An enemy for the amazing Yak 36 made by the magnificent S3
The Yakovlev Yak-141 (Russian: ???????? ??-141; NATO reporting name "Freestyle"), also known as the Yak-41, was a supersonic vertical takeoff/landing (VTOL) fighter aircraft designed by Yakovlev. It did not enter production.[1]
Yakovlev always believed the Yak-38 to be an interim aircraft, developed to gain experience designing and developing military VTOL aircraft. Even before the Yak-38's introduction, the Soviet Navy desired a more comprehensive aircraft, with greater capabilities than the Yak-38 offered. The result was a design contract offered to Yakovlev in 1975 without any competition. The requirement was for an aircraft with only one mission: air defense of the fleet. Unlike the Yak-38, this aircraft was to have sustained supersonic speed. Maneuverability, radar and weapons loads were expected to be similar to those of current front-line fighters. For the Soviet Navy this aircraft was to be their next generation VTOL fighter. For Yakovlev the aircraft was viewed as a way of returning to designing Soviet fighter aircraft.[1]
Because of the importance and complexity of the project, Alexander Sergeyevich Yakovlev assigned a large portion of his OKB to the development of the new VTOL fighter, with no fewer than ten chief engineers working simultaneously on what was called "Product 48" (the military had designated it Yak-41). Over fifty designs were studied. One key problem was designing an aircraft with both vectoring thrust and an afterburner, which was essential for sustained supersonic speeds. A twin-engine design was considered, but abandoned as the loss of an engine on landing would result in an immediate roll to the side. Eventually it was decided that the best arrangement was a single vectoring nozzle located just behind the center of gravity, as well as dedicated vertical thrust jets positioned just behind the cockpit. A considerable amount of time was spent in the development of a flat, rectangular nozzle similar to that later employed on the American F-22 Raptor. Such a nozzle proved well-suited for the changes in configuration needed for both thrust vectoring and supersonic flight, and allowed for a thin, shallow tail. Ultimately, a circular nozzle was used, located between twin booms supporting the twin-finned tail.
Crew: 1
Length: 18.36 m (60 ft 2¼ in)
Wingspan: 10.105 m (33 ft 1½ in)
Height: 5.00 m (16 ft 5 in)
Wing area: 31.7 m² (341 ft²)
Empty weight: 11,650 kg (25,683 lb)
Max. takeoff weight: 19,500 kg (42,989 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × MNPK Soyuz R-79V-300 lift/cruise turbofan
Dry thrust: 108 kN (24,300 lbf)
Thrust with afterburner: 152 kN (34,170 lbf)
Lift engines: 2x RKBM RD-41 turbojets 41.7 kN (9,300 lbf) thrust each)
Performance
Maximum speed: 1,800 km/h (1,118 mph, Mach 1.4+)
Range: 2,100 km (1,305 mi)
Ferry range: 3,000 km (1,865 mi)
Service ceiling: 15,500 m (50,853 ft)
Rate of climb: 15,000 m/min (49,213 ft/min)
Armament
Guns: 1 × 30 mm GSh-301 cannon with 120 rounds
Hardpoints: 4 underwing and 1 fuselage hardpoints with a capacity of 2,600 kg (5,733 lb) of external stores and provisions to carry combinations of:
Missiles: R-73 Archer, R-77 Adder or R-27 Alamo air-to-air missiles
time to take it to america !
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Topic: Yakovlev Yak-141 (Read 6590 times)
