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Aviation1903
@aviation1903

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The Second jet powered aircraft to fly over Soviet Russia, after the MiG-9, even if by only a few hours, is the Yak-15, a modification of the Yak-3, with a German Junkers Jumo 004 turbojet mounted on the nose of the aircraft. Along with the Saab J-21R, the Yak-15 was the only other jet fighter to successfully been converted from a piston design. Much like the MiG design, the Yak-15 would quickly be eclipsed by swepteing fighters like the MiG-15 that would soon follow. Due to its familiar design, the Yak-15 would be used extensively to certify pilots for jet powered aircraft.  The Design of the Yak-15 is little more than a turbojet slapped to the lower fuselage of the Yak-3. Very little was changed outside of a redesign of the nose section to accommodate the new engine, and new armament. Aft of the engine, a steel heatshield was installed to protect the fuselage from the hot jet exhaust. Other than enlarging the vertical stabilizer, the rest of the tailplane was untouched. The tailwheel was solid steel, as during early taxi tests, the hot jet exhaust would melt the rubber tire.  After a limited production run of 15 aircraft had been ordered for further testing, the new results revealed more problems. The thick wing, inherited from the piston driven Yak-3 proved to be detrimental to top speed. Due to the tail dragger configuration, the downwards angle of the exhaust was known to damage the airfield surface. Most concerning, perhaps, was the cockpit was known to fill with smoke from kerosene and oil that would drip onto the hot engine. Despite these issues, the Yak was extremely easy to fly, due to its familiar ancestry, and was accepted into production for training purposes.  #aviationhistory #aviation #av8ers #aviationgeek #wwiiaviation #coldwar #aviationlovers #planes #planesoffame #USAF #USAAF #avgeek #flight #airplane #aircraft #instaaviation #warbirds #warbird #aviation1903 #fighterpilot #militarypilot #airforcepilot #militaryaircraft