Nikitin NV-5

NV-5
Role	Trainer
National origin	USSR
Manufacturer	Nikitin
Designer	Vasilii Vasilyevich Nikitin
First flight	Early 1937
Number built	15 (maybe more)

The Nikitin NV-5, was a tandem-seat trainer aircraft designed and produced in the USSR from 1934.

Development

In 1934 Osaviakhim (Society for assistance to aviation and chemical industry), and AVIAVnito (Aviation Department of Vnito, all union scientific and technical research organisation), opened a competition for designing and building a safe aeroplane. Nikitin designed a small biplane with tandem seating, I-type wide chord inter-plane struts, rubber shock-isolating engine mounts and small semi-balloon tyres. The fuselage was built up from welded 30KhGSA steel tubing with plywood covering and the wings were constructed from wood with fabric covering. The first prototype had a Licence-built Renault MV-4 inverted in-line engine, but later variants used M-11 or MG-11 radial engines.

The NV-5 won the Osavaiakhim/ AVIAVnito competition in 1937 and was prepared for production, as the U-5, for Osaviakhim and UVVS. One U-5 was modified with a ShKAS machine gun under the starboard wing and four under-wing RS-82 rockets.

The most significant variant of the U-5 was the LSh (Legkii Shtabno – light staff aircraft), built in 1942 at the request of the Moscow Defence HQ, this aircraft was used operationally on liaison and special missions from Leningrad to the Caucasus mountains. With a much more powerful MG-31F engine, Polikarpov I-153 upper wing, enclosed cabin, toughened rear cockpit with bench seating for two and aluminium lining, the LSh had excellent STOL and range performance.

Variants

NV-5 - Initial prototype with licence built Renault MV-4 engine.
NV-5bis – Shvetsov MG-11F powered NV-5. (one built)
U-5 – Prototype and four production aircraft with Shvetsov M-11 or Shvetsov M-11G engines. (Five built)
U-5 bis – Five built 1939 for UVVS with Shvetsov MG-11F engines
LSh – One LSh built in 1942 (a.k.a. U-5/MG-31) with a 330 hp (246.01 kW) MG-31F.

Units using this aircraft/Operators (choose)

UVVS - Soviet Air Force Training
Osavaiakhim
(LSh) - Moscow Defence HQ

Specifications (U-5)

Data from Gunston, Bill. "Encyclopaedia of Russian Aircraft 1875-1995". London:Osprey. 1995. ISBN 1-85532-405-9

General characteristics

Crew: 2
Length: 7.62 m (25 ft 2.33 in)
Wingspan: 9.84 m (32 ft 3.5 in)
Wing area: 25.53 m² (275 sq ft)
Empty weight: 711 kg (1,567.49 lb)
Gross weight: 974 kg (2,147.3 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × M-11G , 85.75 kW (115 hp)

Performance

Maximum speed: 181 km/h (112.47 mph, 97.73 kn)
Endurance: 3 hours
Rate of climb: 5.55 m/s (1,093.6 ft/min)

References

Gunston, Bill. “The Osprey Encyclopaedia of Russian Aircraft 1875–1995”. London, Osprey. 1995. ISBN 1-85532-405-9

External links

https://web.archive.org/web/19991004085143/http://www.aviation.ru/Nikitin/