Yakovlev Yak - 3 The Yakovlev Yak - 3 ( Russian language : Яковлев Як - 3 ) was a World War II Soviet fighter aircraft . Robust and easy to maintain , it was much liked by pilots and ground crew alike . It was one of the smallest and lightest major combat fighters fielded by any combatant during the war , and its high power - to - weight ratio gave it excellent performance . It proved a formidable dogfighter . Marcel Albert , the official top - scoring World War II French ace , who flew the Yak in USSR with the Normandie - Niémen Group , considered it a superior aircraft to the P - 51D Mustang and the Supermarine Spitfire . After the war ended , it flew with the Yugoslav and Polish Air Forces . Design and development . The origins of the Yak - 3 went back to 1941 when the I - 30 prototype was offered along with the I - 26 as an alternative design to the Yak - 1 . The I - 30 , powered by a Klimov M - 105 P engine , was of all - metal construction , using a wing with dihedral on the outer panels . Like the early Yak - 1 , it had a 20 mm ShVAK cannon firing through the nose spinner and twin 7 . 62 mm ShKAS machine gun s on the fuselage ( firing through the propeller ) , but was also fitted with a ShVAK cannon in each wing . The first of two prototypes was fitted with a slatted wing to improve handling and short - field performance while the second prototype had a wooden wing without slats , in order to simplify production . The second prototype crashed during flight tests and was written off . Although there were plans to put the Yak - 3 into production , the scarcity of aviation aluminum and the pressure of the Nazi invasion led to work on the first Yak - 3 being abandoned in late fall 1941 . In 1943 , Yakovlev designed the Yak - 1 M which was a smaller and lighter version of the Yak - 1 . A second Yak - 1M prototype was constructed later that year , differing from the first aircraft in plywood instead of fabric covering of the rear fuselage , mastless radio antenna , reflector gunsight and improved armor and engine cooling . The chief test pilot for the project Petr Mikhailovich Stefanovskiy was so impressed with the new aircraft that he recommended that it should completely replace the Yak - 1 and Yak - 7 with only the Yak - 9 retained in production for further work with the Klimov VK - 107 engine . The new fighter , designated the Yak - 3 entered service in 1944 , later than the Yak - 9 in spite of the lower designation number . Production accelerated rapidly , so that by mid - 1946 , 4 , 848 had been built . The designation Yak - 3 was also used for other Yakovlev projects - a proposed but never built , heavy twin - engine fighter and the Yakovlev Yak - 7 A . The first 197 Yak - 3 were armed with a single 20 mm ShVAK cannon and one 12 . 7 mm UBS machine gun , with subsequent aircraft receiving a second UBS for a weight of fire of 2 . 72 kg ( 6 . 0 lb ) per second using high - explosive ammunition . All armament was installed close to the axis of the aircraft ( cannon firing through the engine crankshaft and synchronised machine guns in the fuselage above the engine ) , adding to the accuracy and leaving wings unloaded . Operational history . Lighter and smaller than Yak - 9 but powered by the same engine , the Yak - 3 was a forgiving , easy - to - handle aircraft loved by both rookie and veteran pilots and ground crew as well . It was robust , easy to maintain , and a highly successful dog - fighter . It was used mostly as a tactical fighter , flying low over battlefields and engaging in dogfights below 13 , 000 ft . The new aircraft began to reach front line units during summer 1944 . Yak - 3 service tests were conducted by 91st IAP of the 2nd Air Army , commanded by Lt Colonel Kovalyov , in June – July 1944 . The regiment had the task of gaining air superiority . During 431 missions , 20 Luftwaffe fighters and three Ju 87s were shot down while Soviet losses amounted to two Yak - 3s shot down . A large dogfight developed on 16 June 1944 , when 18 Yak - 3s clashed with 24 German aircraft . Soviet Yak - 3 fighters shot down 15 German aircraft for the loss of one Yak destroyed and one damaged . The following day , Luftwaffe activity over that section of the front had virtually ceased . On 17 July 1944 , eight Yaks attacked a formation of 60 German aircraft , including escorting fighters . In the ensuing dogfight , the Luftwaffe lost three Junkers Ju 87 s and four Bf 109Gs , for no losses to the Yaks . Consequently , the Luftwaffe issued an order to " avoid combat below five thousand metres with Yakovlev fighters lacking an oil cooler intake beneath the nose ! " Luftwaffe fighters in combat with the Yak - 3 tried to use surprise tactics , attacking from above . Unresolved wartime problems with the Yak - 3 included plywood surfaces coming unstuck when the aircraft pulled out of a high - speed dive . Other drawbacks of the aircraft were short range and poor engine reliability . The pneumatic system for actuating landing gear , flaps and brakes , typical for all Yakovlev fighters of the time , was problematic . Though less reliable than hydraulic or electrical alternatives , the pneumatic system was preferred owing to significant weight savings . In 1944 , the Normandie - Niemen Group re - equipped with the Yak - 3 , scoring with it the last 99 of their 273 air victories against the Luftwaffe . Modern replicas . In addition , since 1991 , a number of true replica Yak - 3s have been newly manufactured by Yakovlev for the warbird market using the original plans and dies . These are powered by Allison V - 1710 engines and have the designation Yak - 3M . Several of these are airworthy today , mostly in the United States , but also in Germany and Australia . Others have been converted as reproductions instead , to " Yak - 3U " status from Yak - 11 trainers for private owners , with these aircraft also being popular worldwide .