LaGG-3-66

LaGG-3-66

LaGG-3-35

La-5

LaGG-3-66

LaGG-3-35

La-5

USSR

II Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
3.0	2.7	2.7

Class:

Fighter

Research:5 600

Purchase:22 000

Show in game

This page is about the Soviet fighter LaGG-3-66. For other versions, see LaGG-3 (Family).

Description

The LaGG-3-66 is a rank II Russian fighter with a battle rating of 3.0 (AB) and 2.7 (RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.31.

The LaGG-3-66 is a jack-of-all-trades type of fighter aircraft. It does not have many weaknesses but does not have many advantages. When flying the LaGG-3-66, it can be used in a variety of roles depending on what you are engaging in combat. Always keep in mind certain planes you battle may be better than the LaGG-3-66 at something.

General info

Flight performance

Describe how the aircraft behaves in the air. Speed, manoeuvrability, acceleration and allowable loads - these are the most important characteristics of the vehicle.

Characteristics
Stock
Max Speed (km/h at 3,300 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
573	558	9800	22.4	23.0	11.2	11.1	403
Upgraded
Max Speed (km/h at 3,300 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
608	591	9800	20.7	21.5	16.6	13.8	403

Details

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

Limits
Wing-break speed (km/h)	Gear limit (km/h)	Combat flaps (km/h)	Max Static G
			+	-
0	450	460	~12	~9

Optimal velocities
Ailerons (km/h)	Rudder (km/h)	Elevators (km/h)	Radiator (km/h)
< 410	< 380	< 380	> 323

Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
700 m	1,260 hp	N/A
Setting 2
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
2,700 m	1,180 hp	N/A

Survivability and armour

• 8 mm Steel - Plate behind pilot's seat
• 55 mm Bulletproof glass

Armaments

Offensive armament

The LaGG-3-66 is armed with:

• 1 x 20 mm ShVAK cannon, nose-mounted (150 rpg)
• 1 x 12.7 mm Berezin UB machine gun, nose-mounted (200 rpg)

Suspended armament

The LaGG-3-66 can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• Without load
• 2 x 50 kg FAB-50 bombs (100 kg total)
• 2 x 100 kg FAB-100 bombs (200 kg total)
• 6 x RS-82 rockets
• 6 x RBS-82 rockets

Usage in battles

The LaGG-3's instrument panel.

The LaGG-3-66 compared to others in the LaGG-3 series offers a little more performance but trades it with a higher BR. This plane is a "jack of all trades, master of none" type of aircraft. When the LaGG-3-66 gets up-tiered, it will face opponents in far superior planes that will outperform the LaGG-3-66 with no issues. Therefore, when flying the LaGG-3-66 in up-tiered matches, keep your energy high and always force the enemy to fight on your terms.

When using this plane, it can be used in a variety of roles depending on what ordnance (secondary weapons), you may carry:

Bomber Hunter: The LaGG-3-66 is a capable bomber hunter, especially when using the rockets. Bombers that you would meet will easily disintegrate from a single rocket hit the majority of the time or be crippled so badly that they will eventually crash. Also, the cannon and machine gun on the plane can do damage to enemy bombers as well, it will take some time but eventually the enemy bomber will go down.

Air Superiority: The LaGG-3-66 is a capable air superiority fighter as it can fight as an energy or turn fighter depending on what you face. But no matter what happens, you must always keep your energy up. There is a high chance in the LaGG-3-66 to face planes that can outperform this plane with no issues except in low-speed manoeuvres.

Specific enemies worth noting

Supermarine Spitfires: The Supermarine Spitfire is a plane to be feared when flying the LaGG-3-66 as many of the key strengths the LaGG-3-66 has, the Spitfire has (if not better). When battling the Spitfire, always try to go for the initial hit as early Spitfires (Spitfire Mk I/IIa) do not react well to damage. If you are battling cannon armed Spitfires, always go for the initial hit but remember the cannon armed Spitfire has far superior firepower compared to the LaGG-3-66 and will have no issues destroying the LaGG-3-66. Always remember not to get into manoeuvring fights with Spitfires as they will easily outmanoeuvre the LaGG-3-66 at any speeds.

Nakajima Ki-43 Hayabusa and Mitsubishi A6M Reisen: When battling these planes, altitude is everything. These two Japanese planes will have no issue outperforming a LaGG-3-66 in manoeuvrability. Therefore when facing these two enemy planes, use Boom and Zoom tactics to defeat them. The Ki-43 and the A6M are some of the few planes that the LaGG-3-66 will face that can easily defeat the LaGG-3-66 at low-speed manoeuvring air to air combat.

Vought F4U Corsair and Grumman F6F Hellcat: The Corsair and the Hellcat should be feared as their firepower (compared to the LaGG-3-66's firepower) and superior speed are major factors to watch out for. Do not try to outrun or go for head-on attacks if possible when confronting the F4U Corsair or the F6F Hellcat. Turn fighting is your best chance of success as the LaGG-3-66 will have no issue out turning them.

Macchi C.205: This plane is another key enemy of the LaGG-3-66. The Macchi C.205 is a capable enemy that can outperform the LaGG-3-66 in every category except at low speeds. When facing the Macchi C.205 try to force low-speed turn fighting, eventually, the advantage will fall to the LaGG-3-66.

Counter-tactics

Countering the LaGG-3-66 is going to become a case of what your plane's advantage is. The LaGG-3-66 does not have many weaknesses nor does it have any major advantages. Therefore to shoot down the LaGG-3-66 is going to come down to what your plane's advantage is over the LaGG-3-66. If you are in a plane that has a higher BR than the LaGG-3-66, more than likely your plane's advantages will easily outweigh the LaGG-3-66's advantages except in low speed fights.

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	Controllable 2 gears	Not controllable

Modules

Tier	Flight performance		Survivability	Weaponry
I	Fuselage repair	Radiator		Offensive 12 mm
II		Compressor	Airframe	New 12 mm MGs	DZ-40
III	Wings repair	Engine		Offensive 20 mm	RO-82
IV			Cover	New 20 mm cannons

Primary upgrade targets are Compressor and Engine to improve the dogfight performance. Offensive 12.7 mm and Offensive 20 mm belts are next in the priority list. The other upgrades can be chosen at one's own preference, but the additional payload modules are cheap to get as tier 2 and 3 and can be good stepping stones to unlock the next tiers.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Good armament
• Good energy fighter
• Rockets can be used for air to air combat
• Decent cannon ammo count
• Best performance at low altitude (< 3,000 m)
• Thick bulletproof glass to protect the pilot in head-on attacks
• Stable gun platform
• Dangerous at low speeds

Cons:

• Control surface compression at high speeds
• Poor performance at high altitude
• When up tiered this plane faces opponents that easily outperform this plane

History

Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the aircraft in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/ History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).

In-game description

The series 66 planes were the last series model of the LaGG-3. Outwardly, fighters of this series could be differentiated by their new cockpit canopy (the same one used on the La-5), and its frontal bullet-proof glass. Additional changes included a lighter fuselage frame, altered airvent shape and the installation of bomb rack fairings.

As with the Series 35 fighters, the LaGG-3 Series 66 was equipped with an expanded water radiator, an altered airvent shape, automatic wing slats and a retractable tail wheel. The plane's aerodynamics were significantly refined. In particular due to altered water and oil radiator tubes and newly installed fairings on the exhaust pipes.

The VISh-61P propeller was replaced with the VISh-105SV, which had wider blades. The propeller spinner also became slightly wider and took on a flatter shape.

LaGG-3 Series 66 fighters were practically never used as attack aircraft, so they did not receive missile equipment.

Factory No. 31 in Tbilisi produced LaGG-3 Series 66 planes starting in the spring of 1943. In June 1944, production of the LaGG-3 ceased once and for all.

The LaGG-3 Series 66 was the lightest and most aerodynamic series of the LaGG-3s, but even they could not compare to the new Yak and La fighters. Nonetheless, planes of this model saw successful use in air combat above Kuban and in the storming of Novorossiysk. LaGG-3s were widely used in navy units in the Baltic and Black Sea fleets. In the final stage of the war, LaGG-3s were primarily used in economy-of-force operations due to their poor flight characteristics, and fought in the Baltics and the Karelian Isthmus. In August 1945, LaGG-3 planes took part in combat operations against Japan in the Far East. By the end of 1945, the air force had practically no LaGG-3s left in its combat units.

In total, 6,528 LaGG-3s were produced between the years of 1941 and 1944, with their production hitting its peak in 1942.

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

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

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• encyclopedia page on the aircraft;
• other literature.

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