Polikarpov Po-2
The Polikarpov Po-2 is history's most-produced biplane, with roughly 33,000 built across a production run stretching from 1928 into the 1950s, serving as a Soviet trainer, crop-duster, liaison and light-bomber type. It gained lasting fame as the aircraft of the all-female 588th Night Bomber Regiment, nicknamed the 'Night Witches', who idled their engines and glided silently over German lines before releasing bombs. Its slow speed, below the stall speed of contemporary night fighters, made it an oddly difficult target to intercept. Simple, rugged, and cheap to build, it stayed in front-line and utility roles for decades.
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Did you know?
History's most-produced biplane: so slow the Night Witches glided over German lines with engines idling, below fighter stall speed.
Specifications
| Length | 8.7 m (29 ft) |
|---|---|
| Wingspan | 11.4 m (37 ft) |
| Height | 3.1 m (10 ft) |
| Persons on board | 2 |
| Maximum take-off weight | 1.3 t |
| Range | 380 NM (704 km) |
| Service ceiling | 13,500 ft (4,115 m) |
| Optimum ceiling | 10,000 ft (3,048 m) |
| Rate of climb | 400 ft/min (2 m/s) |
Curated by CatchFlights from manufacturer documents, ICAO Doc 8643 and reference works; values are left out where no source could confirm them. Sources are listed on our credits page.
In CatchFlights
In CatchFlights the Polikarpov Po-2 starts as a Rare catch. The tier is an editorial judgement of how special a sighting of this type is. The more often you catch it, the closer it moves to Common for you.
A catch counts for the manufacturer Polikarpov, the Po-2 family and the model in your collection, and the daily Type Rating quiz asks about the types of each family.
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