Il-2 Shturmovik Guards Units of World War 2

Development of the Il-2

The mount of numerous Guards units, the Ilyushin Il-2 fully deserves its place in history. Not only was it built in larger numbers than any other combat aircraft in World War 2, but to the people of the Soviet Union it represented a symbol of their resistance to Nazi aggression. As a specialised ground attack aircraft, with armour protection for the crew and vital systems, it was one of the conflict’s most decisive weapons.

Yet the Il-2 was not a highly sophisticated machine. In fact, with its mixed wood and metal construction, it was comparatively crude, but this made it easy to produce using relatively unskilled labour. Outstandingly robust, it could absorb considerable battle damage, but although undemanding to fly, it was not a nimble performer, and was consequently highly vulnerable to fighter attack in the early war years.

In the late 1930s, the Soviets were placing much emphasis on ground attack aircraft. While experience in Spain and China had confirmed their effectiveness, it had also demonstrated that such aircraft needed protection against ground fire. In January 1938, Ilyushin and his team put forward ideas for a dedicated attack aircraft. Designated TsKB-55, it was a two-seater powered by a supercharged AM-35 engine, with the crew, fuel and oil systems protected by armour plate varying in thickness from 4 mm up to 8 mm. Four 100-kg bombs could be carried in internal bays, with an additional pair hung from underwing racks.

The design was accepted and two prototypes were ordered, the first making its maiden flight on 2 October 1939 and the second following on 30 December. During State acceptance trials, the aircraft was found to be underpowered, but with the fitment of the specially-developed low altitude unsupercharged AM-38 engine, and the deletion of the gunner’s position, test pilots reported a major improvement in performance.

Fixed armament comprised two 23 mm PTB-23 cannon and two 7.62 mm SkHAS machine guns, with eight launching rails for rocket projectiles fitted beneath the wing outer panels. In this form the aircraft was cleared for service, and the first production Il-2 was completed by Zavod No 18 at Voronezh. It flew for the first time on 10 March 1941, just three months after the drawings had been delivered to the factory.

Although in full-scale production by the time of the German invasion on 22 June 1941, only 70 of the 249 Il-2s built up to then were actually in service. Production increased rapidly, however, and during the second half of 1941, 1293 left various factories in the USSR.

The first offensive mission mounted by a Shturmovik unit was flown on 1 July during the fighting around the city of Bobruysk and along the Berezina river. Heavy losses were inflicted by German fighter pilots during these operations, the Jagdwaffe units having quickly discovered the Il-2’s blind spots. Soviet ground attack units in turn called on Ilyushin to build a two-seat variant with a gunner operating a flexibly-mounted 12.7 mm BT machine gun. This version started rolling off the assembly lines in 1942, and some earlier single-seat machines were also converted.

By 1943 one-third of all Soviet-built combat aircraft in frontline service were Il-2s. When production ended in November 1944, 36,163 Shturmoviks had been built.