Oliverlovesplanes
Airman 1st Class
- 180
- Mar 9, 2026
Does anyone know If these fighters ever faced the axis/allies?....Fighting for Romania, I believe they have served with the russians and french.
I.A.R. 80 (Romania) (1939) (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Oliverlovesplanes
- Start date
cammerjeff
Tech Sergeant
Yes they only Flew for Romania as far as I know, in its fighter and dive bomber versions, they fought the russians from 1941-44 when Romania switched sides, after that date they flew alongside Russia, and would have faced German and Hungarian forces.
fubar57
General
If you find find this book at a decent price, you could pretty much build one
I didn't realize there were so many variants.....
.....and with each variant came change. I believe three different instrument panels, markings and camouflage schemes among others.
special ed
1st Lieutenant
- 7,101
- May 13, 2018
It is my understanding they intercepted B-24s during the Ploesti raids where they were misidentified as Fw 190s by USAAC aircrew.
These are, more likely, just production batches - in most cases, the changes were minor.
fubar57
General
From the book, more than minor changes.....
I suppose that the differences between the various production batches of the LaGG-3 were greater.
Actually the P-24, IIRC. A slightly modified rear part of the fuselage was of the Polish fighter. The entire rest of the kite including the engine was the new design.
The known air battle between P-38 and IAR-80 planes was a follows acoording to AI:
The most famous engagement between Romanian IAR-80/IAR-81C fighters and American P-38 Lightnings occurred on June 10, 1944, during a low-level USAAF raid on the Ploiești oil refineries in Romania. [1, 2]
Key Details of the Battle (June 10, 1944)
Performance Comparison
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuhaH5G6Obs
The most famous engagement between Romanian IAR-80/IAR-81C fighters and American P-38 Lightnings occurred on June 10, 1944, during a low-level USAAF raid on the Ploiești oil refineries in Romania. [1, 2]
Key Details of the Battle (June 10, 1944)
- The Combatants: Captain Dan Vizanty led 23 to 26 Romanian IAR-81C fighters of Grupul 6 Vânătoare against roughly 75 to 94 American P-38 Lightnings from the USAAF 1st and 82nd Fighter Groups. [1, 2, 3]
- The Setting: American P-38s were heavily loaded with bombs and flying at low altitudes (between 100 and 300 feet), which completely neutralized their high-altitude speed and performance advantages. [1, 2, 3]
- Tactics & Surprise: The Romanian IAR-81Cs dove from higher altitude and caught the American formation off-guard in a fast-moving, chaotic dogfight that lasted only about four minutes. [1, 2, 3]
- Losses and Claims:
USAAF: Official American records show 22 to 24 P-38s lost during the mission (with around 9 to 14 shot down directly by the IAR-80s). American pilots initially claimed over 30 enemy aircraft, often misidentifying the IAR-80s as German Focke-Wulf Fw 190s.Romanian Air Force (FARR): Romanians claimed up to 23–24 victories while officially suffering about 3 to 4 losses (including operational and mid-air collisions). [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Performance Comparison
- IAR-80 / IAR-81C Advantages:
Light, nimble, and highly maneuverable in tight, low-altitude dogfights.Deadly when the twin-engine P-38 was slowed down by heavy bomb loads or low-level evasion. [1, 2, 3, 4]
- P-38 Lightning Advantages:
Superior speed, heavy armament, armor protection, and performance at high altitude (above 6,000 meters), where the IAR-80 was completely outclassed by later Allied fighters like the P-51 Mustang. [1, 2, 3]
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuhaH5G6Obs
Last edited:
The book I mentioned above contains detailed information about the air combat on June 10, 1944. Please avoid quoting the AI slop - you have already been asked about this.
GrauGeist
Generalfeldmarschall zur Luftschiff Abteilung
From what I understand, is when the USAAF attacked Ploesti in June '44 with P-38's, they thought the IAR80s and IAR81s were Fw190s.
Yes but what difference does it make...threy were flying low a slow and IAR 80s used the altitude as an advantage.
GrauGeist
Generalfeldmarschall zur Luftschiff Abteilung
Well, two things here:
First of all, the USAAF pilots had not encountered the IAR80/81 before and the misidentification can be understandable, as the Germans only had one radial-engined fighter in service.
Secondly, thinking that they were Fw190s would have them engaging the IAR80/81s using known traits and weaknesses of the Focke-Wulf, which the IAR did not possess.
special ed
1st Lieutenant
- 7,101
- May 13, 2018
Don't forget poor recognition ability. Most pilots taking a nap break in recognition classes, lights off & slide projector.
Most, even model builders, had not heard of I.A.R. and their products
Most, even model builders, had not heard of I.A.R. and their products
smutny
Airman 1st Class
GrauGeist
Generalfeldmarschall zur Luftschiff Abteilung
There's quite a few aircraft that were involved in WWII that people are not aware of.
The front line favorites tend to steal the spotlight, but quite a few nations built native aircraft, sometimes only as limited production, but they are out there.
Yugoslavia built a fighter, the Ikarus IK-2, which did participate, but the political shift at the time stopped production after about 5 were produced.
Another native Yugoslav fighter, was the Rogozarski IK-3, which saw 6 operational (out of 12 built) and performed well against Axis fighters before they were destroyed by ground crews to avoid capture.
Bulgaria had their DAR-10, which was a single- engined recon and light bomber.
They also manufactured the DAR-11 fighter, which was a license-built Avia B-135.
The list goes on, but this may give an idea to the many aircraft types that get overlooked.
