Yak-1B (Germany)

This page is about the fighter Yak-1B (Germany). For other versions, see Yak-1 (Family).

▀Yak-1B

▀Yak-1B

Germany

II Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
3.3	3.0	3.3

Class:

PREMIUM

Fighter

Purchase:1 150

Show in game

Description

The ▀Yak-1B is a premium rank II German fighter with a battle rating of 3.3 (AB/SB) and 3.0 (RB). It was introduced in Update 1.43.

General info

Flight performance

Max speed

at 4 000 m592 km/h

Turn time18 s

Max altitude10 500 m

EngineKlimov VK-105PF

TypeInline

Cooling systemWater

Take-off weight3 t

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

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 4,000 m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	574	559	10500	19.3	19.8	13.5	13.5	368
Upgraded	608	592		18.0	18.5	18.7	16.0

Details

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

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
0	320	N/A	N/A	280	~11	~7

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 380	< 420	< 490	> 340

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
2,900 m	1,175 hp	N/A

Survivability and armour

Crew1 person

Speed of destruction

Structural0 km/h

Gear320 km/h

Examine the survivability of the aircraft. Note how vulnerable the structure is and how secure the pilot is, whether the fuel tanks are armoured, etc. Describe the armour, if there is any, and also mention the vulnerability of other critical aircraft systems.

Modifications and economy

Repair cost

AB844

RB1 243

SB1 521

Crew training6 900

Experts46 000

Aces320

Research Aces500 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

2 × 50 / 120 / 230 %

2 × 130 / 130 / 130 %

Modifications

Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
Fuselage repair Radiator Compressor Wings repair Engine	Airframe Cover	ub_belt_pack ub_new_gun shvak_belt_pack shvak_new_gun

Armaments

Offensive armament

Weapon 120 mm ShVAK cannon

Ammunition120 rounds

Fire rate800 shots/min

Weapon 212.7 mm Berezin UBS machine gun

Ammunition200 rounds

Fire rate996 shots/min

The Yak-1B (Germany) is armed with:

• 1 x 20 mm ShVAK cannon, nose-mounted (120 rpg)
• 1 x 12.7 mm Berezin UB machine gun, nose-mounted (200 rpg)

Usage in battles

Arcade Battles

The Yak-1B is simply an upgraded Yak-1. The main features that the Yak-1B has over its counterpart is much-improved cockpit visibility, slightly better durability, and a slightly more resilient engine that, unfortunately, still overheats quickly. However, the beauty of the Yakovlev line of fighters lies in two things:

• Their biggest problem is engine overheating, but this is easily fixed by simply flying between 80%-90% throttle.
• The Yak's performance is not hindered in the slightest by flying at this engine power.

Due to the above two facts, in AB: fly at 90% power. The Yaks can dogfight just fine at 90%, and will rarely overheat. Even though in Arcade battles all planes get WEP, the WEP on this plane adds almost nothing to its performance while rapidly overheating the engine, thus using WEP is practically unnecessary. If you find yourself in a situation where your aircraft needs more power, throttle up from 90% to 100% power, however, remember to throttle back down to 90% once you can.

Wait for the dogfight to start, then fly in behind a distracted enemy. Shoot in bursts unless tailing a bomber, in which case you will not last very long against their rear gunners unless you are incredibly accurate with the cannon. If your engine begins to overheat, start flying back to your airfield. Otherwise, your engine will give out after the temperature gauge turns red.

To sum up, this is merely a better version of the Yak-1, with similar tactics and strategy. Just remember that Soviet fighter aircraft in general count heavily on its pilot's accuracy, in this case only have two guns!

Realistic Battles

If not using MEC, take off at 100% throttle, then go to 90% after getting above the trees. Upon reaching around 500 m, go to 80-85% throttle. If using MEC, open the radiators somewhat (~20-30%) and turn up the prop pitch (~90%). This will keep the engine cool, allow you to run the throttle at 100%, and also bring out extra propeller thrust for better climb and acceleration. Stay low at all costs! If you climb too high, four things will happen:

1. You will have run your engine out trying to climb, so your engine has less time before it overheats than usual. (You also don't climb as fast as most other planes, in fact, there are better Soviet aircraft for climbing, such as the MiG-3 and the La-5).
2. You will be highly visible.
3. You will have reduced manoeuvrability.
4. You will easily rip your wings upon trying to dive (The Yak's wings, is made of wood, disappear at about 600 kph).

If you stay below 3,000 m, then you will have more advantages than the enemy, such as:

1. Better camouflage... harder to spot.
2. There is almost no chance of ripping wings.
3. You are already at optimal altitude and speed for manoeuvring.
4. Enemies easily overshoot you or rip wings attempting to dive on you.
5. You can trick enemies into flying into the ground (make sure you don't do so yourself!).

If not using MEC, right before entering a dogfight, bring your throttle to 90%. Flying at this reduced throttle setting in Realistic Battles is enough to fight at below 1,000 m (some experienced Yak pilots will even dogfight at 80% throttle!). Immediately after battling it out, bring the throttle back down to 80% (if you don't already have it there). Only in extreme cases use 100% power; however, maintaining that speed tends to overheat the engine quickly.

While the Yak-1B has stellar performance at very low altitudes, it is still a good idea to climb a bit, perhaps to at least 2,000 meters. This gives you more options when an enemy dives in from above. Dodging them with a hard break is a reliable option, and when performed correctly this will sometimes lead to manoeuvre kills, but the enemy can also escape by zoom climbing up, where you will be unable to follow. Essentially, you will be at their mercy unless they become impatient and attempt to dogfight you. Enemies like Spitfires that combine manoeuvrability and altitude advantage will be difficult opponents even if they engage in a dogfight! If you start with some altitude, you can enter a dive to gain speed once they start to get close, then level out and take advantage of the Yak-1B's excellent low-altitude top speed. If the opponent continues to chase you, they will likely run out of bonus speed from the dive and fall behind, neutralizing their energy advantage. If they wisely break off, you can nose up and return to cruising altitude with little energy lost, waiting for another opportunity. Successfully executing this can take a lot of practice, but it is a very useful skill, and not just for Yaks.

The Yak-1B manoeuvres best at around 400 km/h IAS, where its roll and turn rate are optimal. Descending in a turning spiral is a good way to maintain this manoeuvring speed and drag fights down to lower altitudes, where other Soviet aircraft tend to perform better, but obviously review the situation and see if vertical loops, rolling scissors, or other dogfight manoeuvres would be more suitable. The Yak-1B does well in all of these provided that an eye is kept on the speed. Do not go fast enough that the compression becomes an issue, but also avoid getting extremely slow. Take advantage of the landing flaps and strong rudder as necessary when nosing over from a vertical loop, continuing a climbing spiral, or stall climbing.

It is recommended to avoid firing at ground targets due to the limited ammunition available for use against other planes. Remember that you do not reload in mid-air in Realistic Battle, so ammunition conservation is critical while closing the distance with the enemy before firing. Remember, fire only in short bursts to conserve ammunition and avoid jamming the guns. The great thing about the Yak's guns is that they are centre-line mounted. Guns mounted in the propeller shaft mean that you do not have to worry about convergence points, instead lead the target and snipe. The drawback is that you cannot spray the mark with a hail of bullets like most players tend to do. This plane and all the Yaks afterwards are about accuracy and skill necessary to handle this agile plane. Do not commit to head-ons, as the Yak-1B is rather fragile and the burst mass is not enough to reliably win these engagements.

When landing, slow the aircraft to BELOW 300 km/h before lowering the landing gear! Many Yak pilots have ripped their fragile landing gear when descending too fast with them extended. The last thing all Yak pilots should know in Realistic Battles is never to climb higher than 3,000 m (at or below 1,000 m is preferred). The Yak line of fighters was not built to fight at the higher altitudes, and the game is filled with much more capable aircraft in this respect. If you like B&Z or you prefer to climb high, but don't want to use the US or German planes, then use the MiG line or the LaGG/La line of fighters, as they have much better engines. The Yak is a dog-fighter.

Tips from the Aces

• A Yak pilot can nullify all but the last Cons below by staying below 2000 m, and keeping the throttle at 90% for AB, and 85% for RB/SB, or using MEC.
• If the situation allows, using in-cockpit view can often help with accuracy due to no parallax effect... meaning (hopefully) less of your precious shots wasted.
• Flaps help with hard turns, but against most opponents, flaps will not be utilized much. Use flaps wisely, since flying at ~90% means a tiny bit less engine power to get back to speed after slowing down due to using flaps. However, don't hesitate to use flaps if the fight depends on it, it is easier to regain speed than to pay for a new plane!
• Everything learned from the Yak-1B applies to all of the later Yaks. Mastering this plane will repay itself in gold later.

Specific enemies worth noting

• A6M2 Zeroes: They will out turn you, so try to attack in a shallow dive rather than a turn fight. Energy fighting is also okay because the Zero has poor energy retention and terrible high-speed control and handling. Never dogfight a Zero on its terms and be sure to keep a speed/energy advantage at all times. If things go south, break off and run away - the A6M2 is very slow.
• P-47Ds: They are much faster than you and are excellent at boom and zoom, so avoid them if possible. If you are caught in a fight, try to energy fight them or turn to fight them.
• Other Yakovlevs: They are slightly slower, so either keep them occupied with manoeuvres such as the scissors and barrel rolls or energy fight them.
• Spitfires: They are significantly slower but turn nearly as well as Zeros. Their early Hispano cannons, while inconsistent, are still not good to be hit by, and early models can unleash swarms of rifle-calibre bullets that can ignite the Yak-1B easily. Spitfires also tend to have good climb rates and somewhat better high altitude performance, so seeing them diving from high altitudes is not uncommon. Try to drain their speed and avoid letting them get too close to you. It is difficult to shake a Spitfire from your tail if they have already latched on at close or medium range - running away in level flight can result in taking fire, and dodging will drain your speed and make escape difficult.
• J21A-1: This Swedish pusher-prop has excellent speed and climb in addition to surprisingly good agility and monstrous firepower. Never commit to a head-on against one, doing so usually results in a direct trip to the hangar. The Yak-1B has the advantage in turn time, but not by a large margin. Dodge their attacks as best as possible and try to bait them into turning. The J21 tends to bleed energy in extended or hard manoeuvres and has issues gaining it back. If you can survive the first few turns, the engagement will be more favourable, making it easier for you or your teammates to knock the J21 out. But never let your guard down.

Manual Engine Control

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

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Decent climb
• Excellent roll rate
• Excellent rudder especially at low speed
• Decent turn, both vertically and horizontally
• Armament mounted on the nose

Cons:

• Low maximum dive speed
• Roll stiffens at high speed
• Low ammo count
• Weaker firepower compared to its opponents

History

The Yak-1 is a Soviet single-engine fighter of the WWII era. It was the first combat aircraft designed by Alexander Yakovlev's construction bureau and was produced from 1940 to 1944, with a total of 8,700 aircraft built. The Yak-1B variant was a culmination of all 1942 efforts to improve the Yak-1. Work began at TsAGI, where research into improving the water and oil radiators took place between 24th May and 10th June 1942, and work to increase the top speed was conducted between 20th and 26th July 1942. Tactical characteristics of the Yak-1 were significantly improved as a result, leading to Yakovlev's request to the Minister of Aviation to mass-produce a test batch of 20 improved aircraft for combat testing at the front.

However, the improvements looked so good on paper that a test batch was skipped, and a Defence Committee Directive dated 11th August 1942 ordered a new and improved Yak-1 into mass production. Improved armament triggers and a cockpit with improved rearward visibility were welcomed by Soviet pilots and became standard on all contemporary Soviet fighter planes.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the Yak-1B (Germany) from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

Review: German Yak-1B - War Thunder Official Channel

See also

Other German-captured Soviet aircraft

• IL-2 (1942) (Germany)
• La-5FN (Germany)

External links

• Official data sheet - more details about the performance

A.S. Yakovlev Design Bureau (Яковлев Опытное конструкторское бюро)
Fighters
Yak-1	Yak-1 · Yak-1B
Yak-3	Yak-3 · Eremin's Yak-3(e) · Yak-3 (VK-107) · Yak-3P · Yak-3T · Yak-3U
Yak-7	Yak-7B
Yak-9	Yak-9 · Yak-9B · Yak-9K · Golovachev's Yak-9M · Yak-9P · Yak-9T · Yak-9U · Yak-9UT
Twin-engine fighters	I-29
Jet fighters
Yak-15	Yak-15P · Yak-15
Yak-17	Yak-17
Yak-23	Yak-23
Yak-30	Yak-30D
Yak-141	Yak-141
Strike aircraft
Yak-2	Yak-2 KABB
Yak-38	Yak-38 · Yak-38M
Bombers	Yak-4
Jet bombers	Yak-28B
Foreign use	▄Yak-3 · Challe's ▄Yak-9T · ◔Yak-9P
Captured	▀Yak-1B