Yakovlev Yak-5

Last updated
Yak-5
Role Training aircraft
Manufacturer Yakovlev
First flight 7 September 1944
Primary user Soviet Air Force
Number built 1
Developed from Yakovlev UT-2

The Yakovlev Yak-5 (Russian : Яковлев Як-5) was an experimental trainer aircraft designed by Yakovlev OKB in the Soviet Union, and first flown in 1944. It was the first Yakovlev aircraft to be fitted with a variable-pitch propeller. It did not enter production. [1]

Russian language East Slavic language

Russian is an East Slavic language, which is official in the Russian Federation, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, as well as being widely used throughout Eastern Europe, the Baltic states, the Caucasus and Central Asia. It was the de facto language of the Soviet Union until its dissolution on 25 December 1991. Although, nowadays, nearly three decades after the breakup of the Soviet Union, Russian is used in official capacity or in public life in all the post-Soviet nation-states, as well as in Israel and Mongolia, the rise of state-specific varieties of this language tends to be strongly denied in Russia, in line with the Russian World ideology.

Soviet Union 1922–1991 country in Europe and Asia

The Soviet Union, officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), was a socialist state in Eurasia that existed from 30 December 1922 to 26 December 1991. Nominally a union of multiple national Soviet republics, its government and economy were highly centralized. The country was a one-party state, governed by the Communist Party with Moscow as its capital in its largest republic, the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. Other major urban centres were Leningrad, Kiev, Minsk, Alma-Ata, and Novosibirsk.

A variable-pitch propeller or controllable-pitch propeller (CPP) is a type of propeller with blades that can be rotated around their long axis to change the blade pitch. Reversible propellers—those where the pitch can be set to negative values—can also create reverse thrust for braking or going backwards without the need to change the direction of shaft revolution.

Contents

Development and design

In 1944, the Yakovlev UT-2 was the standard primary trainer of the Soviet Air Forces, but its simplicity caused problems when pilots moved on to more sophisticated aircraft, so the Yakovlev design bureau designed a more sophisticated derivative, the UT-2L, which featured an enclosed tandem cockpit, the addition of flaps and blind flying instruments. [2] [3]

Yakovlev UT-2 military trainer aircraft

The Yakovlev UT-2 was a single-engine tandem two-seat low-wing monoplane that was the standard Soviet trainer during the Great Patriotic War. It was used by the Soviet Air Force from 1937 until replaced by the Yakovlev Yak-18 during the 1950s.

Soviet Air Forces aerial warfare branch of the Soviet Unions armed forces

The Soviet Air Forces was the official designation of one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Soviet Air Defence Forces. The Air Forces were formed from components of the Imperial Russian Air Service in 1917, and faced their greatest test during World War II. The groups were also involved in the Korean War, and dissolved along with the Soviet Union itself in 1991–92. Former Soviet Air Forces' assets were subsequently divided into several air forces of former Soviet republics, including the new Russian Air Force. "March of the Pilots" was its song.

At the same time, Yakovlev designed a single-seat aircraft based on the UT-2L, intended as a fighter-trainer. This aircraft, the Yak-5, was a low-wing monoplane of wooden construction, but unlike the UT-2, had the front cockpit removed and an enclosed sliding canopy placed over the rear cockpit. A retractable tailwheel undercarriage replaced the fixed landing gear of the UT-2. It was powered by a Shvetsov M-11D five-cylinder radial producing 115 hp (86 kW), which drove a two-bladed variable-pitch propeller. It could be fitted with a single synchronized ShKAS machine gun aimed by a reflector sight, while the aircraft was also fitted with a radio. [4] [5]

Monoplane fixed-wing aircraft with a single main wing plane

A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with a single main wing plane, in contrast to a biplane or other multiplane, each of which has multiple planes.

Conventional landing gear aircraft undercarriage arrangement with main gear forward plus tail support

Conventional landing gear, or tailwheel-type landing gear, is an aircraft undercarriage consisting of two main wheels forward of the center of gravity and a small wheel or skid to support the tail. The term taildragger is also used, although some claim it should apply only to those aircraft with a tailskid rather than a wheel.

Shvetsov M-11 R-5 piston aircraft engine

The Shvetsov M-11 is a five-cylinder air-cooled radial aircraft engine produced in the Soviet Union between 1923 and 1952.

Operational history

The prototype Yak-5 first flew on 7 September 1944. [6] The new fighter-trainer's handling proved popular with its test pilots, and the aircraft successfully passed official evaluation. In the end, neither the UT-2L or the Yak-5 entered production because the Soviet Air Force command believed wooden aircraft were becoming obsolete, which would result in production of the all-metal Yakovlev Yak-18 trainer in late 1945. [5] [6] The sole Yak-5 was destroyed when it suffered failure of the wooden wing during a snap roll and crashed. [6] [7]

Yakovlev Yak-18 military training aircraft family

The Yakovlev Yak-18 was a tandem two-seat military primary trainer aircraft manufactured in the Soviet Union. Originally powered by one 119 kW (160 hp) Shvetsov M-11FR-1 radial piston engine, it entered service in 1946. It was also produced in China as the Nanchang CJ-5.

Specifications (Yak-5)

Data from Yakovlev Aircraft since 1924 [6]

General characteristics

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 250 km/h (155 mph; 135 kn)
  • Landing speed: 85 km/h (53 mph; 46 kn)
  • Range: 450 km (280 mi; 243 nmi)
  • Take-off run: 180 m (590 ft)
  • Landing run: 200 m (660 ft)

Armament

Avionics

  • PBP-1 reflector sight

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References

Notes
  1. ↑ Gunston, 1997
  2. ↑ Gunston 1995, p. 459.
  3. ↑ Gordon, Komissarov and Komissarov 2005, pp. 56–57.
  4. ↑ Gunston and Gordon 1997, p. 91.
  5. 1 2 Gordon, Komissarov and Komissarov 2005, p. 57.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Gunston and Gordon 1997, p. 92.
  7. ↑ Gunston 1995, p. 467.
Sources
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