Will be the first to admit...I am NOT the best searcher in the world...not good with computers in general. But.....I DID use the search bar, with the same words that are in the topic, and I came up with Zero. Wiki says the Yak-9 was a pretty good plane, but they intimated that it was, perhaps, not as fast at the higher altitudes for some reason. Not sure they specified a number, but I got a feeling it was, maybe, the 20k and above mark where it was not as good as a BF109. Maybe it lacked a supercharger that could cram more air in at the higher altitudes.? Anyway.....for you guys that know WWII planes.......How did the Russian Fighter compare to other planes of the day.? A Mustang or a BF109 for example. Thank You
The last major version of the Yak-9 which saw service in WW2, was the all-metal Yak-9U, flew first in Jan 1944, and became operational in the second half of that year. The new 1,600 hp engine raised the top speed to 700 km/hr, and apparently it could climb to 16,400 feet nearly 30 seconds faster than a Bf 109G. The final Yak-9 variant (Yak-9P, briefly referred to as Yak-11) saw service in Korea 1950-53.
In general the Soviets didn't seem to worry too much about high altitude performance. The air battle in the East for the most part seems to have concentrated at lower levels. The Soviets had a saying that translates to "Better is the enemy of good enough" and seem to have lived by it. Especially in the situation they were in it had considerable merit. Here are some links with at least basic info or links to it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:World_War_II_Soviet_fighter_aircraft http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_aircraft_of_the_Red_Army_Air_Forces http://www.militaryfactory.com/aircraft/ww2-soviet-military-aircraft.asp http://www.world-war-2-planes.com/soviet-aircraft.html http://www.aircraftaces.com/ww2-aircraft-russia.htm http://www.chuckhawks.com/best_fighter_planes.htm The Black Star Red Cross books are or were considered the best references to the air war in the east. I think some are being reprinted and used copies are for sale. Here's an Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=black%20cross%20red%20star&sprefix=black+cross+re%2Cstripbooks
denny, go to this thread and scroll down. there are pictures of a contemporary Yak 9 That I got a great ride in. http://www.ww2f.com/user/6061-gtblackwell/?tab=reputation&app_tab=forums&type=received&st=15 In the late 80's Yak dug out their drawings and jigs and fabricated roughly 20+ "New" 9's for sale to the warbird market. They installed Allison 1710's in place of the original Klimov engines for ease of maintenance.. Both the Allison and Klimov had single stage superchargers ( mechanically driven) and later turbosuperchargers (exhaust driven) Now days we tend to use turbocharger for the later. The trick was the single stage ( or single speed ) engine could not engulf enough oxygen at higher altitudes. The reason the P-51 B , Allison powered , was not good at high altitudes. The two stage Rolls Merlin simply pulled in more air up high.. The later Yak 9's held their own quite well with the 109's at mid altitudes. They were slightly less well armed and though armament varied typical was a single 20mm and one 12.7 mm. Gaines If you will email me ar gtblackwell@gmail.com I will send you more pictures of the 9 here in Auburn
It's been claimed that Ivan Kozhedub, the top Soviet and Allied ace with 64 kills, shot down two P-51s that jumped him, but the story is disputed. Kozhedub mainly flew La-5s and -7s.
