IL-2 (1941)

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This page is about the Russian attacker IL-2 (1941). For other versions, see IL-2 (Family).
IL-2 (1941)
il_2_1941.png
GarageImage IL-2 (1941).jpg
IL-2 (1941)
AB RB SB
2.7 2.3 2.3
Research:7 900 Specs-Card-Exp.png
Purchase:10 000 Specs-Card-Lion.png
Show in game

Description

The IL-2 (1941) is a rank II Soviet attacker with a battle rating of 2.7 (AB) and 2.3 (RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.47 "Big Guns".

The IL-2 1941 is the first IL-type attacker a pilot will get in the Soviet aircraft tree. Players will quickly find out that this plane is very durable, but somewhat slow and unwieldy... although with some skill this plane can surprise attacking enemies. Players should research bombs and rockets as soon as they can, followed by ammo belts to augment your ground-attack role. This plane, as well as the following IL-type aircraft, have roughly the same base attributes you will find in the Pros and Cons below, with a few minor differences between models.

General info

Flight performance

Max speed
at 2 500 m423 km/h
Turn time25 s
Max altitude9 500 m
EngineMikulin AM-38
TypeInline
Cooling systemWater
Take-off weight6 t
Characteristics Max Speed
(km/h at 2,500 m)
Max altitude
(metres)
Turn time
(seconds)
Rate of climb
(metres/second)
Take-off run
(metres)
AB RB AB RB AB RB
Stock 405 390 9500 25.9 26.7 6.1 6.1 450
Upgraded 447 425 24.1 24.9 11.3 8.6

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 + -
620 320 N/A N/A 270 ~15 ~15
Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons Rudder Elevators Radiator
< 320 < 320 < 370 > 360
Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude 100% Engine power WEP Engine power
1,750 m 1,500 hp 1,593 hp

Survivability and armour

Crew1 person
Speed of destruction
Structural620 km/h
Gear320 km/h
  • Various 4 mm steel plates surrounding engine
  • 4 mm steel surrounding the cooling systems
  • 5 mm steel below central fuel tank and pilot
  • 6 mm steel behind propeller spinner
  • 6 mm steel below oil cooling system
  • Various 6 mm steel plates beside pilot and pilot's head
  • 12 mm steel headrest
  • 12 mm steel in front of rear fuel tank
  • 64 mm bulletproof glass in front of pilot
  • 3 fuel tanks (1 in front of pilot's legs, 1 below pilot, 1 behind pilot)

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference
AB355 → 540 Sl icon.png
RB444 → 675 Sl icon.png
SB910 → 1 385 Sl icon.png
Total cost of modifications6 910 Rp icon.png
6 750 Sl icon.png
Talisman cost530 Ge icon.png
Crew training3 000 Sl icon.png
Experts10 000 Sl icon.png
Aces125 Ge icon.png
Research Aces160 000 Rp icon.png
Reward for battleAB / RB / SB
30 / 60 / 120 % Sl icon.png
112 / 112 / 112 % Rp icon.png
Modifications
Flight performance Survivability Weaponry
Mods aerodinamic fuse.png
Fuselage repair
Research:
460 Rp icon.png
Cost:
450 Sl icon.png
100 Ge icon.png
Mods radiator.png
Radiator
Research:
460 Rp icon.png
Cost:
450 Sl icon.png
100 Ge icon.png
Mods armor frame.png
Airframe
Research:
390 Rp icon.png
Cost:
380 Sl icon.png
85 Ge icon.png
Mods compressor.png
Compressor
Research:
390 Rp icon.png
Cost:
380 Sl icon.png
85 Ge icon.png
Mods aerodinamic wing.png
Wings repair
Research:
430 Rp icon.png
Cost:
420 Sl icon.png
90 Ge icon.png
Mods new engine.png
Engine
Research:
430 Rp icon.png
Cost:
420 Sl icon.png
90 Ge icon.png
Mods armor cover.png
Cover
Research:
450 Rp icon.png
Cost:
440 Sl icon.png
95 Ge icon.png
Mods metanol.png
Engine injection
Research:
450 Rp icon.png
Cost:
440 Sl icon.png
95 Ge icon.png
Mods oil.png
95 octane fuel usage
Research:
450 Rp icon.png
Cost:
440 Sl icon.png
95 Ge icon.png
Mods ammo.png
shkas_belt_pack
Research:
460 Rp icon.png
Cost:
450 Sl icon.png
100 Ge icon.png
Mod arrow 0.png
Mods weapon.png
shkas_new_gun
Research:
390 Rp icon.png
Cost:
380 Sl icon.png
85 Ge icon.png
Mods pilon rocket.png
RO-82
Research:
390 Rp icon.png
Cost:
380 Sl icon.png
85 Ge icon.png
Mod arrow 0.png
Mods ammo.png
shvak_belt_pack
Research:
430 Rp icon.png
Cost:
420 Sl icon.png
90 Ge icon.png
Mod arrow 0.png
Mods pilon bomb.png
Der-21
Research:
430 Rp icon.png
Cost:
420 Sl icon.png
90 Ge icon.png
Mod arrow 0.png
Mods weapon.png
shvak_new_gun
Research:
450 Rp icon.png
Cost:
440 Sl icon.png
95 Ge icon.png
Mods pilon rocket.png
RO-132
Research:
450 Rp icon.png
Cost:
440 Sl icon.png
95 Ge icon.png

Armaments

Offensive armament

The IL-2 (1941) is armed with:

  • 2 x 20 mm ShVAK cannons, wing-mounted (210 rpg = 420 total)
  • 2 x 7.62 mm ShKAS machine guns, wing-mounted (750 rpg = 1,500 total)

Suspended armament

Main articles: RS-82, RBS-82, RS-132, RBS-132

The IL-2 (1941) can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

  • Without load
  • 12 x 25 kg AO-25M-1 bombs (300 kg total)
  • 4 x 50 kg FAB-50 bombs (200 kg total)
  • 4 x 100 kg FAB-100 bombs (400 kg total)
  • 2 x 250 kg FAB-250M43 bombs (500 kg total)
  • 8 x RS-82 rockets
  • 8 x RBS-82 rockets
  • 8 x RS-132 rockets
  • 8 x RBS-132 rockets
  • 12 x 25 kg AO-25M-1 bombs + 8 x RS-82 rockets (300 kg total)
  • 12 x 25 kg AO-25M-1 bombs + 8 x RBS-82 rockets (300 kg total)
  • 4 x 50 kg FAB-50 bombs + 8 x RS-82 rockets (200 kg total)
  • 4 x 50 kg FAB-50 bombs + 8 x RBS-82 rockets (200 kg total)
  • 12 x 25 kg AO-25M-1 bombs + 4 x RS-132 rockets (300 kg total)
  • 12 x 25 kg AO-25M-1 bombs + 4 x RBS-132 rockets (300 kg total)
  • 4 x 50 kg FAB-50 bombs + 4 x RS-132 rockets (200 kg total)
  • 4 x 50 kg FAB-50 bombs + 4 x RBS-132 rockets (200 kg total)
  • 4 x 100 kg FAB-100 bombs + 8 x RS-82 rockets (400 kg total)
  • 4 x 100 kg FAB-100 bombs + 8 x RBS-82 rockets (400 kg total)
  • 4 x 100 kg FAB-100 bombs + 4 x RS-132 rockets (400 kg total)
  • 4 x 100 kg FAB-100 bombs + 4 x RBS-132 rockets (400 kg total)
  • 4 x 100 kg FAB-100 bombs + 8 x RS-132 rockets (400 kg total)
  • 4 x 100 kg FAB-100 bombs + 8 x RBS-132 rockets (400 kg total)

Usage in battles

For tactics, IL-2s are built to be close to the ground. Fly very low for IL-2 pilots in reality were known to skim treetops. Further try to stay out of sight of enemy planes. As tough as you are, you cannot take concentrated fire from enemy fighters, especially heavy fighters. As you near your target (about 3 km away) go into a slight climb, then nose down into a moderate dive toward your target. Imagine yourself gliding in, not diving. It is generally recommended that you use bombs first, as this will immediately lighten the plane and make you more maneuverable. Because the IL-2 flies so close to the ground, some pilots have destroyed themselves by bombing targets right under them. To avoid this, set the bomb fuses to around 2 seconds.

Use bombs against tanks and pillboxes, rockets against groups of light armored vehicles (and occasionally enemy aircraft), and use your MGs/Cannons for AAA, Artillery, Armoured cars, and enemy aircraft. If you equip certain ammo belts, you may also be able to destroy pillboxes and light tanks with your primary guns alone! Experience gained with this aircraft will be invaluable for later models, who get larger cannons, rear gunners, and other handy upgrades.

Lastly, due to the extraordinary low-altitude style of the IL-2 line of planes, equipping a camouflage that matches the map actually helps in the Realistic/Simulator modes, as you need to get close to enemy planes before they become "spotted". Equipping a white camo on a winter map, then flying very low as the IL-2 is made to do, can help keep players from spotting you. Remember that player-made skins are not seen by other players, so you have to choose between the ingame skins.

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:

  • Heavy armament with large ammo pool
  • Well-armoured & tough
  • Surprisingly manoeuvrable in turns with flaps and WEP, can outturn certain heavy fighters at it's BR when spaded
  • Diverse payload options - allows for varied playstyles

Cons:

  • Rather slow
  • No rear gunner
  • Somewhat a big target
  • Priority target for the enemy team in "Ground Strike" maps
  • ShVAK cannons lack the AP penetration of later YVA-23 (cannot harm Medium Tanks at all)
  • Limited view from cockpit due to armour plates (Simulator only)
  • Large drop in performance compared to Yak-2

History

The famous IL-2 Shturmovik was a Soviet WWII-era attack aircraft created by the Ilyushin Design Bureau and nicknamed Hunchback by Red Army troops due to the distinct fuselage shape. While the designers nicknamed their aircraft the Flying Tank, Luftwaffe pilots, due to the IL-2's incredible ability to withstand battle damage, instead called it the Betonflugzeug (Concrete Plane). German ground troops, conversely, despised and feared the IL-2, giving it a slew of unpleasant nicknames, such as Schlachter (Butcher); Fleischwolf (Meatgrinder); Eiserner Gustav (Iron Gustav) and Schwarzer Tod (the Black Death). Some historians believe that the Black Death was actually a successful invention of the Soviet propaganda machine that caught on with the Germans.

The IL-2 was the most mass-produced military aircraft in history. However, early in the war German air superiority coupled with the absence of rear gunners on early variants and poorly organized Soviet fighter escorts led to high rates of losses for the type. A favourite attack tactic for IL-2 pilots was a low-level attack run, first letting loose with rockets at 600-700 meters, then firing on-board armament from a distance of 400 to 600 meters. Bombs would be dropped in subsequent passes from an altitude of 100-200 meters, using an impact fuse. The recommended tactic for attacking concentrations of soft targets was a strafing run in a shallow dive from 100-200 meters and a subsequent dropping of bombs at a low level when exiting the dive.

Media

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

See also

External links


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.

USSR strike aircraft
IL-2  IL-2 (1941) · IL-2 (1942) · IL-2M (1943) · IL-2M type 3 · IL-2M "Avenger" · IL-2-37 · IL-2 M-82
IL-8  IL-8 (1944)
IL-10  IL-10 · IL-10 (1946)
Pe-3  Pe-3 (e) · Pe-3 · Pe-3bis
Su-2  BB-1 · Su-2 MV-5 · Su-2 TSS-1 · Su-2 (M-82)
Su-6  Su-6 · Su-6 (AM-42) · Su-6 (M-71F)
Su-8  Su-8
Tandem MAI  Tandem MAI
TIS MA  TIS MA
Tu-1  Tu-1
Yak-2  Yak-2 KABB