Petlyakov VI-100

History

During World War II (1939-1945), only a few really good twin-engine heavy fighters - the British de Havilland Mosquito and the American Lockheed Lightning quickly came to mind, which became the The successful German Messerschmitt Bf 110 and the Japanese continued to produce a plethora of twin-engine types to function in major conflicts. The Soviet Union's Petlyakov Concern eventually contributed its 1941 Pe-2 dive bomber, but the platform's roots lie in a potent prewar design intended to be used as a high-altitude interceptor.

Born in the form of the "VI-100", the aircraft was designed to meet the growing needs of the Soviet Air Force to repel the then high-flying enemy threats - mainly bombers. Design work began in 1938, culminating in a streamlined, two-seater, twin-engine, all-metal product. The two crew members sit in a row (back to back) in separate cockpits. The wings are arranged as a monoplane with an engine nacelle on the leading edge of each wing. The stern features a split rudder configuration, and the undercarriage has an era-consistent "trail" shape.

The pilot's position is behind a short nose cone that contains most of the offensive weapons, and the defensive weapons are handled by the rear crew. The pilot's cockpit should be pressurized for high altitude operations. The engine of choice became 2 x Klimov M-105 inline piston engines with 1,050 hp.

For the high-altitude performance required, these are equipped with turbochargers.

The VI-100 should be a well-armed craft in terms of weapons needed to hunt down enemy bombers. The main armament is nose mounted, 2 x 20mm ShVAK cannons and 2 x 7.62mm ShKAS machine guns, mounted on fixed forward mounts.

The tail gunner manages a 7.62mm ShKAS machine gun on a trainable base to protect the aircraft's vulnerable "Six". Bomb racks under the wings are also thought to extend the aircraft's tactical uses.

Despite the promising design, there were insurmountable delays in procuring the necessary pressurized cockpit equipment, which proved insurmountable, so the first prototype flew for the first time on 22 December 1939, But it also doesn't come with the expected turbocharger. In testing, the plane had a top speed of 332 mph, an estimated range of up to 870 miles, and a working ceiling of 40,000 feet.

Performance will be improved by adding a turbo with an expected top speed of 385 mph.

World War II began in September 1939 and the VI-100 is now under scrutiny as a war product. It was shown (on the ground) during the Soviet military parade in May 1940, when height requirements had all but disappeared.

Instead, the VI-100 was converted to the PB-100 for standing dive bomber needs and entered production (and subsequent Soviet service) as the "Pe-2", and the VI-100 just became the history of the Soviet Union's Luftwaffe. The Pe-3 successor fighter appeared in 1941 as the company's other twin-engine design, with a total of 360 built.

They fought until the end of the war in 1945 and were also used as night fighters.

Specification

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Performance

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Changes