Country of origin:

Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

Description:

Single-seat fighter

Power Plant:

One 821 kw (1,100 hp) Shvetsov M-63 nine-cylinder air-cooled radial engine

Specifications:

(I-16 Type 24B)

Armament:

Two 7.62 mm (0.30 in) ShKas machine guns in upper forward fuselage; two 20 mm ShVak cannon in the wings; up to six 82 mm RS-82 rockets on underwing rails

History:

The I-16 (known as the Ishak or Rata) was designed by a team headed by Nikolai Polikarpov and was flown for the first time on 31 December 1933 fitted with a 336 kw (450 hp) M-22 engine (licence-built Bristol Jupiter), achieving a max speed of 360 km/h (224 mph).  It was immediately placed in mass production at plants in Moscow and Gorki, the initial production aircraft, the I-16 type, having the M-22 engine providing 358 kw (480 hp).  Deliveries began in 1934. In 1935 it was shown at the May Day parade in Red Square, Moscow and at the Milan exhibition in Italy. The type was flown in a fly-off with the Sukhoi I-14 and, now fitted with a 522 kw (700 hp) M-25 engine, and known as the I-16bis, achieved 450 km/h (279 mph).  As production continued development progressed and more powerful engines and armament were fitted.

The I-16 was put into full production and in June 1934 the Type 4 appeared, adopting the M-25 engine and similar armament; the Type 5 followed with structural changes and armour for the pilot; and the Type 6, being the first major production variant and the first model to be used in combat.  One variant built was the SPB which had strengthened wings, dive brakes, and the capacity to carry two 200 kg (441 lb) or 250 kg (551 lb) bombs.  A number were converted to this configuration in the field in the early years of the war.  The Type 6 had the 545 kw (730 hp) M-25A engine and this model was somewhat heavier, reducing performance slightly.  It was also the last variant to have an enclosed cockpit, Soviet pilots indicating they would rather have an open cockpit.

Combat commenced in Spain with the Type 10 with the M-25 engine which provided 560 kw (750 hp).  This model had rails under the wings for six RS.82 rockets. A two-seat training variant known as the UTI-4 or I-16UTI was also produced.  This was basically the same airframe with two open cockpits and dual controls, some being produced with a fixed undercarriage, and was necessary because of the difficult handling of the aircraft on the ground for inexperienced pilots.

It was soon decided a heavier armament was required and the I-16P with two 20 mm ShVAK cannon was developed, becoming the Type 17. The Type 18 had six 7.62 mm (0.30 in) machine guns in the wings, this model introducing the 714 kw (1,000 hp) M-62 engine. Development lead to the I-180, which had the M-88 engine. One development was the attachment of an I-16 under each wingtip of a Tupolev TB-3 heavy bomber, with a third under the centre-section to provide fighter protection for the bomber on long-range missions.

The Rata saw combat in the Spanish Civil War; and a two-seat training variant known as the I-16 UTI was produced.  The I-16 served with front-line units from 1934 to 1942, seeing service as mentioned in Spain, the Russo – Finnish War, the Mongolian incident, the Sino – Japanese War, and all fronts of the Soviet campaign during World War II.  It is believed some 18,000 to 20,000 were built.  It was the standard single-seat fighter of the Soviet Air Force from 1934 until replaced by other types early in the war.  A variety of engines was fitted, including the M-25 (based on the Wright Cyclone); M-62 nine-cylinder radial with a two-stage supercharger; and the M-63. In the developed I-180 the M-88 14-cylinder two-row radial; and in the CKB 15 (I-17) the M-100 in-line liquid-cooled engine.

The I-16 was a low-wing cantilever monoplane, the fuselage being of wooden monocoque construction of glued cross-braced birch strips.  The wings were of all metal construction built on two chrome-steel spars with duralumin ribs and leading-edge, and skinning. The wing was built in three sections. The tail unit was of metal construction with fabric covering, all control surfaces being balanced. The undercarriage was retractable, and in winter a ski undercarriage was fitted.

The remains of a number of I-16s were located in parts of the former Soviet Union at crash sites and, at the instigation of Sir Tim Wallis, were rebuilt in Siberia to airworthy condition, testing taking place in Moscow prior to being delivered to the Alpine Fighter Collection at Wanaka, New Zealand.  The first was completed in mid-1995 and was delivered to New Zealand where it became ZK-JIN. The engine for the I-16 and I-153 aircraft that were re-built was not a problem, as it was basically the same engine used widely throughout the Soviet block, including in the Antonov An-2 biplane. A Russian historian researched the background, operational theatre, colour scheme and markings for each for the re-builds and they were painted in the colours worn during the war.

Although highly manoeuvrable, the I-16 was outclassed by the Messerschmitt Bf 109 and, towards the end of its military service, pilots employed the ramming method of attack on a large scale, slicing off the tails of German bombers an

 

The six delivered to New Zealand were all I-16 Type 24s and were flown together at the 1998 Warbirds Over Wanaka airshow. The six were registered: ZK-JIN (c/n 2421319); ZK-JIO (c/n 2421234); ZK-JIP (c/n 2421645); ZK-JIQ (c/n 2421014); ZK-JIR (c/n 2421028); and ZK-JJC (c/n 2421039).  First flight of the type in New Zealand was ZK-JIN on 10 October 1997.  Eventually, after appearing at a number of aviation events, they were exported. The first sold overseas was ZK-JIQ which became N7459 with the Flying Heritage Collection in Seattle, Washington, and since then further examples have been exported to the United States for private collections, ZK-JIR becoming N1639P and ZK-JIP becoming N30425.  One has been placed in a museum in Spain and re-painted in Spanish Air Force markings.

By late 2009 all of the I-16s had been exported from New Zealand.  Further examples have been rebuilt, one two-seat variant being restored for display at the Central Finland Aviation Museum. Others are on display in St Petersburg and at the Central War Museum in Moscow. Another is in the PLAAF Museum at Changping in China.

Eventually the six aircraft flown and registered in New Zealand were exported as follows: ZK-JIN Red 9 to Germany as D-EPRN; ZK-JIO Red 34 to Russia as RA-1561G; ZK-JIP White 45 to the United States as N30425; ZK-JIQ White 4 to the United States as N7459; ZK-JIR White 28 to the United States as N1639P; and ZK-JJC White 39 to Fundacion Infante De Orleans, Cuatro Vientos in Spain as EC-JRK.

In New Zealand Volker Heydecke built an all-composite 66 per cent scale replica of an I-16 Type 24 fighter and it was fitted with a 112 kw (150 hp) Rotec R3600 radial engine with a 3:2 gearing, this aircraft ZK-VVV (c/n V16001) becoming known as the Heydecke V-16.  This aircraft had a 6 m (19 ft 7 in) wingspan, a length of 4 m (13 ft 1 in), and an all-up weight of 400 kg (882 lb).  Fuel capacity was 80 litres (17.6 Imp gals), VNE was 446 km/h (276 mph) and stalling speed with flaps was 83 km/h (52 mph).  It suffered an accident and has had to undergo some restoration work (see Heydecke V-16 article).