Sukhoi Su-8

The Sukhoi Su-8 or DDBSh (Russian: Су-8 ДДБШ - Двухмоторный Двухместный Бронированный Штурмовик - Twin-engine two-seat armored ground attack aircraft) was a Soviet prototype ground-attack aircraft of the German-Soviet War.

Development

While Sukhoi was perfecting the light Sukhoi Su-6 attack aircraft, the OKB also developed the massive, heavily armed and armored Su-8. In May 1942, the Soviet military commanders had realized the need for an aircraft to support ground offensives operating at a great distance from their airfields, and capable of striking enemy lines of communication to the rear of the front lines. Design work was conducted at an accelerated pace, with work on the airframe commencing from August 1942, even before the drawings were completed on 20 September 1942.

Two prototypes were completed at Plant Number 19 in Molotov 1943, the first in May and the second in August, with work hampered by the Nazi invasion and need to evacuate the Sukhoi Design Bureau to Tushino. The first flight test was not made until 11 March 1944, and continued to the end of the year. Flight testing was delayed due to unavailability of Shvetsov M-71 engines.^[1] Although testing was successful, the Su-8 was not approved for mass production. By this time, the Soviet armies had reached the borders of Nazi Germany, and the need for an aircraft with a longer range than the existing Ilyushin Il-2 was no longer a priority.

An attempt to re-engine the aircraft with Mikulin AM-42 engines did not see further development.

The Su-8 was of mixed construction. The cockpit area was armoured, with an aluminum mid-fuselage and a wooden monocoque tail. The wings were of steel and aluminum construction with plywood outer sections. The twin rudders were of all-metal construction. In addition to the cockpit, the engines, the fuel tanks and the oil coolers were fully armoured, with a total armour weight of 1,680 kg (3,705 lb), more than twice as heavy as the armour shell on an Ilyushin Il-2.^[1]

Specifications (Su-8)

Data from ^[1]

General characteristics

• Crew: 2
• Length: 13.5 m (44 ft 3 in)
• Wingspan: 20.5 m (67 ft 3 in)
• Height: 5.11 m (16 ft 9 in)
• Wing area: 60 m² (646 ft²)
• Empty weight: 9,180 kg (20,240 lb)
• Loaded weight: 12,425 kg (27,390 lb)
• Max. takeoff weight: 13,380 kg (29,500 lb)
• Powerplant: 2 × Shvetsov M-71F radial engines, 1,640 kW (2,200 hp) each

Performance

• Maximum speed: 550 km/h (340 mph; 300 kn) at 4,600 m (15,090 ft)
• Range: 1,450 km (900 mi; 785 nmi)
• Service ceiling: 9,000 m (29,530 ft)
• Rate of climb: 9 min to 5,000 m (16,405 ft)

Armament

• 4 × 37 mm Nudelman N-37 or 4 × 45 mm Nudelman-Suranov NS-45 autocannons under the fuselage
• 9 × 7.62 mm ShKAS machine guns (four in each wing, one in lower turret)
• 1 × 12.7 mm UBT machine gun in upper turret
• Up to 1400 kg (3,085 lb) of bombs

References

Notes

• Shavrov V.B. (1994). Istoriia konstruktskii samoletov v SSSR, 1938-1950 gg. (3 izd.). Mashinostroenie. ISBN 5-217-00477-0. 
• Antonov,Vladimir & Gordon, Yefim & others. OKB Sukhoi”. Leicester. Midland. 1996. ISBN 1-85780-012-5

External links

• "Sukhoi Su-8". Sukhoi Company Museum. Retrieved 2011-07-12.