 109 or 190.
Brooo same I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it. It looked like a true plucky doughy eyed underdog compared to other planes, and small and cheap enough to put in a personal garage.
I'm 37, and used to love the cartoon "Tailspin" when I was a kid (show about a variety of furry quadrupeds flying prop aircraft for delivery, piracy, and conquest). The I-16 was clearly and inspiration for some of the pirate planes, and I can't help being reminded of that every time I see one in War Thunder. Because of that show, I am romantic about open cockpit aircraft.
Your knowledge understanding and ability to transfer this information in a understandable format, is refreshing. Greatly appreciated is the accompanying accurate photographs and simulations. Thank you again!
A beautiful plane snd a well made video. I liked the way you explained the family tree of the Yaks... it can be a bit confusing because they do not really supercede one another, but rather the family branches into two.
I have always had a penchant for the I-16. Basically the monoplane version of I-153, it's in a way a transitional aircraft between the pinnacle of the biplane fighter and the first successful monoplane fighters, and was very advanced and modern for a time. Being short, stubby and decidedly old fashioned looking compared to the 1st line fighters of WW2 it has this kind of "I may be small, but I can be spicy" air about it. Otherwise I have always also liked the other WW2 second line fighters in the same envelope that were pretty obsolescent when the war started, but in capable hands could still bring down a Bf-109 or similar in a favourable situation, and were certainly dangerous to most bombers. Such as the M.S.406, Fokker D.XXI and Fiat G.50. And of course the last of the dogfighting biplanes - I-153, Gloster Gladiator, Fiat CR.42, Avia B-534 and so on.
Thank you for the thoughtful and considerate note before your historic documentary. The Russian people have unfortunately suffered for century’s of bad leadership … Where as individuals have proven the virtue and merit of their value to society .
@@tomsoyka4801 Well, I would say that both the UK and US have had much better leadership. Just on the base that they haven't been dictatorships, where as Russia has always been a dictatorship. Of course some people think that dictatorships are superior, nothing objectively wrong with that.
These videos are well made and narrated, after watching each of them I actually learned new facts I didn't know. The Yaks were very sleek looking aircraft, especially those with the lowered spine.
I’m a big fan of the yak-1 in sims. It has everything: speed, turning ability and strong finishing power with the 20mm cannon. Fantastic plane!!! The yak3 and yak9 are also very satisfying to fly but I often come back to the yak1 and yak1b in low BR games. They are so good. I wish there would be Yak1 radio controlled models available… All we see are Mustangs and Corsairs…
So good that it had the highest loss rate in the USSR!! The power of a single 20mm cannon!!! Get real. It's speed and turning ability were nothing other than ordinary. The Yak 3's and 9s were much better as were some of the La's.
@@csjrogerson2377Strictly historically speaking, you're right of course. But my comment was about video games (not reality or history). In flight sims (played on PC or consoles), and particularly in low BR games, equal planes are facing off. And in those specific conditions, the Yak-1 is often a rare plane with a 20mm cannon and it's got a tight turning circle making it very competitive. Of course, if you ignore the context and speak historically, what you said is accurate. If you haven't tried flight combat sims, you should try especially if you love planes! Cheers!
For an early and simple aircraft the Yak 1 was a beautifully streamlined and shapely plane, accentuated by a nice gloss coat it was obviously among the Russian aircraft available in June 1941 extremely important.
Welded steel fuselage of the Yaks probably did well in rougher airfields and no doubt assembled quickly under wartime requirements for aircraft, the more and the sooner the better. I wonder if there was any weight penalty or exactly what disadvantages might've been inherent in this type of fuselage construction.
The Yak fighters did not sustain long use either during the war or after it. But the free Bell P-63s made up the majority of the fighter fleet after the war. The quality of the Yak's manufacturing was monstrous.
A wonderful channel that deserves a thousand thousand greetings, great admiration and greater respect. Your esteemed channel is full of very accurate and useful information. Your effort is remarkable and great. I wish you lasting success. And I write to you with the utmost frankness and respect, and in the form of hope ((translate into Arabic)) The number of your followers will increase greatly. I am absolutely confident that you are interested in providing benefit to everyone without exception. My utmost respect, appreciation and pride to you, gentlemen
Thanks for not blaming every sin possible on Yakovlev. The Polikarpov controversy has seen some reignition here, and so far there is more evidence that Yakovlev tried to push I-185 into production (albeit a small scale one, alongside his Yak-9 with M-107 since both engines needed to be produced very precisely). As for my favourite Soviet fighter of WW2, I could go with La-5FN or La-7, but my favourite is Yak-3. When it comes to pilot friendliness and overall comfort, Yak is superior. Say "hello" to La's 40-60°C temperatures in the cockpit.
Yakovlev was very closer with Stalin,he practically dictated rules of every competition between construction bureaus in USSR, and practically in favor of his own construction bureau. Young constructors of planes, on reality of communism were forced to use every opportunity to ...survive, even which one looks illegal. In communism - if you, and your team are useless in view of Stalin (and communist party automatically😁) - you can be send to gułag, or you producing others plane, constructed by competition team. So you must be in constant competition against other teams, look for protectors from party, keep your image as better than others - or others will destroy you. So dont tell me , that Yakovlev tried to push into production plane constructed by other construction team. Its ridiculous. Yakovlev, Iliushin , Lavockin hated Polikarpov, cause he was best constructor in USSR at this time. So they did everything behind his back to destroy Him, and his bureau , cause they cannot achieve his level of competence in construction work. Polikarpov work was even stealed by others,for example his I-200 early project was stealed by Mikoyan, and presented to Stalin competition as theirs own, which was named later MiG-1. So your claim about "Yakovlev tried to push I-185 into production" is completely false.
@@Turloghan my claim is based purely on notes and letters from Yakovlev (he was a Vice Minister of Aviation Industry from 1940 to 1946) to Shakhurin (the Minister of Aviation Industry). To be precise, he mentioned beginning the small-scale production of I-185 with M-71 engine in further instances: 1. On the 23rd of December 1941. Yakovlev alongside Polikarpov appeal to Shakhurin with an offer to start production of I-185 at the factory №51 in Novosibirsk. M-71 is unfinished, so Shakhurin declines and requests trial performance of I-185 M-82 which would not appear until April 1942. 2. On the 6th of May 1942. Yakovlev mentions to Shakhurin that he considers necessary a small-scale production of at least 100 I-185 aircraft with M-71 engine and 2 synchronised ShVAK cannons. The factory proposed is factory №31 in Tbilisi. 3. On the 4th of March 1943. Another proposition from Yakovlev to Shakhurin, asking to produce Yak-9 with M-107 and I-185 at least 20-30 machines each. He also requests to pass this question to the State Defence Committee.
@@MDzmitry Wow, Thank You for very fast answer👍. OK, your data is very curious, and this looks like a very good and well researched things. I will check that in my amateur manner (im not profesjonal, only interested amateur, without access to Russian archives🙂). But, anyway many biographies of soviets important notables, party members, important industrial personas, war Heroes weren't writed by these people. Yes , they were (especially biographies) edited by autorized authors/journalist, next censored to keep actual "communist party linę of things" (famous "wisdom of stage"😁). So , this means that first edition of biography can be almost completely different than third, fourth etc. This means for example : when tides in USSR changed , Yakovlev started "more liking of Polikarpov", cause Polikarpov was little more favored by soviets historians, so many biographies in whole country was "adopted to actual linę of soviets party"😄. I Hope you will get what i want to say, cause im not native english speaker. Thx again for quick and intteresting answer.
@@Turloghan thanks for actually reading into the information provided, and I can understand your point as well. It's a really hard topic to debate, since most people concerned are already dead and the state itself was known for its censorship. I don't consider Yakovlev a saint, but I honestly don't think he deliberately hindered any actually good project. Now, questions arise about what Yakovlev considered "good" and whether the people declined by him held a grudge against him later on
I don't have a favorite Soviet fighter But I'd say the "best" fighters were the Yak- 3 and Lavochkin La-7 maybe the LA-7 has a bit if an advantage because it had 3 20 or 23 mm cannons while the Yak-3 was stuck with 2 x 12.7 mms and 1x 20 mm and was generally slower than the LA-7 though each had fast versions built later in the war.
Being an avid IL2 Sturmovik fan, my choice is limited to what is available in the game. Therefore, the Yak 1B is my favourite. I find that my opponents have the same ability as the Soviets pilots in 1941, so my kill rate is high. However, I'd go for a Yak 9U any day. The VK105 variant was the best high altitude fighter of the war.
The Yak-7 -- the Yak-9 was easy to fly. The Yak-1's center of mass was too rearward, and the wing mechanization was insufficient. Compare them. And think about why the Yak-7 appeared and became the mainstream.
At 7:42 those pilots look like French pilots serving in the Soviet Union, judging by their dark uniforms, shoulder flashes and what look like rank stripes on the standing pilot's cap. Normandie-Niemen?
The favorite fighter of Soviet pilots was, of course, the Bell P-39, which, by the way, flew before the Yak-1. It was the one the Soviet aces chose when suddenly there was a choice. The Yak-1 was Stalin's favorite, he personally chose the designer and features of the plane, talking to Yakovlev privately before the war when the ministers were leaving. Stalin explicitly told him that he believed him, but did not believe the former designers (they had just been jailed).
@@Kuschel_K "Almost all" Except that's a lie. In the early part of the war, about 30-40 percent of planes were partially or mostly made of wood. As the war continued, the amount of wood used went way down......
@@Kuschel_K Before I do that, you tell me where I remotely claimed that there was zero wood used in any planes later in the war. Reading comprehension: not that hard.
The Yak 3 was the best of the breed, Fast, light, incredibly maneuverable and packing great firepower. It would turn inside anything ,even the LEGENDARY A6M ZERO.
The Yak (Як1), 3 & 9 are beautiful & amazing aircraft. I believe them to be superior in many ways. Also the LaGG3 (ЛаГГ3), I love Russian aircraft of The Great Patriotic War(WWII). Not to mention the МиГ15, Як23, Ла200. The Russians also developed Motor-Jet fighters topping out at 600mph in 1946-47.
This was very informative but has raised a problem for me. What was the Yakovlev Yak that Lilya (Lydia?) Latvyev flew with such great success. In animations it has it as Yak-1 yellow 44. But in the last panel of your video it appeared more like the Yak-7. I intend to build a 1/48 (if there is one) scale model in tribute to her but it has to be the correct one. I think ICM might have a couple of versions.
I wouldn't say that my favorite aircraft in the Soviet Union was ever a fighter though some would say different. Mine was the ground attack. Unfortunately I can't spell it but you know the one I'm talking about it was the tank Buster.
The late Yaks were excellent aerodynamically, if you took the engine and propeller off a P-51D and put it on a Yak-3 it would have about the same top speed
when the french pilots of the normandie squadrons happened in Russia the soviet officers asked to their , you can , choose your planes between the hurricane the Bell P 39 or the Yak 1 they answered we came to figth in the soviet army we flight on soviet planes , They came from Syria the Yak 1 was not no realy different that the MS 406 or the D 520 they never flight on hurricane the airacobra needed a lot of time , they was hungry , they was wright , later the had th Yak 33 they shot more planes than all the other french fighter squadron of the FFL
The famous or () flew Yaks exclusively as their fighters, amassing a notable record on the Eastern Front. One of their best was Marcel Albert, who I got to know when I was editor of the Washing County News in Chipley, FL. I had the honor of covering his funeral, which was attended by high-ranking representatives from France and Russia.. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcel_Albert en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escadron_de_Chasse_2/30_Normandie-Niemen
The Yak-1 was a good fighter.. But the Yak-3 was the unequivocal best fighter of the war. Fun fact: The Nazis actually told their pilots to "avoid a dogfight with a Yak-3 at all costs!" :-).
The Polikarpov I-16 was not really inferior to the Bf-109 in Spain , the real problem was the lack of training that Republican and Soviet pilots had compared to the pilots of the Legion condor .
True, the difference is not yet that great in 1936 as people think because they mentally use a comparison from 1941. Not all Bf-109's were created equal, the A's and B's deployed in Spain were a far cry from the E's and F's that the I-16, which could not be upgraded to nearly the same degree, faced in Barbarossa.
If we are just talking about soviet aircrafts, it would be the La-5FN, it was a good plane, but it still is in 6° place in WWII aircraft that I like in general
The La-5FN was superior in combat to both the FW-190 and the Me-109. At low and medium altitudes, when meeting the La-5FN (on equal terms), the FW-190 had no chance of survival. The Me-109G2 (3-point) had a small chance of escaping from the La-5FN. "Troop tests of the La-5FN took place in July-August 1943 in the 32nd Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment on the Bryansk Front. Over the course of a month, 14 Soviet pilots shot down 21 FW190s, three Bf 109G-2s and He 111s, five Ju 88s and one Ju 87 in 25 air battles. In doing so, they lost four aircraft." The FW-190 and Me-109 are no longer on the list. Which 5 fighters were better than the La5FN?
@@alexanderleo8947 So you are using the soviet results? yeah no bias at all, the soviets were know to be truthfull in WWII, yeah? if you are using the 1943 data, the FW 190 A-5/6 aand even the A-7 were flying at 660 km/h, while the La 5FN was at 620 Km/h ( the 648 Km/h was only in the prototype), so yeah, supirior to the FW 190, also remember remember the four 20 mm cannons in the 190 against the two in the La-5, if you said something about the kill ratio of that plane don''t forget that in the same year the 190 had a 60:1 kill ratio (more show like 120:2 but is the same) funny enought the soviets always demerit the FW 190 saying that only it's radial engine serve as a shield, same can be told to the La-5, so yeah that aircraft was still under the 190, like it or not, the more the soviets insulted the aircraft the more they feared
@@ricardobeltranmonribot3182 July-August 1943. Battle of Kursk. 1/JG51, 3/JG51, 4/JG51, 1/JG54, aircraft FW-190A-4, FW-190A-5 (A-6 entered production - June, July 1943. A-7 entered production - November 1943). Speed Fw-190A-4 - at an altitude of 6000 m - 624 km / h. At ground level - 520 km / h. Time to climb to 5000 m is 6.9 minutes. Speed Fw-190A-5 - at an altitude of 6000 m - 625 km / h. 4500 m - 590 km / h. 1500 m - 530 km / h. La-5FN speed (serial June 1943) - at 6250m - 634 (6000m - 646) km/h. At sea level (normal) - 539 km/h. (forced) - 583 km/h. (Maximum speed at ground level - 595 km/h). La-5FN "standard" - 597 km/h at ground level, 670 km/h at 3250m and 680 km/h at 6300m. It took it only 4.45 minutes to reach 5000m. Experimental La-5 ("backup type 39", March 1943) - speed at ground level with afterburner 595 km/h. At 3250m - 626 km/h. At 6300m - 648 km/h. (You probably wrote about this "only the prototype had 648 km/h"). On the Eastern Front, air battles were fought at low and medium altitudes. There were no battles at 6000 m. At low and medium altitudes, the La-5FN was superior to the Fw-190A in everything except armament, ease of control and diving (the La-5FN was much lighter). The main thing is that air battles were fought at "combat speed", which is much less than the maximum. The combat speed and acceleration speed of the Fw-190A were very low. And the turn time, climb, etc. The Fw-190A was not very suitable for a frontline fighter. But as an attack aircraft and an air defense aircraft, it was excellent.
@@ricardobeltranmonribot3182 Fw-190A victories 60:1 (120:2), in one day on July 6. Where Bergström got this data from, we do not know. If in one day only FW-190A destroyed 120 aircraft, then in 50 days of the Battle of Kursk they destroyed 3000 aircraft. And they themselves lost 100 aircraft. It turns out that 1/JG51, 3/JG51, 4/JG51, 1/JG54 destroyed all the USSR aircraft, leaving none. This is like the experts (aces) of the Luftwaffe. If you add up all their victories, they destroyed more aircraft than they produced and received under Lend-Lease in the USSR. But in reality, JG 51 (squadron) that fought in the Battle of Kursk lost all its FW190 and switched to Me-109. First, the IV Group of the 51st Squadron immediately after the defeat of the Wehrmacht in the Battle of Kursk. A little later, I./JG 51, then III./JG 51. In March 1943, I./JG 51 was already losing all of its FW190s. In 1 year, 200% of FW190 losses. And the attack aircraft of SchG 1 lost 102 of 85 FW-190F aircraft in the Battle of Kursk. For comparison: the 32nd Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment (USSR) - 1943 (for the entire year): 2883 combat sorties. Enemy aircraft shot down in 1943 - 184 aircraft (141 fighters shot down in air combat, 43 bombers shot down in air combat). Own aircraft losses in 1943. - 21 combat losses (12 shot down in air battles, 9 did not return from a combat mission). 8 non-combat losses. Pilots killed - 18 people 1943 (Fought on La-5, La-5FN).
The soviets were caught out with poor aircraft in 41 and appalling tactics hence the slaughter at the hands of the Luftwaffe. By 43 they could hold their own with much better fighters ground attack and tactical bombers. Being a soviet pilot in 41-43 was a demoralising experience.
My heart is split between the Yak 3 and the La 5. I would go for the La 5 for its robustness and higher power, and for the Yak-3 for its agility and effectiveness. So it's a tie!
Of course , Yakovlev 's planes were successful machines . However, the best Soviet ace - Ivan Kozhedub flew the La-5fn. Another Soviet ace, Alexander Pokryshkin, revered the American P-39 aerocobra. 🙂
all metal version of Yak 9 was produced after war. During the war all the russian aircrafts were partly wooden, because of costs of production and lack of aluminium
The 'Night Witches', the female Russian pilots in the war flew this plane and Lillia Latovik, (the White Lily) downed 12 German planes with it, including an ace with 59 kills to his name.
Da, Kharasha Tabarishe, Yaks were well designed, practical aircraft--like Deutsches A/C , Heavy Guns were Centrally located---- unlike most U.S. Fighters. dozhdii
You can sell the license but you cannot sell thousands of skilled workers and engineers to build RRs in USSR in 1940s... It took Britain at least 200 years to create dynasties of skilled workers and equipment able to build Rolls Royses. This luxury wasn't accessible in agricultural country torn by WWI, 2 revolutions and civil war. In 1920-30 - imagine that you have only 1 engineer instead of 10 and most of your workers are from countryside with 3 classes of school at best. In 1940s - 80% of these workers went to fight on the frontline replaced with women and teenagers in relocated factories... Actually, it's a miracle on its own that USSR with this set of cards was able to produce something potent at all...
the Russia of Tsar Vlad the Intriguer and the Soviet Union of Stalin, resemble each other mostly in the pathological sociopathic paranoia of the two leaders share
the Russians were very lucky that the British had destroyed 10000 luftwaffe aircraft in the Battle of Britain and in Africa. That made all the difference that stopped Russia from being overrun and destroyed. Interesting fact, from 1926 to 1933 the Russians formed an Alliance with the nazis and trained their nazis colleagues at Lipetsk, Russia.
@@dallesamllhals9161 USSR=Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. CCCP is the same in Russian but is in cyrillic letters. "Союз Советских Социалистических Республик" "Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik"
![The 'Great Fighter' That Became A Great Disappointment | Yakovlev Yak-2 [Aircraft Overview #22]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/JKZ8mQmKQQU/mqdefault.jpg)
My favorite Soviet fighter from WWII is the Yak-3 with 3x 20mm Berezin B-20 cannons. Plenty of punch in such a tiny bird. Just to notice: Berezin B-20 was about 25kgs, the ShVAK cannon was about 42kgs and delivered about the same performance. ;)
Yak-3 with one 20mm Shpitalny and two 12.7mm Berezin. Yak-3P are prodiction in april 1945, out of war. Compare with FW-190D9 (with number of shells), Me-109K, Tempest.
I have a thing for the aesthetics of the Polikarpov I-16, She just looks like the last of the seat of your pants fighters & comes from an age before everything had to beat the 109 or 190.
Lol. The Donkey is one of my WW 2 favorites. Fiat 55 also
Brooo same I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it. It looked like a true plucky doughy eyed underdog compared to other planes, and small and cheap enough to put in a personal garage.
The I-16 and CR-42 for me
I'm 37, and used to love the cartoon "Tailspin" when I was a kid (show about a variety of furry quadrupeds flying prop aircraft for delivery, piracy, and conquest). The I-16 was clearly and inspiration for some of the pirate planes, and I can't help being reminded of that every time I see one in War Thunder. Because of that show, I am romantic about open cockpit aircraft.
In its time it was a good fighter but it was made obsolete quickly because of quickly advancing technology.
Your knowledge understanding and ability to transfer this information in a understandable format, is refreshing. Greatly appreciated is the accompanying accurate photographs and simulations. Thank you again!
I find that these videos are just incredible…. So educational, beautiful plane ,when you forget what it was for
Thank you!
@@AllthingsWW2 your welcome 🙏 love your channel
When it comes to Soviet fighter aircraft, I always liked Lavochkin the most.
The mig-3 is my favorite, it look like the d520 but sleeker and faster. ( But handle like a brick )
A beautiful plane snd a well made video. I liked the way you explained the family tree of the Yaks... it can be a bit confusing because they do not really supercede one another, but rather the family branches into two.
Thank you!
I have always had a penchant for the I-16. Basically the monoplane version of I-153, it's in a way a transitional aircraft between the pinnacle of the biplane fighter and the first successful monoplane fighters, and was very advanced and modern for a time. Being short, stubby and decidedly old fashioned looking compared to the 1st line fighters of WW2 it has this kind of "I may be small, but I can be spicy" air about it.
Otherwise I have always also liked the other WW2 second line fighters in the same envelope that were pretty obsolescent when the war started, but in capable hands could still bring down a Bf-109 or similar in a favourable situation, and were certainly dangerous to most bombers. Such as the M.S.406, Fokker D.XXI and Fiat G.50. And of course the last of the dogfighting biplanes - I-153, Gloster Gladiator, Fiat CR.42, Avia B-534 and so on.
Thank you for the thoughtful and considerate note before your historic documentary.
The Russian people have unfortunately suffered for century’s of bad leadership …
Where as individuals have proven the virtue and merit of their value to society .
The majority of the people still support these bad leaders though.
Same as Brits and Yanks
@@tomsoyka4801 Well, I would say that both the UK and US have had much better leadership. Just on the base that they haven't been dictatorships, where as Russia has always been a dictatorship.
Of course some people think that dictatorships are superior, nothing objectively wrong with that.
@@EneTheGene
Dictatorships have various forms, so, yeah. Some people do think their dictatorships are better.
They had Gorbachev but threw him away
I love this channel, you explain everything in a very simple way
Nice well organice video , nice graphics. Thank you!
Without any doubt La5FN, the plane who balance the sky between VVS and Luftwaffe
These videos are well made and narrated, after watching each of them I actually learned new facts I didn't know.
The Yaks were very sleek looking aircraft, especially those with the lowered spine.
Looking forward to you covering the La 5/7. Thanks.
Bell Air Cobra P-39...Lend Lease.
Beautiful looking fighter
I’m a big fan of the yak-1 in sims. It has everything: speed, turning ability and strong finishing power with the 20mm cannon. Fantastic plane!!!
The yak3 and yak9 are also very satisfying to fly but I often come back to the yak1 and yak1b in low BR games. They are so good.
I wish there would be Yak1 radio controlled models available… All we see are Mustangs and Corsairs…
So good that it had the highest loss rate in the USSR!! The power of a single 20mm cannon!!! Get real. It's speed and turning ability were nothing other than ordinary. The Yak 3's and 9s were much better as were some of the La's.
@@csjrogerson2377Strictly historically speaking, you're right of course. But my comment was about video games (not reality or history). In flight sims (played on PC or consoles), and particularly in low BR games, equal planes are facing off. And in those specific conditions, the Yak-1 is often a rare plane with a 20mm cannon and it's got a tight turning circle making it very competitive. Of course, if you ignore the context and speak historically, what you said is accurate. If you haven't tried flight combat sims, you should try especially if you love planes! Cheers!
Pretty good video. My favorite Soviet fighters of the WW2: I-16(the best fighter in the world in the mid 30's), Yak-1, La-5, La-7, Yak-9U.
For an early and simple aircraft the Yak 1 was a beautifully streamlined and shapely plane, accentuated by a nice gloss coat it was obviously among the Russian aircraft available in June 1941 extremely important.
Thanks for your info. My favorite Russian fighters of WWII was the I-16 and Yak-3.
Can you do a video on the ms.406
It will come, sooner than you may expect 😉
Welded steel fuselage of the Yaks probably did well in rougher airfields and no doubt assembled quickly under wartime requirements for aircraft, the more and the sooner the better.
I wonder if there was any weight penalty or exactly what disadvantages might've been inherent in this type of fuselage construction.
The Yak fighters did not sustain long use either during the war or after it. But the free Bell P-63s made up the majority of the fighter fleet after the war. The quality of the Yak's manufacturing was monstrous.
A wonderful channel that deserves a thousand thousand greetings, great admiration and greater respect. Your esteemed channel is full of very accurate and useful information. Your effort is remarkable and great. I wish you lasting success. And I write to you with the utmost frankness and respect, and in the form of hope ((translate into Arabic)) The number of your followers will increase greatly. I am absolutely confident that you are interested in providing benefit to everyone without exception. My utmost respect, appreciation and pride to you, gentlemen
Yes! i love this. My favorite Yak being the Yak-1 Series 69
Being American, I have no favorite Soviet fighter. But the La-7 with the 3 x20mm was fun to fly in IL-2 Sturmovik sim.
The music is distracting.
La-5N and La-7. Need a quick burst of speed? How about the La-7R.
Otherwise, Yak 9 had some very interesting interceptor variants.
Truly a beutiful aircraft. Hope to see videos of other fighter aircraft like the spitfire, me 109, Re2005.
Very interesting - lots of information...😊
Thanks for not blaming every sin possible on Yakovlev. The Polikarpov controversy has seen some reignition here, and so far there is more evidence that Yakovlev tried to push I-185 into production (albeit a small scale one, alongside his Yak-9 with M-107 since both engines needed to be produced very precisely).
As for my favourite Soviet fighter of WW2, I could go with La-5FN or La-7, but my favourite is Yak-3. When it comes to pilot friendliness and overall comfort, Yak is superior. Say "hello" to La's 40-60°C temperatures in the cockpit.
Yakovlev was very closer with Stalin,he practically dictated rules of every competition between construction bureaus in USSR, and practically in favor of his own construction bureau.
Young constructors of planes, on reality of communism were forced to use every opportunity to ...survive, even which one looks illegal. In communism - if you, and your team are useless in view of Stalin (and communist party automatically😁) - you can be send to gułag, or you producing others plane, constructed by competition team.
So you must be in constant competition against other teams, look for protectors from party, keep your image as better than others - or others will destroy you.
So dont tell me , that Yakovlev tried to push into production plane constructed by other construction team. Its ridiculous.
Yakovlev, Iliushin , Lavockin hated Polikarpov, cause he was best constructor in USSR at this time. So they did everything behind his back to destroy Him, and his bureau , cause they cannot achieve his level of competence in construction work.
Polikarpov work was even stealed by others,for example his I-200 early project was stealed by Mikoyan, and presented to Stalin competition as theirs own, which was named later MiG-1.
So your claim about "Yakovlev tried to push I-185 into production" is completely false.
@@Turloghan my claim is based purely on notes and letters from Yakovlev (he was a Vice Minister of Aviation Industry from 1940 to 1946) to Shakhurin (the Minister of Aviation Industry).
To be precise, he mentioned beginning the small-scale production of I-185 with M-71 engine in further instances:
1. On the 23rd of December 1941.
Yakovlev alongside Polikarpov appeal to Shakhurin with an offer to start production of I-185 at the factory №51 in Novosibirsk. M-71 is unfinished, so Shakhurin declines and requests trial performance of I-185 M-82 which would not appear until April 1942.
2. On the 6th of May 1942.
Yakovlev mentions to Shakhurin that he considers necessary a small-scale production of at least 100 I-185 aircraft with M-71 engine and 2 synchronised ShVAK cannons. The factory proposed is factory №31 in Tbilisi.
3. On the 4th of March 1943.
Another proposition from Yakovlev to Shakhurin, asking to produce Yak-9 with M-107 and I-185 at least 20-30 machines each. He also requests to pass this question to the State Defence Committee.
@@MDzmitry Wow, Thank You for very fast answer👍. OK, your data is very curious, and this looks like a very good and well researched things. I will check that in my amateur manner (im not profesjonal, only interested amateur, without access to Russian archives🙂).
But, anyway many biographies of soviets important notables, party members, important industrial personas, war Heroes weren't writed by these people. Yes , they were (especially biographies) edited by autorized authors/journalist, next censored to keep actual "communist party linę of things" (famous "wisdom of stage"😁).
So , this means that first edition of biography can be almost completely different than third, fourth etc.
This means for example : when tides in USSR changed , Yakovlev started "more liking of Polikarpov", cause Polikarpov was little more favored by soviets historians, so many biographies in whole country was "adopted to actual linę of soviets party"😄.
I Hope you will get what i want to say, cause im not native english speaker.
Thx again for quick and intteresting answer.
@@Turloghan thanks for actually reading into the information provided, and I can understand your point as well.
It's a really hard topic to debate, since most people concerned are already dead and the state itself was known for its censorship.
I don't consider Yakovlev a saint, but I honestly don't think he deliberately hindered any actually good project. Now, questions arise about what Yakovlev considered "good" and whether the people declined by him held a grudge against him later on
Man whipped out the war thunder model. That is so cool though. The accuracy of war thunder is so good, they can use them as models.
I don't have a favorite Soviet fighter But I'd say the "best" fighters were the Yak- 3 and Lavochkin La-7 maybe the LA-7 has a bit if an advantage because it had 3 20 or 23 mm cannons while the Yak-3 was stuck with 2 x 12.7 mms and 1x 20 mm and was generally slower than the LA-7 though each had fast versions built later in the war.
The Yak 9 is my fave
It's just wonderful to learn more about these planes from a not-British/American perspective.
Being an avid IL2 Sturmovik fan, my choice is limited to what is available in the game. Therefore, the Yak 1B is my favourite. I find that my opponents have the same ability as the Soviets pilots in 1941, so my kill rate is high. However, I'd go for a Yak 9U any day. The VK105 variant was the best high altitude fighter of the war.
Thank yo for your videos!
My personal favorite was the Yak-3 and Yak-9 fighters of the Red Army Air Force. A sky worthy plane and easy to fly.
The Yak-7 -- the Yak-9 was easy to fly. The Yak-1's center of mass was too rearward, and the wing mechanization was insufficient. Compare them. And think about why the Yak-7 appeared and became the mainstream.
Sturmovik, I like ruggedness in aircraft.
6.02 winter 41 started to be equipped with radios
Yes but very limited to only several hunderds of Meters so no contact with ground forces and command post !
@@JulienGardner That is rough !
0:15 No, not Yak-1 fighters but Yak-7A. The Yak-1 and Yak-7 had different landing gears (besides other exterior distinguishing features).
Great video, super hard rn to not get political but I’m trying 👍
Thank you!
What a timing!
At 7:42 those pilots look like French pilots serving in the Soviet Union, judging by their dark uniforms, shoulder flashes and what look like rank stripes on the standing pilot's cap. Normandie-Niemen?
Soviets had the Yak-1. Americans had the P-38, P39, P40, and F4F. Britain had the Hurricane and Spitfire.
Y es asombroso el parecido de los aviones rusos a los nombrados
4:52 looks like a LaGG with the little triangular window behind the cockpit
My favorite soviet fighter would be La-7, the three 20mm cannon version.
The favorite fighter of Soviet pilots was, of course, the Bell P-39, which, by the way, flew before the Yak-1. It was the one the Soviet aces chose when suddenly there was a choice.
The Yak-1 was Stalin's favorite, he personally chose the designer and features of the plane, talking to Yakovlev privately before the war when the ministers were leaving. Stalin explicitly told him that he believed him, but did not believe the former designers (they had just been jailed).
It was made of aluminum.
That was very much a strategic material.
And basically all that aluminum was made in America, and shipped to the USSR.
But almost all Soviet planes were made from wood. The exception being the IL-2, which still had wooden wings.
@@Kuschel_K
"Almost all"
Except that's a lie. In the early part of the war, about 30-40 percent of planes were partially or mostly made of wood.
As the war continued, the amount of wood used went way down......
@@lordgarion514 Then tell me one full metal Soviet WW2 fighter plane
@@Kuschel_K
Before I do that, you tell me where I remotely claimed that there was zero wood used in any planes later in the war.
Reading comprehension: not that hard.
7:51 = Lucky not just CCCP-build-Magic!
The Yak 3 was the best of the breed, Fast, light, incredibly maneuverable and packing great firepower. It would turn inside anything ,even the LEGENDARY A6M ZERO.
The Yak (Як1), 3 & 9 are beautiful & amazing aircraft. I believe them to be superior in many ways. Also the LaGG3 (ЛаГГ3), I love Russian aircraft of The Great Patriotic War(WWII). Not to mention the МиГ15, Як23, Ла200. The Russians also developed Motor-Jet fighters topping out at 600mph in 1946-47.
This was very informative but has raised a problem for me. What was the Yakovlev Yak that Lilya (Lydia?) Latvyev flew with such great success. In animations it has it as Yak-1 yellow 44. But in the last panel of your video it appeared more like the Yak-7. I intend to build a 1/48 (if there is one) scale model in tribute to her but it has to be the correct one. I think ICM might have a couple of versions.
Yakovlev - Chief designer and head of the Yak Design Bureau; Lydia Litvyak - female pilot of the Yak-1B, died in battle in 1943 at the age of 22
@@_b_x_b_1063 Thank you so much and by the way it appears that Academy have a 1/48 with the decals for her aircraft so "tally ho". Thanks again.
12:21 Hmmmm sounds just like a common description of the P-40. Turned out the Yak was more developable (is that a word?)
I wouldn't say that my favorite aircraft in the Soviet Union was ever a fighter though some would say different. Mine was the ground attack. Unfortunately I can't spell it but you know the one I'm talking about it was the tank Buster.
The late Yaks were excellent aerodynamically, if you took the engine and propeller off a P-51D and put it on a Yak-3 it would have about the same top speed
The West Scared of Russia || America Trying to ...
ruclips.net/video/1RPZQM-AWMs/видео.html
The Yak-1 and 3 were the best looking of all the Yaks
when the french pilots of the normandie squadrons happened in Russia the soviet officers asked to their , you can , choose your planes between the hurricane the Bell P 39 or the Yak 1 they answered we came to figth in the soviet army we flight on soviet planes , They came from Syria the Yak 1 was not no realy different that the MS 406 or the D 520 they never flight on hurricane the airacobra needed a lot of time , they was hungry , they was wright , later the had th Yak 33 they shot more planes than all the other french fighter squadron of the FFL
Thank you👍✈️🇳🇿
german pilots DREADED a treetop level dogfight w the Yak 3
They were instructed not to do that very thing,
Yak 3 was
The famous or () flew Yaks exclusively as their fighters, amassing a notable record on the Eastern Front. One of their best was Marcel Albert, who I got to know when I was editor of the Washing County News in Chipley, FL. I had the honor of covering his funeral, which was attended by high-ranking representatives from France and Russia..
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcel_Albert
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escadron_de_Chasse_2/30_Normandie-Niemen
It meant to list the Normandie-Niemen unit but copying it from Wikpedia proved futile
The Yak-1 was a good fighter.. But the Yak-3 was the unequivocal best fighter of the war. Fun fact: The Nazis actually told their pilots to "avoid a dogfight with a Yak-3 at all costs!" :-).
The Polikarpov I-16 was not really inferior to the Bf-109 in Spain , the real problem was the lack of training that Republican and Soviet pilots had compared to the pilots of the Legion condor .
True, the difference is not yet that great in 1936 as people think because they mentally use a comparison from 1941. Not all Bf-109's were created equal, the A's and B's deployed in Spain were a far cry from the E's and F's that the I-16, which could not be upgraded to nearly the same degree, faced in Barbarossa.
Forever gratitude to the Soviet fighters! Greetings from Sweden.
If we are just talking about soviet aircrafts, it would be the La-5FN, it was a good plane, but it still is in 6° place in WWII aircraft that I like in general
The La-5FN was superior in combat to both the FW-190 and the Me-109. At low and medium altitudes, when meeting the La-5FN (on equal terms), the FW-190 had no chance of survival. The Me-109G2 (3-point) had a small chance of escaping from the La-5FN.
"Troop tests of the La-5FN took place in July-August 1943 in the 32nd Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment on the Bryansk Front. Over the course of a month, 14 Soviet pilots shot down 21 FW190s, three Bf 109G-2s and He 111s, five Ju 88s and one Ju 87 in 25 air battles. In doing so, they lost four aircraft."
The FW-190 and Me-109 are no longer on the list. Which 5 fighters were better than the La5FN?
@@alexanderleo8947 So you are using the soviet results? yeah no bias at all, the soviets were know to be truthfull in WWII, yeah? if you are using the 1943 data, the FW 190 A-5/6 aand even the A-7 were flying at 660 km/h, while the La 5FN was at 620 Km/h ( the 648 Km/h was only in the prototype), so yeah, supirior to the FW 190, also remember remember the four 20 mm cannons in the 190 against the two in the La-5, if you said something about the kill ratio of that plane don''t forget that in the same year the 190 had a 60:1 kill ratio (more show like 120:2 but is the same) funny enought the soviets always demerit the FW 190 saying that only it's radial engine serve as a shield, same can be told to the La-5, so yeah that aircraft was still under the 190, like it or not, the more the soviets insulted the aircraft the more they feared
@@ricardobeltranmonribot3182 July-August 1943. Battle of Kursk. 1/JG51, 3/JG51, 4/JG51, 1/JG54, aircraft FW-190A-4, FW-190A-5 (A-6 entered production - June, July 1943. A-7 entered production - November 1943).
Speed Fw-190A-4 - at an altitude of 6000 m - 624 km / h. At ground level - 520 km / h. Time to climb to 5000 m is 6.9 minutes.
Speed Fw-190A-5 - at an altitude of 6000 m - 625 km / h. 4500 m - 590 km / h. 1500 m - 530 km / h.
La-5FN speed (serial June 1943) - at 6250m - 634 (6000m - 646) km/h. At sea level (normal) - 539 km/h. (forced) - 583 km/h. (Maximum speed at ground level - 595 km/h).
La-5FN "standard" - 597 km/h at ground level, 670 km/h at 3250m and 680 km/h at 6300m. It took it only 4.45 minutes to reach 5000m.
Experimental La-5 ("backup type 39", March 1943) - speed at ground level with afterburner 595 km/h. At 3250m - 626 km/h. At 6300m - 648 km/h. (You probably wrote about this "only the prototype had 648 km/h").
On the Eastern Front, air battles were fought at low and medium altitudes. There were no battles at 6000 m.
At low and medium altitudes, the La-5FN was superior to the Fw-190A in everything except armament, ease of control and diving (the La-5FN was much lighter).
The main thing is that air battles were fought at "combat speed", which is much less than the maximum. The combat speed and acceleration speed of the Fw-190A were very low. And the turn time, climb, etc. The Fw-190A was not very suitable for a frontline fighter. But as an attack aircraft and an air defense aircraft, it was excellent.
@@ricardobeltranmonribot3182 Fw-190A victories 60:1 (120:2), in one day on July 6. Where Bergström got this data from, we do not know. If in one day only FW-190A destroyed 120 aircraft, then in 50 days of the Battle of Kursk they destroyed 3000 aircraft. And they themselves lost 100 aircraft. It turns out that 1/JG51, 3/JG51, 4/JG51, 1/JG54 destroyed all the USSR aircraft, leaving none. This is like the experts (aces) of the Luftwaffe. If you add up all their victories, they destroyed more aircraft than they produced and received under Lend-Lease in the USSR. But in reality, JG 51 (squadron) that fought in the Battle of Kursk lost all its FW190 and switched to Me-109. First, the IV Group of the 51st Squadron immediately after the defeat of the Wehrmacht in the Battle of Kursk. A little later, I./JG 51, then III./JG 51. In March 1943, I./JG 51 was already losing all of its FW190s. In 1 year, 200% of FW190 losses. And the attack aircraft of SchG 1 lost 102 of 85 FW-190F aircraft in the Battle of Kursk.
For comparison: the 32nd Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment (USSR) - 1943 (for the entire year):
2883 combat sorties. Enemy aircraft shot down in 1943 - 184 aircraft (141 fighters shot down in air combat, 43 bombers shot down in air combat).
Own aircraft losses in 1943. - 21 combat losses (12 shot down in air battles, 9 did not return from a combat mission). 8 non-combat losses.
Pilots killed - 18 people 1943 (Fought on La-5, La-5FN).
The soviets were caught out with poor aircraft in 41 and appalling tactics hence the slaughter at the hands of the Luftwaffe. By 43 they could hold their own with much better fighters ground attack and tactical bombers. Being a soviet pilot in 41-43 was a demoralising experience.
My heart is split between the Yak 3 and the La 5. I would go for the La 5 for its robustness and higher power, and for the Yak-3 for its agility and effectiveness. So it's a tie!
Of course , Yakovlev 's planes were successful machines . However, the best Soviet ace - Ivan Kozhedub flew the La-5fn. Another Soviet ace, Alexander Pokryshkin, revered the American P-39 aerocobra. 🙂
Most beautiful WW2 fighter
The later Yak-9 variants were all metal and some of the fastest prop planes of WW2.
all metal version of Yak 9 was produced after war. During the war all the russian aircrafts were partly wooden, because of costs of production and lack of aluminium
@@tomekpawwawNot sure there was a lack of aluminum.
The Soviet tank engines used a lot of aluminum, afaik 🤔
@@Kuschel_K I tmean high quality aluminium based alloys. Cast Aluminium for engine blocks is not the same stuff as aircraft dural.
@@tomekpawwaw I see 🤔
This is about the Soviet air force, not the Russian air force. It's a good video and the Yak1 helped beat the Nazis.
Great episode . Very informative too . There were no shortage of female pilots in their squadrons . Gutsy fighters .
I love how it took the Spanish Civil War to prove the 109 was superior to the I-15's and 16's. Who would have guessed!
Favorite is La5FN
7:27 Pretty sure that's 20mm ammunition and not 12.7mm 🤔
No, it had a single 12.7mm machine gun.. Along with the 20mm shvak.
@@jonredcorn862yeah but the image subtitle says 12.7mm ammo being replenished. But it’s a belt of 20mm rounds.
Russian pilots favorites was P-39 and La-5FN. Just check memoirs of best Russian aces.
250kg bomb would be nice. Warthunder says 100lg or 50kg only :(
Yak 3 followed by LA9
Yak-3 in fact I have one!
TBH iIt seems like the Soviet equivalent of the Hawker Hurricane.
When I clicked on the video the views were at 999 so I'm you're 1k view 😎
The 'Night Witches', the female Russian pilots in the war flew this plane and Lillia Latovik, (the White Lily) downed 12 German planes with it, including an ace with 59 kills to his name.
The ace tried to gift her his watch but she refused
Fave Soviet fighter was lag5 read design history of yak9 said flyable me 109 crashed and was whisked away and reverse engineered much as Zero was.
My favourite is the yak 3
yak 9 is the best
Da, Kharasha Tabarishe, Yaks were well designed, practical aircraft--like Deutsches A/C , Heavy Guns were Centrally located---- unlike most U.S. Fighters. dozhdii
Ilyushin IL-2 Sturmovik
It would have been interesting if the Soviets obtained a license to produce the Rolls Royce Merlin engine and fit it into the Yak fighters.
You can sell the license but you cannot sell thousands of skilled workers and engineers to build RRs in USSR in 1940s...
It took Britain at least 200 years to create dynasties of skilled workers and equipment able to build Rolls Royses.
This luxury wasn't accessible in agricultural country torn by WWI, 2 revolutions and civil war.
In 1920-30 - imagine that you have only 1 engineer instead of 10 and most of your workers are from countryside with 3 classes of school at best.
In 1940s - 80% of these workers went to fight on the frontline replaced with women and teenagers in relocated factories...
Actually, it's a miracle on its own that USSR with this set of cards was able to produce something potent at all...
Merlins excelled at the higher altitude fights in the West.
Not such an issue in the East.
I like the MIG 3
Looks a little bit like the spitfire.
MiG-3; 'cause it's fast. And it was there.
the Russia of Tsar Vlad the Intriguer and the Soviet Union of Stalin,
resemble each other mostly in the pathological sociopathic paranoia
of the two leaders share
the Russians were very lucky that the British had destroyed 10000 luftwaffe aircraft in the Battle of Britain and in Africa.
That made all the difference that stopped Russia from being overrun and destroyed.
Interesting fact, from 1926 to 1933 the Russians formed an Alliance with the nazis and trained their nazis colleagues at Lipetsk, Russia.
Bro it takes 1 second to check the wiki and realise that Nazis came to power in 1933, and when that happend, tank schools were closed asap
The lack of radios would seem to be a huge tactical disadvantage, at least to modern western eyes.
9K FTW, also 9T
Any of the LAGG aircraft.
Is it me or this guy sounds Portuguese?
Nickolas Vista
For USSR, it's very hard to pick any other fighter than the Yak-3 as a favorite. It is just that good.
CCCP?
@@dallesamllhals9161 That is what USSR translates to yes?
Or are you seriously saying you've never seen it used???
@@DIREWOLFx75 Erh no? US = United States!(of 'murica)
When! Were the Eastern Blocs united in ♥...?
GoT-Wolf: Write something...
@@dallesamllhals9161 USSR=Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
CCCP is the same in Russian but is in cyrillic letters.
"Союз Советских Социалистических Республик"
"Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik"
@@DIREWOLFx75 ..and in latin letters - what does 'Job twaje madjt' mean? (can Google-tran' help?)
I'm Russian. It's shame.
Some russian tank just flew the soviet flag few days ago. Mad and blood thirsty.