Ilyushin Il-1

The Ilyushin Il-1 was a Soviet fighter aircraft developed during the Second World War by the Ilyushin design bureau. Sergey Ilyushin began work in 1943 on an armoured fighter for use at low and medium altitudes against the latest German fighters, in single-seat and two-seat versions that resembled the Il-2 but were more modern. By the time it made its first flight on 19 May 1944 the Soviets had already won air superiority, so the type was redundant. In the manufacturer's trials it reached a top speed of 580 km/h, significantly less than Soviet fighters already in service, and Ilyushin decided not to submit it for state acceptance trials. Only one example was built, but the parallel two-seat attack version led to the successful Il-10.