View source for Yakovlev Yak-18

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{{Short description|Training aircraft in the Soviet Union}}
{{About|the military trainer aircraft|the unrelated utility aircraft|Yakovlev Yak-18T}}
{{Infobox aircraft
  |name =Yak-18
  |image = File:Jak-18 Góraszka 2008 2.JPG
  |caption =A Polish Yakovlev Yak-18 in flight
  |type =Training aircraft
  |manufacturer =[[Yakovlev]]
  |designer =
  |first_flight = [[1946 in aviation|1946]]
  |introduction = [[1946 in aviation|1946]]
  |retired =
  |status = in limited service
  |primary_user = [[Soviet Air Force]]
  |more_users = [[DOSAAF]]<br/>[[People's Liberation Army Air Force]]<br/>[[Polish Air Force]]
  |produced =
  |number_built = 
  |unit cost =
  |developed_from = 
  |variants = 
}}

The '''Yakovlev Yak-18''' ({{langx|ru|Яковлев Як-18}}; [[NATO reporting name]] '''Max''') is a tandem two-seat military primary [[trainer aircraft]] manufactured in the [[Soviet Union]]. Originally powered by one 119&nbsp;kW (160&nbsp;hp) [[Shvetsov M-11]]FR-1 [[Radial engine|radial piston engine]], it entered service in 1946. It was also produced in China as the '''Nanchang CJ-5'''.

==Design and development==
[[File:1986 CPA 5782 (1).png|thumb|1986 postage stamp issued by the Soviet Union to commemorate the Yak-18]]

A member of the second generation of Russian aircraft designers, and best known for fighter designs, [[Alexander Sergeyevich Yakovlev]] always retained a light aircraft design section. In May 1945, Yakovlev initiated design of the Yak-18 two-seat primary trainer. He designed it to replace the earlier [[Yakovlev UT-2]] and [[Yakovlev Yak-5]] in service with the [[Soviet Air Force]]s and [[DOSAAF]] (Voluntary Society for Collaboration with the Army, Air Force and Navy, which sponsored aero clubs throughout the USSR). In 1944, an advanced version of the UT-2 had been built with many of the features of the new Yak-18. The new aircraft flew a year later, powered by a 119&nbsp;kW (160&nbsp;hp) [[Shvetsov M-11]] five-cylinder radial engine and featuring pneumatically operated retractable main landing gear and a fixed tailwheel. It entered service as a trainer later that year and was built by Yakovlev up until 1956. Examples were exported to China in kit form beginning in 1950. The Chinese began producing license built copies in 1954 with the designation '''CJ-5'''.

The Yak-18's greatest claim to fame is its use as a night bomber by the North Korean Air Force during the [[Korean War]]. The aircraft were modified with bomb racks on the wing center section and flew over UN troop locations at night to drop bombs and harass UN forces. The single most successful attack of the North Korean aviation during the war was the destruction of a fuel dump with nearly {{convert|5.5|usgal||disp=preunit|million }} of fuel in the Inchon area in June 1953 by four or five Yak-18s.<ref>Richard P. Hallion (1986), ''The Naval Air War in Korea'', {{ISBN|0-933852-47-9}}, p.186</ref> The five-cylinder engine reminded many of the US troops of the sound made by early gasoline powered washing machines, earning them the name: "Washing Machine Charlie". The name "[[Wikt:bed check|Bed Check]] Charlie" was also used for these night intruders. The Yak-18s, along with [[Polikarpov Po-2]]s, became quite a nuisance until US night fighters began shooting them down. One nightfighter crashed shooting down a Bed Check Charlie and another nightfighter rammed its target.

Other claims to fame for the Yak-18 are an international speed record for its class in 1951 as well as being the aircraft used for initial flight training by [[Yuri Gagarin]] (1st human in space) and Ken Rowe ([[No Kum-Sok]], who defected from North Korea with a [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15]] jet fighter during the Korean War). Later, as the need for conventional landing gear trainers abated, Yakovlev re-designed the Yak-18 with retractable tricycle landing gear and an Ivchenko AI-14RF radial engine of 224&nbsp;kW (300&nbsp;hp); this was designated the Yak-18A. The design proved exceptionally easy to build and maintain.

There are an estimated 40 original Yak-18s in existence worldwide. Five are currently flyable in the US, three are flyable in Europe, and the Chinese Air Force has one flyable with several other airframes in storage. Approximately four other aircraft worldwide are currently{{date?}} being restored for flight. Many are found in major aviation museums worldwide including the National Air and Space Museum in the USA. The [[Nanchang CJ-6]], produced in China, is sometimes quoted as a variant but is a completely different aircraft designed in China by Bushi Cheng and built by Nanchang Aircraft Company.

==Operational history==
[[File:YAK-18 Formation.jpg|thumb|Aerobatic formation of Yak-18s]]
[[File:Yak-18PM 07 700108 HULVTN 26.07.70 edited-2.jpg|thumb|Soviet Yak-18PM single-seat aerobatic aircraft competing in the 1970 World Aerobatic Championship at RAF Hullavington, England, in 1970]]
The Yak-18 became the standard trainer for Air Force flying schools and DOSAAF, was in wide use{{citation needed|date=November 2010}} in China, and in many other countries.

Photographs showing [[Kim Jong-Un]] visiting a [[North Korean Air Force]] base in March 2014 suggest that the North Koreans may still maintain original Yak-18s or CJ-5s in a bombing role.<ref>http://spioenkop.blogspot.it/2014/03/north-korea-forgotten-aircraft-yak-18cj.html {{Self-published source|date=December 2017}}</ref>

==Variants==
[[File:Yakovlev Yak-18A.jpg|thumb|Yak-18A]]

;Yak-18
:The original production version. Retractable main undercarriage, fixed tailwheel.
;Yak-18U
:This version was built in small numbers. It had retractable tricycle landing gear.
;Yak-18A
:Cleaned up version of the Yak-18U, powered by a 194&nbsp;kW (260&nbsp;hp) [[Ivchenko AI-14]] FR engine. Built in large numbers.
;Yak-18P (NATO reporting name Mouse)
:Single-seat aerobatic aircraft for use by flying clubs. Adaptation of Yak-18 two-seat trainer.
;Yak-18PM
:Single-seat aerobatic aircraft with retractable tricycle landing gear. 
;Yak-18PS
:Aerobatic aircraft with retractable main gear.
;Hongzhuan-501 (Red Craftsman)
:Probable original designation for early CJ-5 production aircraft.
;Nanchang CJ-5
:The Yak-18 was built under licence in China as the CJ-5 for use by the PLAAF, PLANAF and civilian flying clubs; 379 CJ-5s had been built when production ended in 1958.

==Similar model designation==
The [[Yakovlev Yak-18T]] was developed as an [[Aeroflot]] training aircraft and also as a light passenger transport aircraft, with a cabin for one pilot and three passengers. It is not a variant of the Yak-18 as it has very little in common, and was designed from scratch 20 years later.

==Operators==
{{more citations needed|date=September 2023}}

[[File:Yakolev Yak-18 '19 white' (SP-AOU) (15328409673).jpg|thumb|Polish Air Force Yak-18 in the [[Polish Aviation Museum]]]]
[[File:Yakolev Yak-18 ‘30’ (N18YK) (26272324183).jpg|thumb|North Korean Air Force]]
; Afghanistan
* [[Afghan Air Force]] − Supplied by the Soviet Union in 1957, retired{{sfn|Wragg|2011|pages=49−50}} 
; Albania
* [[Albanian Air Force]] (including Chinese CJ-6 variants).
; Algeria
* [[Algerian Air Force]]
; Armenia
* [[Armenian Air Force]]
; Austria
* [[Austrian Air Force]] − Donated by the Soviet Union in 1955,{{sfn|Wragg|2011|pages=62−63}} retired
; Bulgaria
* [[Bulgarian Air Force]] − Retired{{sfn|Wragg|2011|pages=77−78}}
; Cambodia
* [[Royal Cambodian Air Force]]
* [[Khmer Air Force]]
; China
* [[People's Liberation Army Air Force]] − Retired,{{sfn|Wragg|2011|pages=92−93}} manufactured in China under the designation CJ-5.
; Czechoslovakia
* [[Czechoslovak Air Force]]
* Czechoslovak National Security Guard
; East Germany
* [[Air Forces of the National People's Army]] − Retired shortly after the [[German Reunification]]{{sfn|Wragg|2011|pages=133−134}}
; Egypt
* [[Egyptian Air Force]] − Retired{{sfn|Wragg|2011|pages=111−113}}
; Guinea
* [[Military of Guinea]]
; Hungary
* [[Hungarian Air Force]]
; Iraq
* [[Iraqi Air Force]] − Retired{{sfn|Wragg|2011|pages=158−159}}
; Kazakhstan 
* [[Kazakh Air Defense Forces]] − Operated 4 Yak-18 in 2011,{{sfn|Wragg|2011|page=174}} retired
; Laos
* [[Lao People's Liberation Army Air Force]]
; Mali
* [[Air Force of Mali]] − 2 in 2011, non-operational{{sfn|Wragg|2011|pages=190−191}}
; Mongolia
* [[Mongolian People's Air Force]] − Retired{{sfn|Wragg|2011|pages=195−196}}
; North Korea
* [[North Korean Air Force]] − Supplied by the Soviet Union between 1948 and 1950, ten CJ-5 were operational in 2011{{sfn|Wragg|2011|pages=176−177}}
; Poland
* [[Polish Air Force]] − Retired{{sfn|Wragg|2011|pages=229−230}}
; Romania
* [[Romanian Air Force]] − Retired{{sfn|Wragg|2011|pages=235−236}}
; Somalia
* [[Somali Air Corps]]
; Soviet Union
* [[DOSAAF]]
* [[Soviet Air Force]]
; Syria
* [[Syrian Air Force]] − Retired{{sfn|Wragg|2011|pages=273−274}}
; Transnistria
* [[Military of Transnistria]] - 2<ref>[http://www.milaviapress.com/orbat/transnistria/index.php Transnistrian military aviation OrBat]</ref>
; Turkmenistan
* [[Military of Turkmenistan#Air Force|Turkmenistan Air Force]]
; Vietnam
* [[Vietnam People's Air Force]]
; Yemen
* [[Yemen Air Force]]
; Zambia
* [[Zambian Air Force]]

==Specifications (Yak-18A)==
[[File:Yakovlev Yak-18 3-view silhouette.jpg|thumb|Yak-18 3-view drawing]]
{{Aircraft specs
|ref={{citation needed|date=October 2019}}
|prime units?=met
<!--
        General characteristics
-->
|crew=2
|length m=8.35
|length note=
|span m=10.6
|span note=
|height m=3.35
|height note=
|wing area sqm=17.8
|wing area note=
|aspect ratio=<!-- sailplanes -->
|airfoil='''root:''' [[Clark YH]] (14.5%); '''tip:''' Clark YH (9.3%)<ref name="Selig">{{cite web |last1=Lednicer |first1=David |title=The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage |url=https://m-selig.ae.illinois.edu/ads/aircraft.html |website=m-selig.ae.illinois.edu |access-date=16 April 2019}}</ref>
|empty weight kg=1025
|empty weight note=
|gross weight kg=
|gross weight note=
|max takeoff weight kg=1320
|max takeoff weight note=
|fuel capacity=
|more general=
<!--
        Powerplant
-->
|eng1 number=1
|eng1 name=[[Ivchenko AI-14RF]]
|eng1 type=9-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engine
|eng1 kw=224
|eng1 note=

|prop blade number=2
|prop name=variabre-pitch propeller
|prop dia m=<!-- propeller aircraft -->
|prop dia note=

<!--
        Performance
-->
|max speed kmh=300
|max speed note=
|cruise speed kmh=
|cruise speed note=
|stall speed kmh=
|stall speed note=
|never exceed speed kmh=
|never exceed speed note=
|range km=700
|range note=
|combat range km=
|combat range note=
|ferry range km=
|ferry range note=
|endurance=<!-- if range unknown -->
|ceiling m=5060
|ceiling note=
|g limits=<!-- aerobatic -->
|roll rate=<!-- aerobatic -->
|climb rate ms=
|climb rate note=
|time to altitude=
|wing loading kg/m2=
|wing loading note=
|fuel consumption kg/km=
|power/mass=
|thrust/weight=
|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}}-->
|avionics=
}}

==See also==
{{Portal|Aviation}}
{{aircontent
|related=
* [[Nanchang CJ-6]]
* [[Yakovlev Yak-20]]
|similar aircraft=
* [[Zlin Trener]]
* [[LWD Junak]]
* [[de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk]]
* [[Percival Prentice]]
* [[Ryan Navion]]
|lists=<!-- related lists -->
|see also=<!-- other relevant information -->
}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==

*{{cite book |last1=Wragg |first1=David |title=The World Air Power Guide |date=23 February 2011 |publisher=Casemate Publishers |isbn=978-1-84468-784-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s2PNDwAAQBAJ |language=en}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Yakovlev Yak-18}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090506013751/http://www.aviation.ru/Yak/#18 Description page on aviation.ru]

{{aviation.ru}}
{{Yakovlev aircraft}}
{{PRC trainers}}
{{Chinese Military Aircraft}}

[[Category:Low-wing aircraft]]
[[Category:1940s Soviet military trainer aircraft]]
[[Category:Single-engined piston aircraft]]
[[Category:Yakovlev aircraft|Yak-018]]
[[Category:Aerobatic aircraft]]
[[Category:Single-engined tractor aircraft]]
[[Category:Aircraft first flown in 1946]]
[[Category:Aircraft with retractable conventional landing gear]]
[[Category:Aircraft with retractable tricycle landing gear]]