La-5FN

This page is about the Soviet fighter La-5FN. For the German captured version, see La-5FN (Germany). For other versions, see La-5 (Family).

La-5FN

La-5F

La-7

La-5FN

La-5F

La-7

USSR

III Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
4.0	3.7	4.0

Class:

Fighter

Research:18 000

Purchase:47 000

Show in game

Description

The La-5FN was a fighter produced at the same time as the La-5F, rather than being its successor, the main improvement was the introduction of a fuel-injected engine. This came in the form of the ASh-82FN engine that could produce 1,850 HP for up to 10 minutes. In combat tests against a Bf 109 G-2, the La-5FN showed superiority in speed and manoeuvrability at low and medium altitudes. These results influenced Soviet tactics. It used the same twin 20 mm ShVAK cannons as the La-5F, but with 200 rounds per gun.

This aircraft has been in the game since the start of the Open Beta Test prior to Update 1.27. Being the last La-5 modification available, one can expect a similar playstyle to the previous variants, however, turn it up several notches to 11. Sporting accurate twin 20 mm cannons and amazing low altitude performance, the La-5FN is a plane with heart that can provide some blood pumping engagements. Just as the La-5 and La-5F, it has good performance in boom and zoom tactics, however, with an improved powerplant, it is more capable than ever in low-medium altitude fights.

General info

Flight performance

Max speed

at 6 100 m620 km/h

Turn time19 s

Max altitude11 350 m

EngineShvetsov M-82FN

TypeRadial

Cooling systemAir

Take-off weight3 t

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 6,100 m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	595	576	11350	20.0	20.8	17.6	17.6	341
Upgraded	646	620		18.1	19.2	27.2	21.7

Details

Features
Combat flaps	Take-off flaps	Landing flaps	Air brakes	Arrestor gear
✓	✓	✓	X	X

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
0	310	447	418	270	~13	~13

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 380	< 380	< 380	> 341

Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
1,550 m	1,630 hp	1,920 hp
Setting 2
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
4,550 m	1,430 hp	N/A

Survivability and armour

Crew1 person

Speed of destruction

Structural0 km/h

Gear310 km/h

• 75 mm bulletproof glass in the rear windshield
• 55 mm bulletproof glass in the front windshield
• 10 mm steel plate behind the pilot seat

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB879 → 1 118

RB1 890 → 2 405

SB2 875 → 3 659

Total cost of modifications19 460

31 800

Talisman cost980

Crew training13 000

Experts47 000

Aces400

Research Aces280 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

50 / 130 / 270 %

136 / 136 / 136 %

Modifications

Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
Fuselage repair Research: 990 Cost: 1 600 100 Radiator Research: 990 Cost: 1 600 100 Compressor Research: 2 200 Cost: 3 600 220 Wings repair Research: 1 200 Cost: 2 000 120 Engine Research: 1 200 Cost: 2 000 120 Engine injection Research: 2 100 Cost: 3 400 210	Armored glass Research: 990 Cost: 1 600 100 Airframe Research: 2 200 Cost: 3 600 220 Rear armor plate Research: 1 200 Cost: 2 000 120 Cover Research: 2 100 Cost: 3 400 210	DZ-40 Research: 990 Cost: 1 600 100 shvak_belt_pack Research: 1 200 Cost: 2 000 120 shvak_new_gun Research: 2 100 Cost: 3 400 210

Armaments

Offensive armament

Weapon 12 x 20 mm ShVAK cannon

Ammunition340 rounds

Fire rate720 shots/min

The La-5FN is armed with:

• 2 x 20 mm ShVAK cannons, nose-mounted (170 rpg = 340 total)

The ShVAK cannons are quite effective at this battle rating consisting of adequate damage output, a high rate of fire, and decent ammunition belts. However, they are crippled by mediocre damage per shot and by having close to the worst HEI round in the game, so one should focus on the critical components of a plane such as an engine and pilot. The cannons themselves are accurate, even in stock configuration and have the fastest rate of fire of any of its contemporaries (Hispano Mk.II's/404's, MG 151's, Ho-5's, Type 98/99's).

Suspended armament

List of setups (1)

Setup 12 x 50 kg FAB-50sv (forged) bomb

The La-5FN can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• Without load
• 2 x 50 kg FAB-50 bombs (100 kg total)

Usage in battles

The La-5FN is the last of the La-5 modifications available before moving on to the improved La-7 and is one of the best planes at its BR. Designed to be contemporary to the German Bf 109, it maintains excellent energy retention, adequate speed, brutal acceleration, and an amazing turn rate makes this a monster at its rank. If you made it this far in the Soviet tech tree, you should understand that all but 4 Soviet prop fighters are horrible above 4,000 m (13,123 ft), where their engines that are tuned for low-altitude will asphyxiate above that altitude, so avoid high altitude fights at all costs.

Head-on engagements should be avoided, as the radial engine presents a large target that's prone to damage.

A purebred energy fighter through and through, one should employ energy fighting tactics such as stall fighting, vertical scissors and others. However, due to its fantastic turn rate, you can outturn most German, American, Italian and French fighters. Never engage in a turn fight with the British Spitfires or most Japanese fighters, as they can turn on a dime and have a relatively powerful armament.

Some enemies to be considered:

• Spitfires: The legendary British fighter is the king of low altitude fighting. It can turn on a dime, has a decent top-end speed, but has a mediocre roll rate that only gets worse at higher speeds. Avoid them at all costs unless they are unaware of your presence. In which case, dive on it and aim for the pilot and wings, as your cannons will rip through them.
• C.205 serie 3 and G.55 sottoserie 0: These Italian menaces are heavily armed dogfighters that are effectively Bf 109's with more weapons. Their speed is almost unparalleled at this rank and excels at most fighting scenarios. If one forces a fight on you, attempt to turn fight, as when combined with combat flaps and the effective rudder, you outturn them by a decent margin.

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Not controllable	Controllable Not auto controlled	Controllable Not auto controlled	Controllable Not auto controlled	Separate	Controllable 2 gears	Not controllable

Usage of manual engine controls will allow you get more out of the engine at lower altitudes. Setting the propeller pitch to 100%, the radiator to 35% and the oil radiator to 40% will allow you to use WEP indefinitely without overheating. The values for both of the radiators can be reduced slightly when flying at higher altitudes or on colder maps.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Excellent low altitude performance, faster on the deck than most of its peers
• Great energy retention and excellent acceleration
• Good manoeuvrability, combat flaps can be deployed up to 400 km/h IAS
• Accurate and fast-firing cannons with a larger ammo supply than most Soviet fighters
• Sturdy for a Soviet fighter

Cons:

• Poor engine performance at higher altitudes, can't use WEP above 3,700 metres or gear 2 supercharger with MEC
• Engine has a tendency to overheat at lower altitudes if manual engine controls aren't used
• Armament is inadequate when facing multi-engined aircraft, such as bombers
• Lower dive speed compared to contemporaries
• Lacklustre suspended armament
• Severe elevator lock-up above 550 km/h IAS

History

Soviet ace pilot Ivan Kozhedub standing in front of his La-5FN fighter. As the Soviet Unions highest ace, Ivan is three times recipient of the Hero of the Soviet Union award for shooting down 64 aircraft during the Great Patriotic War.

In early 1942, Semyon Lavochkin's LaGG-3 fighter was under threat of having its production cancelled, having proved itself to be a flawed fighter, underpowered and overweight. At the same time, Arkady Shvetsov faced a lack of demand for his M-82 radial engine, only successfully used by the Sukhoi Su-2 ground attack aircraft that was also in danger of being cancelled. The two designers met at a conference in Moscow, and Shvetsov agreed to help Lavochkin fit the M-82 engine to the LaGG-3 airframe. Mikhail Gudkov, one of the original designers of the LaGG-3, had already attempted to do the same thing, resulting in the Gu-82 fighter. However, he had delayed too long in getting the fighter into production, and by April 1942, Aleksander Yakovlev had succeeded in getting production of the LaGG-3 cancelled in favour of his Yak-7 fighter, effectively monopolising Soviet fighter production.

Lavochkin's OKB was, in the meantime, transfer to the backwaters of Tbilisi, Georgia and he and his team had to work almost illegally and in harsh conditions to modify the LaGG-3 for the M-82 engine. The radial engine was physically wider than the LaGG-3 fuselage cross-section, requiring skirting to attach the larger engine and to the fuselage, and the M-82 also had no space for an engine-mounted cannon, unlike the Klimov M-105. Thus, the updated armament changed to two 20 mm ShVAK cannon mounted on top of the engine. The new LaGG-3 M-82 (also known as the Samolyot 37 (Aircraft 37) or the Type 37) was completed in February 1942 and underwent test flights, with promising results despite problems with engine cooling. Its performance was better than any Soviet fighter then in service. Other issues revealed in testing consisted of excessive control forces, oil leaks, and excessive weight, but these could not overshadow the LaGG-3 M-82's excellent performance, and its full-scale development began as the LaG-5. The first fully operational LaG-5s was delivered on 20 June 1942.

Series LaG-5s suffered from poor quality, which reduced performance considerably. As was revealed in the test flights, pilots found it to be a more difficult aircraft to fly than the Yak-1 or LaGG-3, but the radial engine enhanced protection during head-on attacks. Redesignated La-5 in September 1942, the new fighter faced its first important test during the battle of Stalingrad. It proved not to be enough to equal the Bf 109 F-4 and G-2 models but was considered capable of further improvement. Continuous improvements to the La-5 would eventually lead to the La-5F, La-5FN, and finally the La-7, among some of the most excellent Soviet fighters of the Great Patriotic War.

Archive of the in-game description

The Lavochkin La-5 was a single-engine monoplane fighter, a single-seater with an enclosed cockpit, wooden frame and a canvas skin. FN in the designation stands for Boosted, Fuel Injection. The new variant entered production and began to reach front-line units in March 1943. The La-5FN, rather than being a successor to the earlier La-5F, was produced concurrently. Its ASh-82FN engine could reach 1,850 HP and remain at takeoff power settings for up to 10 minutes. In April 1943 a serial La-5FN was flight tested in mock combat against a captured Bf-109G-2. The Soviet aircraft proved superior at low and medium altitudes, the most common on the Eastern Front. The La-5FN was superior both in top speed as well as maneuvering in the vertical. An analysis of these engagements led to significant changes in Soviet tactics. The La-5FN's armament was identical to that of the La-5 and consisted of twin 20mm ShVAK cannon with 200 rounds per gun. The guns were pneumatically or mechanically operated.

Notable pilots

• 

  Soviet ace pilot Ivan Kozhedub, highest scoring Allied ace of WW II.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the La-5FN from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

Fast Like A Brick - La-5FN - DEFYN

Realistic: La-5FN [Energy Monster!] - Jengar

La-5FN - Back to Basics, Overshoots, reversals, BNZ - Green Fury

See also

Related development

• La-5 (Family)
• La-7 (Family)

External links

• Official data sheet - more details about the performance

Lavochkin Design Bureau (Лавочкинa Опытное конструкторское бюро)
LaGG-3*	I-301 · LaGG-3-4 · LaGG-3-8 · LaGG-3-11 · LaGG-3-23 · LaGG-3-34 · LaGG-3-35 · LaGG-3-66
La-5/7	La-5 · La-5F · La-5FN · La-7 · Dolgushin's La-7 · La-7B-20
La-9/11	La-9 · La-11
Jet Fighters	La-15 · La-174 · La-200
Export	␗La-9 · ␗La-11
Captured	▀La-5FN
	*Lavochkin-Gorbunov-Gudkov (Лавочкин-Горбунов-Гудков), head designer V. P. Gorbunov