IL-2-37

This page is about the Soviet attacker IL-2-37. For other variants, see IL-2 (Family).

IL-2-37

IL-2 (1942)

Pe-3bis

IL-2-37

IL-2 (1942)

Pe-3bis

USSR

II Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
3.0	2.7	3.7

Class:

Strike aircraft

Research:5 600

Purchase:22 000

Show in game

Description

The IL-2-37 is a rank II Soviet attacker with a battle rating of 3.0 (AB), 2.7 (RB), and 3.7 (SB). It was introduced in Update 1.49 "Weapons of Victory".

The IL-2-37 is the slowest of all of the extended-cockpit IL-2 variants (those featuring a gunner). As such, the IL-2-37 should be played as an attacker and only as an attacker. Anything else will get it destroyed very quickly.

The IL-2-37 is meant for swooping down and taking out tanks with it's dual 37 mm NS-37 cannons. It does a fairly decent job at doing so, it is recommended to dive at a high angle and shoot the top of the tank to set them on fire or kill the crew.

General info

Flight performance

Max speed

at 1 320 m387 km/h

Turn time40 s

Max altitude5 200 m

EngineMikulin AM-38F

TypeInline

Cooling systemWater

Take-off weight6 t

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 1,320 m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	369	353	5200	41.3	42.6	6.2	6.1	550
Upgraded	408	391		38.7	39.8	11.2	8.6

Details

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

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
0	320	N/A	418	270	~13	~13

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 320	< 300	< 370	> 329

Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
750 m	1,500 hp	1,593 hp

Survivability and armour

Crew2 people

Speed of destruction

Structural0 km/h

Gear320 km/h

• 6 mm Steel plate behind propeller.
• 4 mm Steel plate covering the front fuselage.
• 12 mm Steel plate in air intake.
• 6 mm Steel plates around the oil cooling system.
• 5 mm Steel plates around the fuel tank.
• 6 mm Steel plates surrounding the cockpit.
• 64 mm Bulletproof glass in cockpit front.
• 4 mm Steel plate above cockpit fuel tank.
• 12 mm Steel plate separating cockpit and rear gunner.
• 6 mm Steel plate in front of the rear gunner.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB585 → 916

RB780 → 1 222

SB1 922 → 3 011

Total cost of modifications10 360

13 680

Talisman cost750

Crew training6 300

Experts22 000

Aces250

Research Aces220 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

40 / 90 / 150 %

124 / 124 / 124 %

Modifications

Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
Fuselage repair Research: 520 Cost: 690 95 Radiator Research: 520 Cost: 690 95 Airframe Research: 580 Cost: 770 110 Compressor Research: 580 Cost: 770 110 Wings repair Research: 650 Cost: 860 120 Engine Research: 650 Cost: 860 120 Cover Research: 840 Cost: 1 100 155 Engine injection Research: 840 Cost: 1 100 155 95 octane fuel usage Research: 840 Cost: 1 100 155		shkas_belt_pack Research: 520 Cost: 690 95 ub_turret_belt_pack Research: 520 Cost: 690 95 shkas_new_gun Research: 580 Cost: 770 110 ub_turret_new_gun Research: 580 Cost: 770 110 ns37_belt_pack Research: 650 Cost: 860 120 Der-21 Research: 650 Cost: 860 120 ns37_new_gun Research: 840 Cost: 1 100 155

Armaments

Offensive armament

Weapon 12 x 37 mm NS-37 cannon

Ammunition112 rounds

Fire rate260 shots/min

Weapon 22 x 7.62 mm ShKAS machine gun

Ammunition1 500 rounds

Fire rate1 800 shots/min

The IL-2-37 is armed with:

• 2 x 37 mm NS-37 cannons, wing-mounted (56 rpg = 112 total)
• 2 x 7.62 mm ShKAS machine guns, wing-mounted (750 rpg = 1,500 total)

Suspended armament

List of setups (2)

Setup 14 x 50 kg FAB-50sv (forged) bomb

Setup 22 x 100 kg FAB-100sv (forged) bomb

The IL-2-37 can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• Without load
• 4 x 50 kg FAB-50 bombs (200 kg total)
• 2 x 100 kg FAB-100 bombs (200 kg total)

Defensive armament

Turret12.7 mm Berezin UBT machine gun

Ammunition150 rounds

Fire rate1027 shots/min

The IL-2-37 is defended by:

• 1 x 12.7 mm Berezin UB machine gun, dorsal turret (150 rpg)

Usage in battles

Being a true attacker, it should head straight to its target immediately as the battle starts.

Tips for gunners

The gunner is extremely powerful and accurate even before upgrades, it is not uncommon to get three or more gunner kills in one game. Take advantage of the fact that many enemies will approach the aircraft from straight behind, so switch to gunner view and just aim for the cockpit of the enemy plane attacking the tail. Use the Armoured targets belt for the gunner, as they feature a cement-core round capable of penetrating through most bulletproof glass, engine casing, and armour.

37 mm's

The IL-2-37 comes with a pair of 37 mm guns, each with 50 rounds loaded. In tank battles, dive from above and attack targets through their more vulnerable roof. In air battles, come from the side or back as enemies are usually travelling in a straight line. Set a gun targeting distance of no less than 500 m so the IL-2-37 can pull out of the fray once it passes over. When the enemy is in sights, fire once and see if the shots hit and kill the target. If it doesn't, fire again, and pull out of the engagement if the target was not destroyed in the two volleys. Go around for another pass or focus on a new ground target in the IL-2-37's flight path.

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Controllable	Controllable Not auto controlled	Controllable Auto control available	Controllable Auto control available	Separate	Not controllable 1 gear	Not controllable

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Great at ground striking
• Has dual 37 mm NS-37 cannons on the wings
• Extremely generous ammo count
• One of the most durable single-engine planes in the game
• First Sturmovik model with a rear gunner

Cons:

• Hard to fly
• Takes skill to fly at low speeds
• Does not want to roll when exceeding 500 kph (or +310 mph)
• The armament weight restricts the amount of payload ordinance
• No rocket armament
• Stock aircraft has an abhorrent turning radius
• 37 mm stock cannon repetitive shot spread unreliable

History

Based on the two-seat Il-2, armed with Nudelman-Suranov NS-37 in conformable gun pods under the wings, instead of the 20/23 mm cannons, this version is an attempt to create an anti-tank aircraft, first used in combat during the Battle of Kursk. However, the combat effectiveness was quite low and production of the variant was limited to about 3,500. Moreover, the bomb load was decreased from 600 kg to 200 kg. It was replaced by the conventional Il-2 attackers armed with cassettes with cumulative bomblets.

In-game description

On 21st July 1941 the lead designer of the IL-2 Sergey Ilyushin sent a request to the People's Minister of Aviation, calling for improvement of the IL-2 by upgrading the engine to a 1,675-HP M-82 and increasing the aircraft's armor. The request was extremely urgent, considering that the rapidly advancing German troops at the time threatened serial production of the engines then used on the IL-2. Several influential Party members also called for upgrading the IL-2's engine. Another crucial change, in conjunction with the engine, called for converting the aircraft into a two-seater, based on combat experience. The second crewman would mainly deal with protecting the rear section of the Sturmovik from aerial attack, making it, in the designer's opinion, "nearly invincible". An aft fuel tank, previously installed behind the pilot in the armored tub, was replaced with a gunner compartment under a stretched canopy, armed with a 12.7mm (.50-cal) UBT machine gun with 280 rounds of ammunition. The gunner position, just like the pilot's, was well armored.

Once the prototype was tested, all test pilots concluded that flight performance of the new variant was worse than that of the earlier IL-2 AM-38 variant; however, no changes in overall behavior were noted, the armor was very effective, and no shortcomings that made flying dangerous were uncovered. Therefore, the new prototype was accepted for serial production.

Media

• Skins and camouflages for the IL-2-37 from live.warthunder.com.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the aircraft;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

• [Vehicle Profile] IL-2-37 - The Sturmovik Tankbuster
• Official data sheet - more details about the performance
• [WIkipedia] Ilyushin IL-2

Ilyushin Design Bureau (Илью́шинa Опытное конструкторское бюро)
Bombers	DB-3B · IL-4
Jet Bombers	IL-28* · IL-28Sh
Strike Aircraft	IL-8 (1944)
Il-2	IL-2 (1941) · IL-2 (1942) · IL-2M type 3 · IL-2M "Avenger" · IL-2M (1943) · IL-2-37 · IL-2 M-82
Il-10	IL-10 · IL-10 (1946)
Export/Captured
Bombers	␗DB-3A · ◊IL-28 · ◔IL-28
Strike Aircraft	▀IL-2 (1942) · ␗IL-10 (1946) · ◔IL-10
	* The Chinese Harbin Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation built unlicensed copies of the Il-28 known as the H-5.