Polikarpov DI-1

The Polikarpov DI‑1 was a Soviet experimental fighter‑trainer developed in the late 1930s by the design bureau of Nikolai Polikarpov. Conceived as a lightweight, low‑cost aircraft to bridge the gap between basic trainers and front‑line fighters, the DI‑1 first flew on 21 April 1937 at the Khodynka airfield. Its airframe employed a mixed construction of wooden ribs and fabric covering over a steel tube fuselage, a common practice in the era that allowed rapid production with limited industrial resources. Powered by a 220 kW (300 hp) Shvetsov M‑11 radial engine, the aircraft reached a maximum speed of 340 km/h and featured a simple, open‑cockpit layout with dual controls, making it suitable for pilot instruction. Armament consisted of a single synchronized 7.62 mm machine gun, sufficient for introductory combat training. Although only a handful of prototypes were built and the program was cancelled in 1939 in favor of more advanced designs such as the Yak‑1, the DI‑1 demonstrated Polikarpov’s ability to create versatile, economical trainers. Its development contributed valuable data on mixed‑material construction and low‑power propulsion that informed later Soviet fighter projects, marking a modest yet noteworthy step in pre‑war aviation progress.

Polikarpov

Classification

Production & History

Design & Classification