A-Model 07208 Polikarpov I-153 Chaika Soviet IIWW fighter

The Polikarpov I-153 (colloquial name: Czajka) was a Soviet fighter and fighter-bomber from the interwar period and World War II in a half-wing arrangement. The flight of the prototype took place in 1938, and serial production continued in the period 1939-1943. The drive is provided by a single Szwecow M-62 engine. The length of the aircraft was 6.17 meters with a wingspan of 10 meters. The maximum speed was up to 445 km / h. The deck armament consisted of four 7.62 mm SzKAS machine guns. The machine could also carry bomb loads of up to 200 kilograms.

The Polikarpov I-153 was an evolutionary development of the I-15 fighter. The main changes compared to the predecessor concerned the use of the upper lobe in the so-called a seagull system, a manually retractable landing gear in flight, and the use of a more powerful engine. Finally, a fighter with lower aerodynamic resistance than the I-15, very good maneuverability, good piloting qualities, but an average maximum speed was created. The Polikarpov I-153 planes were used in combat during the war with Japan, especially during the Battle of Chałchyn-Gol in 1939, as well as during the Winter War of 1939-1940. They were also used on a large scale at the beginning of the German-Soviet war, but they were quite clearly inferior to the German machines. Therefore, they began to be shifted to school and training units.