Cockpit study Lavochkins La5FN & La7

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The instrument layout of the La5F,FN was in fact quite different to the La7.

As was the shape of the Flight stick/paddle.

Below is an artists impression of the La5F cockpit.



The perspective of the armoured glass makes it look tapered which I beleive is incorrect however the rendering of the instrument panel is very well done IMO.

The panel is infact wood and the instruments are mounted behind it. Hence you do not see guage mounting screws or flanges on the front of the panel.

The dash panels are very similar to the ones we have now in AH.

Its questionable whether the wood was painted black infact its more likely to be painted grey. (see below for pictures)

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Here is the panel in more detail.



1) System air pressure guage (kg/cm^2)
2)Fuel level guage (litres)
3)Clock
4)Air speed (ASI) (Km/hr)
5)Compass
6)Altitude (m)
7)RPM & Engine hours
8)oil temp(C),oil pressure(kg/cm^2), fuel pressurekg/cm^2)
9)Cylinder head temp (C)
10) Boost pressure (kg/cm^2)
11)Flap angle indicator
12)Gear hydraulics pressure (KG/CM^2)
13)Gear control lever (up = raise, down = lower, always leave in nuetral)
14)Magneto switch
15)gear  up/down indicators
16) turn and bank indicator
17)Rate of climb (m/sec)
18)bomb release indicators
19)Circuit breakers


The reader will note the absence of an artifiscial horizon. Lavochkins did not carry them until mid 45.

The reader will also note that some of the dials are not in the same posistions as the cockpit artistically drawn above. IMO the schematic is more accurate for the La5FN. It is known that the two plants making La5F's and La5FN's had some variance to this detail.

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The controls to the right of the panel



1)right cannon charging lever (Pnuematic)
2)right cannon charging lever (mechanical)
3)Cockpit oxygen boost button (oxygen shower)
4)Cockpit light
5)oxygen contols
6)Inert gas > fuel valve
7)Emergency undercarriage valve
8)Starter fuel pump control
9) Front engine cooling louvre open/close
10)Rear engine cooling flaps open/close

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Left of the panel



11) radio
12)Throttle
13) E Fuel cut off
14) Prop pitch control
15)Oil cooler flap adjustment
16) Mechanical bomb release (jetison)
17)Prop and blower speed control
18) Trim Large wheel = elevators, Small wheel = rudder.

Area ringed is the Flap actuating lever (hydraulic) This also must be returned to nuetral when not in use

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A picture of an early La5  dash shows the depth of the wooden fascia to good effect.



Note the colour is not black

[Krusty]

Check out the odd (funky) rounded shape to the window on the canopy. It's only got 1 frame in it, is not flay, not armored... Maybe it's a prototype, and they weren't using standard colors on it?

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it is indeed an early La5 Krusty however other pictures I have of this type of dash albeit on other early La5's and laGG3's are also not black.

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The spade control stick had a single lever for brakes.....a cannon button and a bomb release button.

In fact the bomb release had two buttons/levers so it could be operated by either the left or right hand. Note the latching hinged flap to stop it being released by accident.

Control forced were higher and slightly less responsive in the La5, La5F and La5fn than the later La7 which was able to utilise a single handed grip.

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Here is another "artists impression" this time its view point is lower in the cockpit but the artist has taken a reverse aspect to the shape of the armoured glass.

The scetch below gives us a better idea of the proper rendering It is good for late model La5F's thru to La7's. Note the mount for the PB1 gunsight which changes during the later La5FN production runs. (discussed below)




What it shows is that  the armoured glass and its immediate surround can be considered identical for both the La7 and the La5FN.

here is a picture of the same area from and La7

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In the above pictures the reader will note that mirrors were originally installed in La5FN's and La7's.

These were almost universally removed immediately after delivery. However the boss nut would remain in the frame as can be seen on the La7 picture above.

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In AH's La5FN  the hoop directly to the rear of the armoured glass is lower than the same hoop on AH's La7.

In fact this was the case for early production La5F's. Where the lowered hoop went with a slightly domed top to the sliding canopy which of course had a lower forward hoop to match.

In fact all the photographs of La5FN's in books published by Vestik and Gordon show the production units to have the same straight topped sliding canopy as the La7.

Indeed there are several instances of late production La5F's with similar straight topped canopies.

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The PB1P gun sight was used for all Lavochkin La5's, La5FN's and La7's.

The sketch below claims to show the mounting method on
all La5's to La5FN's. The reader will note that this is the same as later La7's



However if the reader scrolls up he/she will also note that the twin mounting bars on La5F's and apparantly some La5FN's lift the gun sight higher with respect to the armoured glass than is the case with the La7.

Yet these twin bars were not needed for the early La5.

Where these twin mounting bars are used the top of the sight glass is well above the change in angle of the armoured glass. Where they are not the top of the sight glass is roughly level with the change in angle of the armoured glass.

It would be logical to raise this sight as the air intake bulge was introduced into the design (Late La5 to La5FN) as this caused to block the pilots view over the nose of the aircraft. The sight could then be lowered again as the bulge was dispenced with on the La7.

La7 shown below



Note also the diagonal bracing bar just to the right of the gun sight. It actually attaches to the gun sight mounting plate...presumably to help brace the gun sight.


The PB1P however was much larger in RL than depicted currently in AH.

It was also the gunsight used on Yaks

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The most significant difference between the la5 and la7 cockpits is the panel/fascia design itself.

The La7 panel is more closely modelled on the Yak than previous Lavochkins.



A & B are later additions of artificial horizons and radio direction finders which were never enjoyed by the VVS during the GPW.

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The panel is made from Duralim (aluminium alloy and painted black) the main panel is a 3 part composite with the centre section bolted on the fron of the two outer side panels. Two further auxilary panels are positioned either side of the pilots legs.


Picture below and the schematic are from an La7 Flown by the Czech airforce with some "additions" that were not in the original model. These are noted by the letters N.O.



and





Many of the guages and controls were the same as those used on the La5FN some were "updated"

1)Hydraulics pressure gauge
2)Flap index
3)Landing gear control lever.
4)Brake pressure guage
5)Air system pressure guage
6)electrical switches
7)Landing gear indicator
8)Clock
9)cannon air charging
10)Altimeter
11)Cannon manual/mechanical charging
12)Cockpit vent (N.O)
13)Gun sight
14)Compass
15)Course indicator (N.O)
16)CI reversing switch (N.O)
17)Amperemeter
18)Fual Guage
19)Cockpit light
20)Radio compass switch (N.O)
21)Cylinderhead temp guage
22)Frequency switch
23) Vertical speed indicator
24)Oil temp, Oil pressure & Fuel Pressure guage.
25)Turn & Bank Indicator
26)RPM
27)Boost
28)Airspeed indicator
29)Ignition/magneto switch

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La7 left side of cockpit







30)Flaps control lever
31)Oil cooling flap control lever
32)Rudder trim wheel
33)Elevator trim wheel
34)Manual bomb release (jetison)
35)Main air valve
36)Cockpit vent
37)Boost control
38)Airscrew control
39)Engine control
40) Throttle (yellow)
41)Canopy Lock