View source for VEF I-16

{{short description|Latvian fighter prototype}}
{{Infobox aircraft
  |name          =VEF I-16
  |image         =vef_I_16.jpg
  |caption       =
  |type          = [[Fighter aircraft|fighter]]
  |manufacturer  = [[Valsts Elektrotechniska Fabrika]] (VEF), Riga, Latvia
  |designer      =[[Kārlis Irbītis]]
  |first_flight  = 1940
  |introduction    = 
  |retired       = 1942
  |status        = 
  |primary_user  =
  |more_users    =
  |produced      =
  |number_built  = 1 (in some sources 3)
  |unit cost     = 130,568 Lats (about $27,000 US)
}}

The '''VEF I-16''' was a prototype [[Latvia]]n [[fighter aircraft]] designed by [[Kārlis Irbītis]] and produced by [[VEF]] in [[1939 in aviation|1939]]. Development was halted by the [[Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940]] and the subsequent [[purge]] of VEF personnel.

== Description ==
The I-16 was of conventional [[monoplane]] layout with a [[Walter Sagitta]] [[supercharger|supercharged]] air-cooled V12 engine of [[Czechoslovakia|Czechoslovak]] origin, a two-bladed [[Propeller (aircraft)|propeller]] and a low-set wing with rounded wingtips. The prototype had fixed [[Landing gear|undercarriage]] with aerodynamic fairings, but production models were to have retractable landing gear. The cockpit seat and controls were designed as one unit - they could be assembled totally separately from the rest of the aircraft and then installed as a unit with only six bolts.

While the prototype was unarmed, there were provisions for two [[machine gun]]s in the fuselage, along with the ability to carry one additional gun under each wing.{{Citation needed|date=July 2022}}

==Operational history==
In the spring of 1940 Latvian Air Force pilots made the first test flights of the VEF I-16 prototype. After the occupation of Latvia in June 1940, the Soviet authorities ordered that all VEF aircraft be removed from [[Spilve Airport]] and, a few weeks later, all parts fabrication and assembly work was ordered suspended pending further instructions from Moscow. In March 1941, the I-16's designer Kārlis Irbītis received orders to prepare one example each of the [[VEF I-12]], [[VEF I-15|VEF I-15a and I-15b]], I-16, [[VEF I-17]] (two variants) and [[VEF I-18]] to be shipped to Moscow for evaluation. The I-16 still had engine problems and needed further testing, so was left behind and stayed in Riga. Following the [[Operation Barbarossa|German invasion of the Soviet Union]], the I-16 managed to make several test flights from an aerodrome in [[Kalnciems]] but soon the single example was captured by German forces and tested by the ''[[Luftwaffe]]''. The VEF I-16 was used as training aircraft at an aviation school in [[Toruń]] until 1942.{{Citation needed|date=July 2022}}

==Specifications (I-16)==
[[File:VEF I-16.svg|right|300px]]
{{Aircraft specs
|ref=''Latvia's Little Hawk,''<ref name="Hawk p60">{{cite journal |last1=Davis |first1=Chuck |title=Latvia's Little Hawk |journal=Air Enthusiast |date=December 1992 |issue=48 |pages=58–64 |issn=0143-5450}}</ref>''and EF I-16 : LATVIA : Single-engine light fighter aircraft.''<ref name="samoloty.ow">{{cite web |title=VEF I-16 : LATVIA : Single-engine light fighter aircraft. |url=http://www.samoloty.ow.pl/str071.htm |website=samoloty.ow |access-date=22 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100113003936/http://www.samoloty.ow.pl/str071.htm |archive-date=13 January 2010 |language=pl}}</ref>
|prime units?=met
<!--
        General characteristics
-->
|crew=1
|length m=7.3
|length note=
|span m=8.23
|span note=
|height m=2.7
|height note=
|wing area sqm=11.43
|wing area note=
|aspect ratio=<!-- sailplanes -->
|airfoil=
|empty weight kg=1100
|empty weight note=
|gross weight kg=1540-1550
|gross weight note=
|max takeoff weight kg=
|max takeoff weight note=
|fuel capacity=
|more general=
<!--
        Powerplant
-->
|eng1 number=1
|eng1 name=[[Walter Sagitta I-SR]]
|eng1 type=V-12 inverted air-cooled piston engine
|eng1 kw=399
|eng1 note= at 2,500 rpm at {{cvt|3800|m}}

|prop blade number=2
|prop name=[[Schwarz (propeller manufacturer)|Schwarz]] wooden fixed-pitch propeller
|prop dia m=<!-- propeller aircraft -->
|prop dia note=
<!--
        Performance
-->
|max speed kmh=483
|max speed note=at {{cvt|7900|m}}
|cruise speed kmh=
|cruise speed note=
|stall speed kmh=
|stall speed note=
|never exceed speed kmh=
|never exceed speed note=
|range km=805
|range note=
|combat range km=
|combat range note=
|ferry range km=
|ferry range note=
|endurance=<!-- if range unknown -->
|ceiling m=8100
|ceiling note=
|g limits=<!-- aerobatic -->
|roll rate=<!-- aerobatic -->
|climb rate ms=
|climb rate note=
|time to altitude=
|wing loading kg/m2=136
|wing loading note=
|fuel consumption kg/km=
|power/mass={{cvt|0.220|kW/kg}}
|more performance=<!--<br />
*'''Take-off run:''' {{cvt||m|0}}
*'''Take-off run to {{cvt|15|m|0}}:''' {{cvt||m|0}}
*'''Landing run:''' {{cvt||m|0}}
*'''Landing run from {{cvt|15|m|0}}:''' {{cvt||m|0}}-->
<!--
        Armament
-->
|guns=2x 7.9 mm [[Browning machine gun]]s
|avionics=
}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category|VEF I-16}}
*[http://latvianaviation.com/VEF_I-16.html VEF IRBITIS I-16] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605010544/http://latvianaviation.com/VEF_I-16.html |date=2011-06-05 }} at [http://latvianaviation.com/ LatvianAviation.com] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200218201449/http://www.latvianaviation.com/ |date=2020-02-18 }}
*[http://airwar.ru/enc/fww2/i16l.html I-16] at [http://airwar.ru airwar.ru]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-C0DdVzuUEg VEF I-16; The Latvian Lightweight], by Ed Nash's Military Matters, on youtube.com

{{VEF aircraft}}

[[Category:1930s Latvian fighter aircraft]]
[[Category:Low-wing aircraft]]
[[Category:Single-engined tractor aircraft]]
[[Category:Aircraft first flown in 1940]]
[[Category:VEF aircraft]]
[[Category:Aircraft with retractable conventional landing gear]]
[[Category:Single-engined piston aircraft]]