With all the talk about La-7's, I started doing some reading.
Now from what I understand, early models of the La-7 had the same armament as the La-5FN, x2 20mm ShVak cannon. This was due to shortages of he planned x3 B-20 20mm cannon, that was originally intended.
Once production of the B-20 increased in early 1945, the x3 B-20 armament became the standard. This should be a very interesting load out option, since 3 B-20's (25kg each, or 75kg total) actually has less weight than 2 ShVaks (42 kg each, or 84kg total), and ballistically the B-20 is identical to the ShVak.
This doesn't include ammunition. Anyone know the number of rounds per gun in the B-20 armament type?
One last reference I can find, is that in some batchs of the La-7 it was armed with x3 23mm Cannons. However it doesn't say which type of 23mm cannon. Looking at Russian armaments of the time, it could be the 23mm VYa (a very powerful gun) that equiped the IL-2, but this was a very heavy gun at 69kg per gun (207 kg total), which makes its installation unlikely. Or it could have been the much less potent, but still deadly, 23mm NS-23, which weighed 37kg per gun (111kg total).
My bet would be on the NS-23, but does anyone have any more information? Or any info, on the number of rounds per gun in this installation?
The 23mm option would most likely be most useful in buff busting and ground attack missions, since it has a relatively low rate of fire (550 rpm), and a low muzzle velocity (690 m/s). But it does shoot a shell of twice the weight of the 20mm. 23mm=200g 20mm=99g
I just hope that Pyro includes each of these armament options, since each seemed to have been in serial production, and were not a different variant in its own right ( like the -1C F4U).
Option #1: x2 nosemounted 20mm ShVAK Cannons
Option #2: x3 nosemounted 20mm B-20 Cannons
Option #3: x3 nosemounted 23mm ???? Cannons
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Vermillion
**MOL**, Men of Leisure,
Dicta Verm: "Never give the suckers an even break!" or translated "Never engage without an advantage"
