Yakovlev Yak-5

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]

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]

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]

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]

Specifications (Yak-5)

Data from Yakovlev Aircraft since 1924^[6]

General characteristics

• Crew: two, student and instructor
• Length: 7.30 m (23 ft 11⅜ in)
• Wingspan: 10.50 m (34 ft 5⅛ in)
• Height: ()
• Wing area: 17.0 m² (183 sq ft)
• Empty weight: 770 kg (1,698 lb)
• Max. takeoff weight: 940 kg (2,072 lb)
• Powerplant: 1 × Shvetsov M-11D 5-cylinder air-cooled radial engine, 86 kW (115 hp)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 250 km/h (135 knots, 155 mph)
• Range: 450 km (243 nmi,280 mi)

References

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. Gordon, Komissarov and Komissarov 2005, p. 57.
6. Gunston and Gordon 1997, p. 92.
7. Gunston 1995, p. 467.

• Gordon, Yefim, Dmitry Komissarov and Sergey Komissarov. OKB Yakovlev: A History of the Design Bureau and its Aircraft. Hinkley, UK: Midland Publishing, 2005. ISBN 1-85780-203-9.
• Gunston, Bill. The Osprey Encyclopedia of Russian Aircraft 1875–1995. London: Osprey, 1995. ISBN 1-85532-405-9.
• Gunston, Bill and Yefim Gordon. Yakovlev Aircraft since 1924. London, UK: Putnam Aeronautical Books, 1997. ISBN 1-55750-978-6.