Over 36,000 Ilyushin IL-2 Sturmoviks were manufactured by the Soviet Union. The front fuselage of the aircraft was essentially an armored “bathtub”, the armor plate ranging in thickness from 5-12mm (2-5 inches), designed to protect the engine, the pilot’s cockpit, the coolant and oil radiators, and the fuel tanks.
Reliable and tough, but relatively slow (top speed was only about 250mph) and not especially maneuverable, the Sturmovik was armed with two forward firing 23mm cannons and two 7.62mm machine guns. The air-to-ground armament of the IL-2 included rockets, which were very inaccurate, and small “shaped charge” 1.5 kg (3.3 lb.) bomblets, which were first used on a large scale during the Battle of Kursk in July 1943, and which could easily penetrate the upper armor of the German heavy tanks.…
You're reading a preview of
Flight Journal (Digital) - 1 Issue, January - February 2022