Soviet
Polikarpov I-153 fighter, introduced in 1939
It saw its first combat the same year during the Soviet-Japanese Battle of Halhin Gol in Mongolia. The Japanese Army Air Forces' Type 97 Fighter
Nate proved a formidable opponent for the I-15bis and I-16, but was more evenly matched with the I-153, which retained agility inherent to biplanes while featuring improved performance.
It fought against the Luftwaffe in 1941 and 1942. I-153 has a distinction of being one of the first warplanes armed with air-to-air missiles (unguided, of course).
From 1939 to 1941, 3,437 I-153s were built.
AWESOME !!!
ReplyDeleteAlso troublesome. But gorgeous. There are some replicas that as far as I know fly in New Zealand.
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