Worlds only flying IL-2 Sturmovik

[beaupower32]

In Russian


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jphYnNJQAnw

 

[Crimea_River]

Excellent news. I had no idea of its existence til now. Thanks BP.

I wish I could understand the dialogue.

 

[beaupower32]

Yeah, I had no Idea either till this morning. Very neat to see one flying. To me looks like it even comes with the original bullet holes.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

Very cool, I too was not aware there was a flying example left.

 

[Matt308]

I never paid attention that they had dual strut main gear!

 

[Snautzer01]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jphYnNJQAnw

 

[herman1rg]

Awesome

 

[imalko]

Cool stuff! Great to see this bird again in the air!
Didn't know the Russians were working on such restoration.

 

[Wurger]

Great news.

 

[Thorlifter]

VERY COOL!!!!!

He sure did bounce that landing at the end, though!

 

[Airframes]

Great to see.

 

[A4K]

Fantastic!!!! Didn't realise how good looking the Sturmovik was until now...

 

[Gnomey]

Great news!

 

[Aaron Brooks Wolters]

WHOA! How cool is that? WOW!

 

[vikingBerserker]

Awesome!

 

[pbfoot]

much bigger then I thought

 

[hitoshi]

WOW absolutely amazing to see one of these famous ground-assault aircraft actually flying again!

 

[Matt308]

VERY COOL!!!!!

He sure did bounce that landing at the end, though!

Really?!? Wasn't bad at'all.

 

[mudpuppy]

Google translate does a fair job with the Cyrillic text with the YT video...but there are oobvious errors. Still it looks like they are trying to avoid modern materials and be faithful to original design materials/specifications.

Siberian engineers restored and raised to the sky legendary Soviet Il-2. It was restored from fragments found in the marshes near Pskov. Several years of hard work - and a favorite of pilots over the front received a command to take off.
After "the propeller" aircraft begins to accelerate. For a test pilot Vladimir Barsukov's first flight on the legendary IL-2. 200 meter acceleration - and attack aircraft takes off.
To lift the aircraft into the sky, Novosibirsk designers worked long 6 years. Found in the swamps of the Pskov region fragments of ground attack was reduced in the literal sense of millimeters. We had found in the archives, to examine and summarize the dozens of drawings, in which during the war years in several aircraft plants were collected irreplaceable for the Soviet Army of IL-2. "The problem is that they have a different design. There may be elements are different. It is very difficult to fit everything into a single model," - explains the design engineer.
All were released about 40 thousand stormtroopers. Armored aircraft designers nicknamed "flying tank". In the restored fuselage of the IL-2 can be counted more than a dozen openings of the fragments exploded shells and bullets. Well preserved and almost all bronekapot bearing housing design. The plane's tail had to be replaced: the original was made of wood, and almost completely rotted away.
Beyond repair and the doors covering the landing gear. New - a replica of relatives. They are fabricated from aluminum, manually giving special characteristic of the IL-2 curve. "It just will not do this part. We do only from the material as before. Do not use plastics. Vykleit One of fiberglass, but it would not IL-2, and that something is not right" - says Chief Designer Victor Lushin.
In general, most of the details and mechanisms of the plane - the original, including instruments in the cockpit. All in good condition and everything working properly.
Aircraft such modifications began to produce after 1942. First attack aircraft production were single. However, in the early years of the war army suffered huge losses of silt that had no military weapons, so it was decided to add the aircraft cabin for the shooter.
White garrison cap on the keel - in the war years, a sign of belonging to the 298th Air Division. Blue cook - as in the 198th regiment assault. This color is restored to attack aircraft have chosen not accidentally. "This is in memory of all the pilots who flew the IL-2. And in this case - is in honor of our great pilot who lives twice Hero of the Soviet Union, Marshal Yefimov," - said president of the Federation of Russia, Boris aviarestavratorov Ossetia.
To his credit - more than two hundred combat missions. Personally, knocked out 126 tanks and dozens of destroyed 8 enemy aircraft on the ground.

 

[Capt. Vick]

Awesome! Hopefully we will keep seeing restorations like this from the Motherland. But did you notice how the pilot "crossed" himself before take-off? SOP or a real plee to a higher power to make it through the flight! LOL "Sure Ivan, that bolt goes there...or maybe there...whatever. It's good enough for collective peoples factory work."