9/21/2023 0 Comments Idmss lite for computerGerman pilots dubbed the Il-2 the “Concrete Bomber” - a commentary perhaps both on its durability and agility, or lack thereof. However, the Sturmoviks sustained devastating losses as faster German fighter planes swooped around to hit their unarmored rears. Thrust into a desperate effort to blunt German advancing mechanized spearheads, Sturmovik pilots discovered their armor rendered the Il-2 nearly immune to machine gun fire from the front, and even gave it a chance to survive 20-millimeter cannon shells. Only a small number of Il-2s were deployed to frontline units - notably in the Fourth Aviation Assault Regiment - when the Wehrmacht began its devastating invasion of the Soviet Union on June 1941. The Sturmovik’s robust landing gear was also designed to handle rough frontline airstrips. Even the canopy averaged six centimeters of armored glass. However, it was slightly faster, at 250 miles per hour, and more heavily armed, with two 20-millimeter cannons in addition to two machine guns in the wings.Īn armored tub five to 12 millimeters thick shielded the cockpit, fuel tanks, AM38 engine and radiators. German Federal Archives photoĪfter several prototypes, the resulting single-seat Il-2 production aircraft weighed nearly 10,000 pounds, compared to 7,000 for the Stuka, and could carry a similar maximum bomb load of around 1,100 pounds.
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