Lavochkin-Gorbunov-Gudkov LaGG-1

LaGG-1

Role: Fighter
Manufacturer: Lavochkin-Gorbunov-Gudkov OKB
First flight: 30 March 1940
Status: prototype only
Produced: 1940
Number built: 100
Variants: LaGG-3 La-5 La-7

The Lavochkin-Gorbunov-Gudkov LaGG-1 was a Soviet fighter aircraft of World War II. Although not very successful, it formed the basis for a series of aircraft that would eventually become some of the most formidable Soviet fighters of the war.

History

The LaGG-1 was designed in 1938 as a light-weight aircraft designed around the Klimov M-105 engine and built out of laminated wood to save on strategic materials. The first prototype flew on March 30, 1940, and once some initial difficulties had been worked out of the design, proved to be promising, if somewhat short of what its designers had hoped for. By this stage, however, the need to modernise the Soviet Air Force had been made plain by recent losses in the Winter War with Finland, and the aircraft, initially designated I-22 was ordered into production.

Some 100 aircraft were sent to evaluation squadrons, where their shortcomings quickly became obvious. The aircraft was clearly underpowered, and lacked agility and range. Furthermore, while the seven prototypes had been carefully custom-built and finished to a very high standard, the mass-produced examples were comparatively crude, and this only added to the existing weaknesses.

As reports of these problems came back to the design team, a series of modifications were undertaken that would result in the LaGG-3.

Operators

Soviet Union

Soviet Air Force

Specifications (LaGG-1)

General characteristics

Crew: One
Length: 8.81 m (28 ft 11 in)
Wingspan: 9.80 m (32 ft 2 in)
Height: 4.40 m (14 ft 5 in)
Wing area: 17.5 m² (188 ft²)
Empty weight: 2,478 kg (5,463 lb)
Loaded weight: 2,968 kg (6,543 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 3,380 kg (7,452 lb)
Powerplant: 1x— Klimov M-105P liquid-cooled V-12, 820 kW (1,100 hp)

Performance

Maximum speed: 605 km/h (377 mph)
Range: 556 km (346 mi)
Service ceiling: 9,600 m (31,500 ft)
Rate of climb: 14.3 m/s (2,804 ft/min)
Wing loading: 170 kg/m² (35 lb/ft²)
Power/mass: 270 W/kg (0.17 hp/lb)

Armament

2x 7.62 mm ShKAS machine guns located above the engine
1x 20 mm ShVAK cannon firing through the propellor hub

Bibliography

Abanshin, Michael E. and Gut, Nina. Fighting Lavochkin, Eagles of the East No.1. Lynnwood, WA: Aviation International, 1993. ISBN unknown.
Gordon, Yefim. Lavochkin's Piston-Engined Fighters (Red Star Volume 10). Earl Shilton, Leicester, UK: Midland Publishing Ltd., 2003. ISBN 1-85780-151-2.
Gordon, Yefim and Khazanov, Dmitri. Soviet Combat Aircraft of the Second World War, Volume One: Single-Engined Fighters. Earl Shilron, Leicester, UK: Midland Publishing Ltd., 1998. ISBN 1-85780-083-4.
Green, William. Warplanes of the Second World War, Volume Three: Fighters. London: Macdonald & Co. (Publishers) Ltd., 1961 (seventh impression 1973). ISBN 0-356-01447-9.
Green, William and Swanborough, Gordon. WW2 Aircraft Fact Files: Soviet Air Force Fighters, Part 1. London: Macdonald and Jane's Publishers Ltd., 1977. ISBN 0-354-01026-3.
Keskinen, Kalevi; Stenman, Kari and Niska, Klaus. Venx¤lx¤iset Hx¤vittx¤jx¤t (Suomen Ilmavoimien Historia 7) (in Finnish with English Summary). Espoo, Finland: Tietoteos, 1977. ISBN 951-9035-25-7.
Stapfer, Hans-Heiri. LaGG Fighters in Action (Aircraft in Action Number 163). Carrollton, TX: Squadron/Signal Publications, Inc., 1996. ISBN 0-89747-634-7.

Related development

LaGG-3
La-5
La-7

Comparable aircraft

Messerschmitt Bf 109
Supermarine Spitfire
Curtiss P-40
Kawasaki Ki-61

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Source: WikiPedia