


La-5
Country | Russia |
Manufacturer | Lavochkin |
Primary Role | Fighter |
Maiden Flight | 1 March 1942 |
Contributor: C. Peter Chen
ww2dbaseThe La-5 (Ла-5) fighters were designed because of the poor performance of LaGG-1 and LaGG-3 fighters, which had pushed the rival aircraft manufacturing company Yakovlev's Yak-1 into the spotlight. The design was still largely based on the LaGG-3, but when the prototype took flight in Mar 1942, the difference was easy to see; in fact, test pilots declared that the performance was on par with, or exceeding, that of Yak-7. In Jul 1942, production of La-5 began with the conversion of incomplete LaGG-3 airframes into the new design. In summer of 1943, the Germans captured a La-5FN. Test pilot Hans-Werner Lerhe flew the captured aircraft and noted that the fighter excelled at lower altitudes (below 3,000 meters) and had a high top-speed, but suffered several disadvantages including a short range and overly-complicated cockpit levers. Out of the 9,920 built, many La-5 fighters survived the war and remained in the air forces of Soviet Bloc countries.
ww2dbaseSource: Wikipedia.
Last Major Revision: Sep 2006
SPECIFICATIONS
La-5FN
Machinery | One Shvetsov ASh-82FN radial engine rated at 1,630hp |
Armament | 2x20mm ShVAK cannon, 8xRS-82 rockets or up to 500kg of bombs |
Span | 9.80 m |
Length | 8.67 m |
Height | 2.54 m |
Wing Area | 17.50 m² |
Weight, Empty | 2,605 kg |
Weight, Loaded | 3,265 kg |
Weight, Maximum | 3,402 kg |
Speed, Maximum | 648 km/h |
Rate of Climb | 16.70 m/s |
Service Ceiling | 11,000 m |
Range, Normal | 475 km |
Photographs
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Lt. Gen. Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller, at Guadalcanal
20 Dec 2006 05:40:57 PM
Maximal speed for La-5 is 403 mlsh, not kmh, which stands for ~670 kmh - close for the reality for this very good Russian fighter.