[caption id="attachment_13593" align="alignleft" width="400"] Rear view of Ki-115 suicide aircraft [ijaafphotos.com][/caption]Following the extensive loss of men, materiel, and territory during the fighting in the Pacific, the Japanese Army and Navy were in a precarious situation, especially as there was a great possibility of an Allied invasion of their homeland. Unfortunately for them, the Japanese fighting…

While the Yak-2 prototype initially had excellent flying characteristics, once it was actually fully equipped with its military equipment, its performance dropped dangerously. A large number of issues, like overheating, poor flight stability, and problems with its hydraulics, were also noted during the development phase. Despite this, some 100 aircraft would be built and some…

During the spring of 1940, Arado was contacted by RLM officials with a request to design a completely new multi-purpose jet aircraft to be used for bombers and for reconnaissance duties. This aircraft was to be powered by new jet engines which were under development by Junkers and BMW. Interestingly, besides the request that it…

[caption id="attachment_13311" align="alignleft" width="400"] Line drawing of the P.1101 [Luftarchiv][/caption]During the war, the Germans introduced the Me 262, which had the honor of being the first operational jet fighter in the world. While it provided better performance than ordinary piston powered aircraft, it was far from perfect. The greatest issues were that it was expensive…

The story of the Modli J.M. 8 began in 1938, when an aircraft engineer from the 1st Air Force Regiment (stationed at Novi Sad), Josip Modli, finished work on a new light training aircraft design. He originally intended to design and build a single seat trainer that was cheap and simple to manufacture by using…

During the war, the Luftwaffe possessed some of the best aircraft designs and technology of the time. While huge investments and major advancements were made in piston engine aircraft development, there was also interest in newer and more exotic technologies that were also being developed at the time, such as rocket and jet propulsion. As…

[caption id="attachment_13023" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Yak-2 (BB-22) - 316th RAP Lt.I.M.Agarkov. South-West Front - July-August 1941Illustration by Ed Jackson[/caption]   D. Nešić (2008), Naoružanje Drugog Svetskog Rata SSSR, Beograd. B. Gunston and Y. Gordon (1977)Yakovlev Aircraft Since 1924, Putnam Aeronautical Books. Y. Gordon, D, Khazanov (1999) Soviet Combat Aircraft, Midland Publishing. Y. Gordon, D, Khazanov, and…

After the First World War, the Germans began experimenting with ideas on how to make aircraft more precise during ground attack operations. The use of conventional bombers that dispatched their payload from straight and level flight could effectively engage larger targets, such as urban centers, industrial facilities, infrastructure, etc. This method was less effective for…

In 1937, the German Ministry of Aviation (Reichsluftfahrtministerium RLM) issued a request to all German aircraft manufacturers for a new single-engine reconnaissance aircraft with provision for three crew members. Great attention was to be dedicated to having a good all-around visibility. In addition, the aircraft would also have to be able to act as a…

As the Yugoslav Royal Air Force began to develop and acquire more modern types of aircraft, the need for advanced training aircraft became apparent. Due to the obsolescence of older trainers, the Yugoslav Royal Air Force Command issued orders to begin developing a new series of advanced trainers in 1933. One of the designs submitted…