Yakovlev Yak-17 "Feather"

Yakovlev · Soviet Union · first flew 1947 · fighter

The Yakovlev Yak-17 was an improved version of the Yak-15, the Soviet Union's first operational jet fighter, featuring a retractable tricycle undercarriage and other refinements over the initial design.

Recognition (WEFT)

W — Wings	Mid-mounted, straight
E — Engines	1 × turbojet, fuselage-mounted
F — Fuselage	10.16 m fuselage
T — Tail	Conventional

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Spot it by:

Early Soviet jet fighter derived from Yak-15
Straight-wing jet with RD-10 (Jumo 004) engine
Transitional design with bicycle-style undercarriage added

Straight-wing jet fighter with an engine pod under the nose (unlike nose-intake contemporaries), conventional tail, and retractable tricycle gear; the underslung engine nacelle is the primary identifier.

Specifications

The Yakovlev Yak-17 has a length of 10.16 m (33 ft).
It has a wingspan of 9.2 m (30 ft).
Its maximum speed is 748 km/h (465 mph).
Typical crew: 1.

Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.

History

The Yak-17 entered service in 1948 as a short-term expedient while more advanced swept-wing jets were developed; it used the German Junkers Jumo 004 engine (Soviet RD-10 copy). Only about 430 were built and the type was quickly replaced by the MiG-15. A two-seat Yak-17UTI trainer variant was more widely used.

Variants

Yak-17 single-seat fighter; Yak-17UTI two-seat trainer (more numerous than the fighter version); exported to Poland and Czechoslovakia.

Where you'll see it

Served briefly with the Soviet Air Force and air forces of Poland and Czechoslovakia from 1948 to the early 1950s.

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