Soviet fighters of the Second World War. Aviation of the Second World War
Supermarine Spitfire opens the ranking of the best aircraft of the Second World War. We are talking about a British fighter jet, which has a somewhat clumsy and at the same time attractive design. Among the unique "highlights" in appearance include:
- clumsy nose;
- massive wings in the form of spades;
- lantern made in the shape of a bubble.
Speaking about the historical significance of this "old man", it must be said that he saved the Royal Military Forces during the Battle of Britain by stopping the German bombers. It was put into service at a very time - right before the start of World War II.
We are talking about one of the most recognizable German bombers, which the British fighters bravely fought. The Heinkel He 111 cannot be confused with any other aircraft due to the unique shape of the wide wings. Actually, they determine the name "111". It should be noted that this vehicle was created long before the war under the pretext of a passenger aircraft. Later, the model proved to be excellent in terms of maneuverability and speed, but during fierce battles it became clear that the performance did not meet expectations. The aircraft could not withstand the powerful attacks of rival combat aircraft, in particular from England.
At the beginning of World War II, German combat aircraft worked in the sky Soviet Union what they wanted, which contributed to the emergence of a new generation fighter - La-5. The armed forces of the USSR clearly realized the need to create a powerful combat aircraft, and they managed to complete the task by 100%. At the same time, the fighter has an extremely simple design. The cockpit does not even have the elementary instruments necessary to determine the horizon. Nevertheless, domestic pilots immediately liked the model due to its good maneuverability and speed. Literally for the first time after the release, with the help of this aircraft, 16 enemy pilot ships were eliminated.
By the beginning of World War II, the Americans were armed with many good combat aircraft, but among them the North American P-51 Mustang is definitely the most powerful. It is necessary to highlight unique story development of this weapon. Already at the height of the war, the British decided to order a batch of powerful aircraft from the Americans. In 1942, the first Mustangs appeared, which entered the replenishment of the British Air Force. It turned out that these fighters are so good that the US decided to leave them to equip their own army. A feature of the North American P-51 Mustang is the presence of huge fuel tanks. For this reason, they proved to be the best escorts for powerful bombers.
Speaking of top bombers World War II, the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, which was in service with the American forces, should be highlighted. It was nicknamed the "flying fortress", due to its good combat equipment and structural strength. From all sides, this aircraft has machine guns. Some Flying Fortress units have legendary history. With their help, many feats were accomplished. Combat aircraft fell in love with pilots due to their easy control and survivability. To destroy them, the enemy needed to make a lot of efforts.
The Yak-9, considered one of the most the most dangerous hunters to German aircraft. Many experts consider it the personification of the new century, due to its complex design and good performance. Instead of wood, which was most often used for the base, "Yak" uses duralumin. This is a multifaceted combat aircraft that was used as a fighter-bomber, reconnaissance and sometimes courier. vehicle. It is light and agile, while having powerful guns.
Another German dive bomber capable of vertically falling on a target. This is the property of the German armed forces, with the help of which the pilots managed to lay bombs on aircrafts opponents with pinpoint accuracy. Junkers Ju-87 is considered the best aircraft of the Blitzkrieg, which helped the Germans at the beginning of the war to "walk" a victorious march through many areas of Europe.
The Mitsubishi A6M Zero should be added to the list of the best military aircraft of the Patriotic War. They were operated during the battles over the Pacific Ocean. The representative of A6M Zero has quite an outstanding history. One of the most advanced aircraft of the Second World War turned out to be a very unpleasant enemy for the Americans, due to its maneuverability, lightness and range. By no means did the Japanese put too little effort into building a reliable fuel tank. Many planes could not resist enemy forces due to the fact that the tanks quickly exploded.
From the moment aircraft have evolved from single enthusiast designs to more or less mass-produced and practical aircraft, aviation has earned the closest attention of the military, over time becoming an integral part of military doctrine most developed countries.
The more difficult were the losses of the first days of the Great Patriotic War, when the vast majority of aircraft were destroyed before they even got off the ground. However, the current situation became the best incentive for the development of aircraft construction in all classes - it was necessary not only to replenish the Air Force fleet. In the current critical situation, with an acute shortage of time and resources, create fundamentally different aircraft that could at least fight on equal terms with the Luftwaffe machines, and ideally surpass them.
combat teacher
One of the most recognizable Soviet aircraft of the Great Patriotic War, which brought a huge contribution to the Victory, was the primitive biplane U-2, later renamed Po-2. This two-seat airplane was originally conceived for primary piloting training, and practically could not carry any payload - neither the dimensions of the aircraft, nor its design, nor the take-off weight, nor the small 110-horsepower engine allowed. But the U-2 coped remarkably well with the role of a “training desk” all its life.
However, quite unexpectedly for the U-2, they found quite combat use. Equipped with silencers and holders for light bombs, the aircraft became a light, miniature, but stealthy and dangerous night bomber, firmly established in this role until the end of the war. Later, I even managed to carve out some free weight to install a machine gun. Prior to this, the pilots managed only with personal small arms.
air knights
Some aviation enthusiasts consider WWII to be the golden age of fighter aviation. No computers, radars, missiles with television, radio and heat guidance. Only personal skill, experience and luck.
In the late 30s, the USSR came close to a qualitative breakthrough in the production of fighters. No matter how loved and mastered the capricious Ishachok I-16, if he could resist the Luftwaffe fighters, it was only due to the heroism of the pilots, and at an unrealistically high price. At the same time, in the bowels of the Soviet design bureaus, despite the rampant repressions, fundamentally different fighters were created.
The firstborn of the new approach, the MiG-1 quickly transformed into the MiG-3, which became one of the most dangerous Soviet aircraft of the Second World War, the main German enemy. The plane could accelerate over 600 km / h, and climb to a height of more than 11 kilometers, which was clearly beyond the strength of its predecessors. This is what determined the niche of the MiG-a - it showed itself perfectly as a high-altitude fighter, acting in the air defense system.
However, at altitudes up to 5000 meters, the MiG-3 began to lose in speed to enemy fighters, and in this niche it was supplemented first by the Yak-1, and then the Yak-9. These light vehicles had a large thrust-to-weight ratio and enough powerful weapon, for which they quickly earned the love of pilots, and not only domestic ones - the soldiers of the French regiment "Normandy - Neman", having tested several models of fighters different countries, opted for the Yak-9, which they received as a gift from the Soviet government.
However, these relatively light Soviet aircraft had a noticeable drawback - weak weapons. Most often, these were machine guns of 7.62 or 12.7 mm caliber, less often - a 20 mm cannon.
The novelty of the Lavochkin Design Bureau was devoid of this drawback - two ShVAK guns were installed on the La-5. Also on the new fighter, a return was made to air-cooled engines, which were abandoned during the creation of the MiG-1 in favor of liquid-cooled engines. The fact is that the liquid-cooled engine was much more compact - and, therefore, created less drag. The disadvantage of such an engine was its "tenderness" - it is enough for a small fragment or a random bullet to break a tube or radiator of the cooling system, and the engine immediately failed. It was this feature that forced the designers to return to bulky air-cooled engines.
By that time, a new high-power engine, the M-82, had appeared, which subsequently became very widespread. However, at that time, the engine was frankly crude, and caused many problems for aircraft designers who used it on their machines.
However, the La-5 was a serious step in the development of fighters - this was noted not only by Soviet pilots, but also by Luftwaffe testers, who eventually got a captured aircraft in good condition.
flying tank
The design of aircraft during the Great Patriotic War was typical - a wooden or metal frame acting as a power set and taking on all the loads. Outside, it was covered with sheathing - fabric, plywood, metal. An engine, armor plates, and weapons were mounted inside this structure. One way or another, but according to this principle, all the aircraft of the Second World War were designed.
This aircraft became the firstborn of a new design scheme. The Ilyushin Design Bureau realized that such an approach noticeably overweights the design. At the same time, the armor is strong enough and can be used as an element of the power structure of the aircraft. The new approach opened up new possibilities for rational use weight. This is how the IL-2 appeared - an aircraft that, because of its armor protection, was nicknamed the "flying tank".
IL-2 was an unpleasant surprise for the Germans. At first, the attack aircraft was often used as a fighter, and in this role it proved to be far from brilliant - low speed and maneuverability did not allow it to fight the enemy on equal terms, and the lack of any serious protection of the rear hemisphere quickly began to be used by Luftwaffe pilots.
And for developers, this aircraft did not become problem-free. Throughout the war, the armament of the aircraft was constantly changing, in addition, the addition of a second crew member (initially the aircraft was single) shifted the center of gravity so much back that the aircraft threatened to become uncontrollable.
However, the efforts paid off. The original armament (two 20 mm guns) was changed to a more powerful caliber - 23 mm, and then 37 mm. With such armament of the aircraft, almost everyone began to be afraid - both tanks and heavy bombers.
According to the recollections of the pilots, while firing from such guns, the plane literally hovered in the air due to recoil. The tail gunner successfully covered the rear hemisphere from fighter attacks. In addition, the aircraft could take several light bombs with it.
All this was successful, and the IL-2 became an indispensable aircraft on the battlefield, and not only the most popular and recognizable attack aircraft of the Great Patriotic War, but also the most massive combat aircraft - more than 36 thousand of them were produced in total. And if we consider that at the beginning of the war there were only 128 of them in the Air Force, then there is no doubt about its relevance.
Destroyers
A bomber has been an integral part of military aviation almost from the very beginning of its use on the battlefield. Small, large, super-large - they have always been the most technologically advanced type of combat aviation.
One of the most recognizable Soviet aircraft of the Second World War of this type is the Pe-2. Conceived as a super-heavy fighter, over time this aircraft was transformed, becoming one of the most dangerous and effective dive bombers of the war.
It is worth saying that the dive bomber, as a class of aircraft, made its debut in the Second World War. Its appearance was due to the evolution of weapons: the development of air defense systems forced the creation of more and more high-altitude bombers. However, than more height dropping bombs, the lower the accuracy of bombing. The developed tactics of using bombers meant breaking through to targets at high altitude, descending to bombing altitude, and leaving again at high altitude. The idea of dive bombing was only a matter of time.
The dive bomber does not drop bombs in level flight. It literally falls on the target, and resets from minimum height measured in literally hundreds of meters. The result is the highest possible accuracy. However, at low altitude, the aircraft is most vulnerable to anti-aircraft guns - and this could not but leave an imprint on its design.
It turns out that the dive bomber must combine the incompatible. It should be as compact as possible to minimize the risk of being shot down by anti-aircraft gunners. At the same time, the aircraft must be roomy enough, otherwise there will simply be nowhere to hang the bombs. Moreover, we must not forget about strength, because the loads on the aircraft structure during a dive, and especially the withdrawal from a dive, are enormous. And the failed Pe-2 fighter did an excellent job with his new role.
The "Pawn" was supplemented by his relative in the Tu-2 class. A small twin-engine bomber could "work" both from a dive and according to the classic bomber method. His problem is that at the beginning of the war the plane was very, very rare. However, the machine turned out to be so effective and successful that the number of modifications created on its basis is perhaps the maximum for Soviet aircraft of the Second World War.
Tu-2 was a bomber, attack aircraft, reconnaissance, interceptor, torpedo bomber... In addition to all this, there were several different variations that differed in range. However, these machines were far from really long-range bombers.
To Berlin!
This bomber is perhaps the most beautiful of the aircraft of the war years, making the IL-4 impossible to confuse with anyone. Despite the difficulty in control (which explains the high accident rate of these aircraft), the IL-4 was very popular among the troops and was used not only as a "land" bomber. Despite the excessive flight range, the aircraft was used in the Air Force as a torpedo bomber.
However, the IL-4 left its mark in history as the aircraft that carried out the first combat missions to Berlin. It happened in the autumn of 1941. However, soon the front line shifted to the East so much that the capital of the Third Reich became inaccessible to the IL-4, and then other aircraft began to “work” on it.
heavy and rare
During the Great Patriotic War, this aircraft was so rare and “closed” that it was often attacked by its own air defenses. But he performed perhaps the most difficult operations of the war.
Although the Pe-8 long-range bomber appeared in the late 30s, for a long time it was not just the most modern aircraft of this class - it was the only one. The Pe-8 had a high speed (over 400 km / h), and the fuel supply made it possible not only to fly to Berlin and back, but also to carry large-caliber bombs, up to the five-ton FAB-5000. It was the Pe-8s that bombed Koenigsberg, Helsinki, Berlin, when the front line was dangerously close to Moscow. Because of the “working range”, the Pe-8 is sometimes called a strategic bomber, and then this class of vehicles was just in its infancy.
One of the most specific operations performed by the Pe-8 is the transportation of the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs V. M. Molotov to the UK and the USA. The flights took place in the spring of 1942, the route crossed the occupied territories of Europe. The People's Commissar traveled on a special, passenger version of the Pe-8. In total, two such aircraft were built.
Nowadays, aircraft operate several dozen intercontinental flights daily, carrying thousands of passengers. However, in those years, such a flight was a real feat not only for pilots, but also for passengers. It's not even that there was a war, and the plane could be shot down at any moment. In the 1940s, comfort and life support systems in aircraft were very, very primitive, and navigation systems, in the modern sense, were completely absent. The navigator could only rely on radio beacons, the range of which was very limited, and there were none over the occupied territories, and on his own experience and the special flair of the navigator - after all, on long-haul flights, he, in fact, became the main person in the plane. It depended on him whether the plane would fly to a given point, or would stray over a poorly oriented and, moreover, enemy territory. Say what you like, but the courage of Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Molotov was not to take.
Concluding this short review Soviet aircraft of the Great Patriotic War, it would probably be useful to recall all those who, in conditions of hunger, cold, lack of the most necessary (often even freedom), developed all these machines, each of which was a serious step forward for all world aviation. The names of Lavochkin, Pokryshkin, Tupolev, Mikoyan and Gurevich, Ilyushin, Bartini will forever remain in world history. Behind them will forever be all those who helped the chief designers - ordinary engineers.
Warplanes are birds of prey in the sky. For more than a hundred years they have been shining in warriors and at air shows. Agree, it is difficult to take your eyes off modern multi-purpose devices stuffed with electronics and composite materials. But there's something special about World War II planes. It was an era of great victories and great aces who fought in the air, looking into each other's eyes. Engineers and aircraft designers from different countries came up with many legendary aircraft. Today we present to your attention a list of the ten most famous, recognizable, popular and best aircraft of the Second World War, according to the editors of the [email protected].
Supermarine Spitfire (Supermarine Spitfire)
The list of the best aircraft of the Second World War opens with the British fighter Supermarine Spitfire. He has a classic look, but a little awkward. Wings - shovels, a heavy nose, a lantern in the form of a bubble. However, it was the Spitfire that rescued the Royal air Force, stopping German bombers during the Battle of Britain. German fighter pilots, with great displeasure, found that British aircraft were in no way inferior to them, and even superior in maneuverability.
The Spitfire was developed and put into service just in time - just before the outbreak of World War II. True, an incident came out with the first battle. Due to a radar failure, the Spitfires were sent into battle with a phantom enemy and fired upon their own British fighters. But then, when the British tasted the advantages of the new aircraft, they did not use it as soon as they were used. And for interception, and for reconnaissance, and even as bombers. A total of 20,000 Spitfires were produced. For all the good things and, first of all, for saving the island during the Battle of Britain, this aircraft takes an honorable tenth place.
Heinkel He 111 is exactly the aircraft that the British fighters fought. This is the most recognizable German bomber. It cannot be confused with any other aircraft due to the characteristic shape of the wide wings. It was the wings that gave the Heinkel He 111 the nickname "flying shovel".
This bomber was created long before the war under the guise of a passenger aircraft. He showed himself very well back in the 30s, but by the beginning of World War II he began to become obsolete, both in speed and in maneuverability. For a while, he held out because of his ability to withstand big damage, but when the Allies conquered the sky, the Heinkel He 111 was "demoted" to an ordinary transporter. This aircraft embodies the very definition of a Luftwaffe bomber, for which it receives the ninth place in our rating.
At the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, German aviation did what it wanted in the sky of the USSR. Only in 1942 did a Soviet fighter appear that could fight on an equal footing with the Messerschmitts and Focke-Wulfs. It was "La-5" developed in the design bureau Lavochkin. It was created in great haste. The plane is so simple that the cockpit does not even have the most basic instruments like the artificial horizon. But the La-5 pilots immediately liked it. In the very first test flights, 16 enemy aircraft were shot down on it.
"La-5" bore the brunt of the battles in the sky over Stalingrad and Kursk salient. Ace Ivan Kozhedub fought on it, it was on him that the famous Alexei Maresyev flew with prostheses. The only problem of "La-5" that prevented him from climbing higher in our rating is appearance. He is completely faceless and expressionless. When the Germans first saw this fighter, they immediately gave it the nickname "new rat". And that's all, because it strongly resembled the legendary I-16 aircraft, nicknamed the "rat".
North American P-51 Mustang (North American P-51 Mustang)
The Americans in World War II participated in many types of fighters, but the most famous among them was, of course, the P-51 Mustang. The history of its creation is unusual. The British already at the height of the war in 1940 ordered aircraft from the Americans. The order was fulfilled and in 1942 the first Mustangs among the British Royal Air Force entered into battle. And then it turned out that the planes are so good that they will be useful to the Americans themselves.
The most notable feature of the R-51 Mustang is its huge fuel tanks. This made them ideal fighters to escort bombers, which they did successfully in Europe and in pacific ocean. They were also used for reconnaissance and assault. They even bombed a little. Especially got from the "Mustangs" to the Japanese.
The most famous US bomber of those years is, of course, the Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress". The four-engine, heavy, machine-gunned Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bomber spawned many heroic and fanatical stories. On the one hand, the pilots loved him for his ease of control and survivability, on the other hand, the losses among these bombers were indecently high. In one of the sorties, out of 300 Flying Fortresses, 77 did not return. Why? Here we can mention the complete and defenselessness of the crew from fire in front and increased risk ignition. However, the main problem was the persuasion of the American generals. At the beginning of the war, they thought that if there were a lot of bombers and they were flying high, then they could do without any escort. Luftwaffe fighters disproved this misconception. The lessons they gave were harsh. The Americans and the British had to learn very quickly, change tactics, strategy and aircraft design. Strategic bombers contributed to the victory, but the cost was high. A third of the "Flying Fortresses" did not return to the airfields.
In fifth place in our ranking of the best aircraft of World War II is the main hunter for German Yak-9 aircraft. If the La-5 was a workhorse that endured the brunt of the battles of the turning point of the war, then the Yak-9 is the aircraft of victory. It was created on the basis of previous models of Yak fighters, but instead of heavy wood, duralumin was used in the design. This made the aircraft lighter and left room for modifications. What they just didn’t do with the Yak-9. Front-line fighter, fighter-bomber, interceptor, escort, reconnaissance and even courier aircraft.
On the Yak-9, Soviet pilots fought on equal terms with the German aces, who were greatly frightened by its powerful guns. Suffice it to say that our pilots affectionately nicknamed the best modification of the Yak-9U the "Killer". The Yak-9 became a symbol of Soviet aviation and the most massive Soviet fighter during World War II. At factories, sometimes 20 aircraft were assembled per day, and in total, almost 15,000 of them were produced during the war.
Junkers Ju-87 (Junkers Ju 87)
Junkers Yu-87 "Stuka" - German dive bomber. Thanks to the ability to fall vertically on the target, the Junkers laid bombs with pinpoint accuracy. Supporting the fighter offensive, everything in the Stuka design is subordinated to one thing - to hit the target. Air brakes did not allow to accelerate during a dive, special mechanisms diverted the dropped bomb away from the propeller and automatically brought the aircraft out of the dive.
Junkers Yu-87 - the main aircraft of the Blitzkrieg. He shone at the very beginning of the war, when Germany was marching victoriously across Europe. True, it later turned out that the Junkers were very vulnerable to fighters, so their use gradually faded away. True, in Russia, thanks to the advantage of the Germans in the air, the Stukas still managed to make war. For their characteristic non-retractable landing gear, they were nicknamed "lappets". The German pilot ace Hans-Ulrich Rudel brought additional fame to the Stukas. But despite its worldwide fame, the Junkers Ju-87 was in fourth place in the list of the best aircraft of the Second World War.
In the honorable third place in the ranking of the best aircraft of World War II is the Japanese carrier-based fighter Mitsubishi A6M Zero. This is the most famous aircraft of the Pacific War. The history of this aircraft is very revealing. At the beginning of the war, he was almost the most advanced aircraft - light, maneuverable, high-tech, with an incredible range. For the Americans, Zero was an extremely unpleasant surprise, it was head and shoulders above everything they had at that time.
However, the Japanese worldview played a cruel joke with Zero, no one thought about its protection in air combat - gas tanks burned easily, the pilots were not covered by armor, and no one thought about parachutes. When hit, the Mitsubishi A6M Zero flared up like matches, and the Japanese pilots had no chance to escape. The Americans eventually learned how to deal with Zero, they flew in pairs and attacked from above, avoiding the fight on turns. They released the new Chance Vought F4U Corsair, Lockheed P-38 Lightning and Grumman F6F Hellcat fighters. The Americans admitted their mistakes and adapted, but the proud Japanese did not. Obsolete by the end of the war, Zero became a kamikaze aircraft, a symbol of senseless resistance.
The famous Messerschmitt Bf.109 is the main fighter of World War II. It was he who reigned supreme in the Soviet sky until 1942. The exceptionally successful design allowed the Messerschmitt to impose its tactics on other aircraft. He gained excellent speed in a dive. The favorite technique of the German pilots was the "falcon strike", in which the fighter swoops down on the enemy and, after a quick attack, again goes to the height.
This aircraft also had its shortcomings. He was prevented from conquering the skies of England by a low flight range. It was also not easy to escort the Messerschmitt bombers. At low altitude, he lost his advantage in speed. By the end of the war, the Messers were hard hit by both Soviet fighters from the east and Allied bombers from the west. But Messerschmitt Bf.109, nevertheless, entered the legends as best fighter Luftwaffe. In total, almost 34,000 pieces were made. This is the second largest aircraft in history.
So, meet the winner in our ranking of the most legendary aircraft of World War II. Attack aircraft "Il-2" aka "Humpback", aka "flying tank", the Germans most often called him " Black Death". The IL-2 is a special aircraft, it was immediately conceived as a well-protected attack aircraft, so it was many times more difficult to shoot it down than other aircraft. There was a case when an attack aircraft returned from a flight and more than 600 hits were counted on it. After a quick repair, the "Humpbacks" again went into battle. Even if the plane was shot down, it often remained intact, the armored belly allowed it to land in an open field without any problems.
"IL-2" went through the whole war. In total, 36,000 attack aircraft were manufactured. This made the "Hunchback" the record holder, the most massive combat aircraft of all time. For its outstanding qualities, the original design and a huge role in World War II, the famous Il-2 rightfully takes first place in the ranking of the best aircraft of those years.
Russian history
Victory Day is coming soon - one of our favorite holidays! We are starting to publish a series of articles about the Great Patriotic War: today we recall Soviet aircraft that successfully participated in military operations, and the exploits of pilots. 
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The link of his fighters entered into battle with the German bombers in the first minutes of the war. In a battle with another group of Luftwaffe vehicles, Soviet pilots used up all their ammunition, barely enough fuel to reach the airfield, but stopping the German vehicles was much more important than surviving. Realizing this, I. I. Ivanov made the first air ram in the history of the Great Patriotic War. |
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The legendary "Lavochkin" became a real workhorse of Soviet aviation: it was this aircraft that was most popular among Soviet aces- the most productive pilots of domestic aviation. Ivan Kozhedub, Nikolai Gulaev, Kirill Evstigneev fought on La-5 - the list goes on for a very long time! The famous Alexei Maresyev flew on this plane - a pilot who, due to a wound, lost both legs, but remained in the service. |
The textbook gives an idea of Russia's place in the world, of the main events in Russian and world history in the 20th and early 21st centuries. It will help schoolchildren learn to analyze the phenomena of the past, compare the features of the historical path of Russia and other countries, introduce them to new sources and opinions of scientists. The textbook is written in accordance with the requirements of the Federal State Educational Standard of Secondary (Complete) General Education.
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The Pe-2 dive bombers, which became the most massive bomber-class aircraft in the USSR, also contributed to the defeat of Nazi Germany. All-metal, nimble and maneuverable, these winged vehicles became a real disaster for the German ground forces - the accuracy of bombing strikes turned out to be extremely high, and thanks to the high speed of the Pe-2, Soviet aces-bombers evaded the attacks of German fighter aircraft. Zholudev, Anpilov, Dolina and many more pilots at the controls of their favorite "pawns" - so affectionately they called the Pe-2 - made a huge contribution to the victory Soviet army in the Great Patriotic War. |
 Photo from the site aviaru.rf |
Another legendary bomber of Soviet aviation, the Il-4, also proved itself well and even became famous during the bombing of Berlin in the summer and autumn of 1941. After the start of the war, in August, the aviation command of the Soviet Baltic Fleet developed a plan to bomb the German capital. After careful reconnaissance, the Air Force formed a special strike group of fifteen Il-4 aircraft. On the night of August 7-8, the link bombed Berlin. The Nazis were so dumbfounded that they could not react in time and shoot down the Soviet bombers with their air defense forces. All soviet cars safely returned to base. |
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Many countries joined the Second world war with obsolete types of combat aircraft. This concerns, first of all, the countries of the anti-fascist coalition, while the "axis" countries, which were the first to start active operations (Germany, Japan), re-equipped their aviation in advance. The qualitative superiority of the Axis aviation, which managed to gain air supremacy, over the aviation of the Western powers and the USSR largely explains the successes of the Germans and Japanese in the initial stages of World War II.
TB is short for "heavy bomber". It was created in the design bureau of A.N. Tupolev back in 1930. Equipped with four piston engines, the aircraft developed a maximum speed of less than 200 km / h. The practical ceiling was less than 4 km. Although the aircraft was armed with several (from 4 to 8) 7.62-mm machine guns, with its own performance characteristics(TTX) it was easy prey for fighters and could only be used with strong fighter cover or against an enemy that did not expect an attack. TB-3 at low speed and flight altitude and huge size was a convenient target for anti-aircraft artillery, including at night, as it was well illuminated by searchlights. In fact, it became obsolete almost immediately after it was put into service. This was shown by the Japanese-Chinese war that began already in 1937, where TB-3s fought on the Chinese side (some with Soviet crews).
In the same 1937, the production of TB-3 ceased, and in 1939 it was officially withdrawn from service with bomber squadrons. However, its combat use continued. So, on the first day of the Soviet-Finnish war, they bombed Helsinki and achieved success there, because the Finns did not expect an attack. By the beginning of World War II, more than 500 TB-3 remained in service. Due to the huge losses of Soviet aircraft in the first weeks of the war, ineffective attempts were made to use the TB-3 as a night bomber. In connection with the commissioning of more advanced machines, by the end of 1941, the TB-3 was completely retrained as a military transport aircraft.
Or ANT-40 (SB - high-speed bomber). This twin-engine monoplane was also developed at the Tupolev bureau. By the time it was put into service in 1936, it was one of the best front-line bombers in the world in terms of its performance characteristics. This was shown by the civil war that began soon in Spain. In October 1936, the USSR delivered the first 31 SB-2s to the Spanish Republic, in total there in 1936-1938. received 70 of these machines. The combat qualities of the SB-2 turned out to be quite high, although their intensive combat use led to the fact that by the time the Republic was defeated, only 19 of these aircraft had survived. Their engines turned out to be especially unreliable, so the Francoists converted captured SB-2s with French engines and used them in this form as training until 1951. SB-2s also performed well in the skies of China until 1942, although they could only be used under fighter cover - without it, they became easy prey for Japanese Zero fighters. The enemies had more advanced fighters, and by the beginning of the 40s the SB-2 was morally completely obsolete.
By the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, the SB-2 was the main aircraft of the Soviet bomber aviation - it accounted for 90% of the machines of this class. On the very first day of the war, they suffered heavy losses even at the airfields. Their combat use, as a rule, ended tragically. So, on June 22, 1941, 18 SB-2s made an attempt to strike at German crossings across the Western Bug. All 18 were shot down. On June 30, 14 SB-2s, together with a group of other aircraft, attacked German mechanized columns while crossing the Western Dvina. 11 SB-2s lost. The next day, when trying to repeat the attack in the same area, all nine SB-2s participating in it were shot down by German fighters. These failures forced the same summer to stop the production of SB-2, and the remaining such machines were used as night bombers. The effectiveness of their bombing was low. Nevertheless, SB-2 continued to be listed in combat strength until 1943.
Aircraft designed by N.N. Polikarpov was the main fighter of the Soviet Air Force in the first year of the war. In total, about 10 thousand of these machines were produced, almost all of which were destroyed or crashed before the end of 1942. The I-16 had many of the virtues that emerged during the war in Spain. So, he had a retractable landing gear, he was armed with automatic aircraft 20-mm guns. But maximum speed 470 km / h was already clearly insufficient to fight enemy fighters in 1941. I-16s suffered heavy losses already in the sky of China from Japanese fighters in 1937-1941. But the main drawback was poor handling. The I-16 was purposely made dynamically unstable, as it was erroneously assumed that this quality would make it difficult for the enemy to fire on it. This, first of all, made it difficult for him to control his pilots and made it impossible to purposefully maneuver in battle. The plane often fell into a tailspin and crashed. The clear combat superiority of the German Me-109 and the high accident rate forced the I-16 to be taken out of production in 1942.
French fighter Morane-Saulnier MS.406
The backwardness of the I-16 is clearly visible when compared with the MS.406, which formed the basis of French fighter aircraft by the beginning of World War II, but was already noticeably inferior in terms of its performance characteristics to the German Me-109. He developed a speed of up to 480 km / h and at the time of its adoption in 1935 was a first-class aircraft. Its dominance over Soviet cars of the same class affected Finland in the winter of 1939/40, where, piloted by Finnish pilots, they shot down 16 Soviet aircraft, losing only one of their own. But in May-June 1940, in the skies over Belgium and France in battles with German aircraft, the loss ratio turned out to be the opposite: 3:1 more for the French.
Italian Fiat CR.32 fighter
Italy, unlike the major Axis powers, had done little to modernize its air force by the start of World War II. The Fiat CR.32 biplane, put into service in 1935, remained the most massive fighter. For the war with Ethiopia, which did not have aviation, his fighting qualities were brilliant, for civil war in Spain, where CR.32s fought for the Francoists, seemed satisfactory. In the air battles that began in the summer of 1940, not only with the English Hurricanes, but also with the already mentioned French MS.406s, the slow-moving and poorly armed CR.32s were absolutely helpless. Already in January 1941, he had to be removed from service.
