WWII Finnish Air Force Fighter
The last and most perfect in N. N. Polikarpov design bureau production biplane fighters family was the I-153. It had gull-shaped upper wing, retractable chassis and more powerful armament with four ShKAS machine guns. Serial planes had M-62 radial engines, late series – more powerful M-63.
The maiden flight was in August 1938. All in all in 1939-1941 it were made 3437 planes. In summer 1941 I-153 “Chaika” (the “Gull”) was the basis of the Soviet Fighter Aviation with I-16 fighters. I-153 were used in combat until mid 1943. Some of them were used on winter ski chassis. The structure of the Finnish Air Force included 21 captured I-153 planes. Soviet ShKAS machine guns were replaced by British Browning.