Tupolev I-4
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The Tupolev I-4 was a Soviet sesquiplane single-seat fighter. It was conceived in 1927 by Pavel Sukhoi as his first aircraft design for the Tupolev design bureau, and was the first Soviet all-metal fighter.
Design and developmentEdit
After the first prototype (under the development name Andrei Nikolayevich Tupolev fighter 5 | ANT-5), the I-4 was redesigned with a new engine cowling to decrease drag, with added rocket launchers on the upper wing and a larger tailfin. The lower wing was predominantly an attachment for the wing struts; it was almost removed in the second series, the I-4Z (where the lower wings were greatly shortened), and totally removed from the I-4bis, thus transforming the aircraft from a sesquiplane into a parasol-wing monoplane.
Operational historyEdit
The I-4 was used as a parasite fighter in experiments with the Tupolev TB-1 bomber. The aircraft was in Soviet service from 1928–1933. A total of 369 were built.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
VariantsEdit
- ANT-5 : Prototype.
- I-4 : Single-seat fighter aircraft.
- I-4Z : Single-seat fighter with span of lower wings greatly reduced.
- I-4bis : Monoplane version (lower wings totally removed).
- I-4P : Floatplane version.
OperatorsEdit
Specifications (I-4)Edit
See alsoEdit
ReferencesEdit
BibliographyEdit
External linksEdit
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The initial version of this article was based on material from aviation.ru. It has been released under the GFDL by the copyright holder.