Yakovlev Yak-50
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Yakovlev Yak-50(1949) was an early turbojet interceptor aircraft designed by the Yakovlev OKB in USSR. The Yak-50 designation was later reused for an unlimited aerobatic all-metal monoplane with low wing and retractable landing gear with tail wheel.
Specifications for Yak-50
CONSTRUCTION : ALL METAL SEMI MONOCOQUE STRUCTURE WITH FABRIC COVERED FLYING CONTROL SURFACES
POWERPLANT : ONE x VEDENEEV (IVCHENKO) 14P NINE CYLINDER, AIR-COOLED RADIAL ENGINE RATED AT 360 hp.
WING SPAN : 9.50 m (31 ft 2 in.)
LENGTH : 7.68m (25 ft 2 in.)
HEIGHT : 2 m (7 ft. 2 in.)
WEIGHT (EMPTY) : 765 kg. (1,683 lb.)
WEIGHT (ALL UP WEIGHT): 900 kg. (1,985 lb.)
RANGE : 500 klm. (310ml.)
SPEED (MAX) : 486 kph.
CEILING (MAX) : 5,500 m (18,050 ft.)
CLIME RATE : 3500ft/min
CRUISE SPEED : 260 kph
aerobatic aircraft.
Development
A February 21, 1949 Sovmin order requested the Yakovlev OKB to design a lightweight interceptor capable of Mach 0.97 at 4,000 m (13,000 ft) and utilizing the Klimov VK-1 engine which first appeared on Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 and MiG-17 fighters. The new aircraft flew in July 1949, becoming supersonic (Mach 1.03 at 10,000 m (33,000 ft)) in a shallow dive during one of the test flights. Yak-50 was delivered for government testing in June of 1950. In the course of the evaluation, the aircraft was commended for excellent performance but a number of deficiencies were also noted. In particular, the airbrakes were ineffective, there was significant yaw at transsonic speeds making accurate gunfire impossible, and the aircraft was difficult to land in significant crosswinds. Ultimately, upgraded MiG-17 was selected over Yak-50. Superior performance of the Yak was achieved at the expense of fuel capacity and the advantage was considered insufficient to justify producing two very different airplanes with the same engine.
Specifications (Yak-50)(1949)
General characteristics
- Crew: 1
Performance
- Thrust/weight: 0.65
Armament
2× 23 mm Nudelman-Rikhter NR-23 cannons, 80 rounds/gun
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