The IL-2 Speed and Altitude Record Book

[BlitzPig_EL]

Outstanding sir!

[Stoopy]

Well, she's no Halberstadt, but I took the U-2VS out for a spin and have either one or two records to post depending on details below.  

 

First, here's the easy one: 4,377 meters altitude in the U-2VS, aircrew and aircraft down safe & sound:

 

Spoiler

 

 

Next - Can I get a ruling on this one please?   I achieved 272Kph in the U2-VS, but shed just enough ailerons  to require compensating with heavy rudder on a very, very long and careful approach to the airfield. Setting down in a field is not an option with fixed gear, but even with full rudder she ended up slewing off the runway and then of course once she hit the weeds and rocks she began slowly tipping over her on to her back, all the while I was yelling "DON'T YOU DO IT!!!!".    So, even though the crew appears to be OK hanging upside down in their harnesses, and the missions results show me as having ditched, does this count as surviving? 

 

I throw myself on the mercy of the court and am fully OK with the decision here.

 

Spoiler

 

 

Edited February 28, 2021 by Stoopy

[AndyJWest]

Bah! Beaten to the U2-VS altitude record. If I'd not been distracted by other things, I'd have had a go at that one myself. Just so I could claim to be a record-holding U2 pilot. ?

 

As for the unfortunate incident after the speed attempt, 'any landing you can walk away from' should surely apply. Just order the gunner to  release himself first, so if he breaks his neck, you've got something soft to land on. ?

[CUJO_1970]

Ju-88 Speed: 750kph (465 mph)

 

I fell asleep going for altitude so I'll have to come back to that.

 

Edited February 28, 2021 by CUJO_1970

[PatrickAWlson]

@Stoopy Any landing that you can walk away from ...

[Monksilver]

@[DBS]Browning I might have to concede defeat on the He111-H6, I managed to get 844 but the resulting fireball disqualifies that, the fastest I've got to and lived is 817.

 

@Stoopy  I'm sure I read somewhere that Von Richthofen's first solo flight landing left him upside down so if it was good enough for him it is good enough here.

 

Giving up on the He111 for now I took the Bf109-F4 up

 

Altitude of 10,774m

Speed 904

 

[[DBS]Browning]

Records added!

Flipped U2s count as survival so long as there is no pilot death message.

 

@Monksilver For the He111 H6, I find that full fuel and 2x1800 bombs get me the best speed.

[CUJO_1970]

Ju-88 Altitude, flown off the ground and back 'cause I'm a glutton for punishment.

 

 

 

[[DBS]Browning]

Not a comment on your flying, but I'm surprised the 88 won't go higher. Added.

[354thFG_Panda_]

 

Edited February 28, 2021 by -Astra-TheRedPanda

[354thFG_Panda_]

 

[CUJO_1970]

4 hours ago, [DBS]Browning said:

Not a comment on your flying, but I'm surprised the 88 won't go higher. Added.

Seriously I was as well. I flew it off the ground with a full fuel load - maybe a lighter load would have gotten a higher altitude. I just couldn’t get her to push through much past the 9800m altitude. 
 

Edit: It looks like service ceiling is given in the range of 7500-8200m in different sources.

Edited February 28, 2021 by CUJO_1970

[Stoopy]

Not having an altitude record to go with the speed record for the first plane in the list bothered my sense of symmetry, so I achieved an altitude of 8,173 meters in the I-16 Type 24 after spawning from an altitude of 6.500 meters.   Action-packed flight track available on request.

 

?

Spoiler

 

 

[[DBS]Browning]

Records added.

 

I've also managed 1,000kmh in the 262.

 

[Stoopy]

15 minutes ago, [DBS]Browning said:

Records added.

 

I've also managed 1,000kmh in the 262.

 

 

Congrats on being the one to break the 1,000 Kph barrier - here's your beer! ------------> ?

[Monksilver]

Ju88 774kmh - despite ripping off all the wings and flattening a big tree on 'landing' the pilot survived

Bf109-k4 - 12,336m

Bf109-G14 - 11,594m and 860kmh, even managed to land properly in a Kuban field - the broken engine rather limiting the choice of destination

 

 

 

 

Edited February 28, 2021 by Monksilver

[Stoopy]

Compressibility be d*mned,  I claim a speed record of 851Kph in the P-38J.  Landed all in one piece so she might have a little bit, but not much, more left in her!

 

Spoiler

 

 

Edited February 28, 2021 by Stoopy

[BlitzPig_EL]

Both engines blew?

[Monksilver]

@[DBS]Browning I finally managed it after an unholy number of attempts. I'd been using the bombs too but still struggled to get the speed, and even if I did to then survive the dive although it did occur to me eventually to drop the bombs to give me a chance of pulling out. Only problem then was surviving the landing. The successful attempt required a lot of throttling up and back to balance speed and angle of approach.

 

So He111-H6 - 851kmh

So over to you ?

 

 

[Irishratticus72]

Just now, Monksilver said:

@[DBS]Browning I finally managed it after an unholy number of attempts. I'd been using the bombs too but still struggled to get the speed, and even if I did to then survive the dive although it did occur to me eventually to drop the bombs to give me a chance of pulling out. Only problem then was surviving the landing. The successful attempt required a lot of throttling up and back to balance speed and angle of approach.

 

So He111-H6 - 851kmh

So over to you ?

 

 

There's balls, and then there's whatever you've got between your legs. ?

[Stoopy]

16 minutes ago, BlitzPig_EL said:

Both engines blew?

 

No I just feathered them in the dive since after a certain point the thrust wasn't needed and it cleaned the plane up for higher speeds, and then I fired everything back up after pulling out.   That was my theory, at least, and born out of bad experience blowing up engines while diving lesser aircraft.

 

So while we're talking about the P-38 I'd like to post an altitude record of 13,065 meters por favor:

 

Spoiler

 

Edited February 28, 2021 by Stoopy

[CUJO_1970]

Some of these dive speeds are interesting but not practical ? ?

[Irishratticus72]

16 minutes ago, Stoopy said:

 

No I just feathered them in the dive since after a certain point the thrust wasn't needed and it cleaned the plane up for higher speeds, and then I fired everything back up after pulling out.   That was my theory, at least, and born out of bad experience blowing up engines while diving lesser aircraft.

 

So while we're talking about the P-38 I'd like to post an altitude record of 13,065 meters por favor:

 

  Hide contents

 

"Compressibility's for the other guy". 

Edited February 28, 2021 by Irishratticus72
Wine.

[Halon]

My Career pilot and Hero of the Soviet Union Maxim Kalashnikov took to the skies once more in his beloved Donkey. I had to give the I-16 an attempt as its my bird of choice (sorry Stoopy!), I've not managed to record an improved speed so went for the altitude record. Reached 8554m above Krasnodar starting from the runway, I tried it with just 60ltrs of fuel and no ammo and as you can see if you look at the image, I ran out of fuel so can definitely go higher. I should've easily been able to land at the airstrip given the altitude I had to play with but misjudged it so went for a road instead (the surrounding fields didn't look long enough to me!). Video available on request, as is an image of the properly landed I-16 (minus a port side elevator), but I thought the one below looked much cooler.

 

Spoiler

 

Spoiler

 

[Monksilver]

Just to show I don't just fly German planes -

 

Tempest altitude 10,234m

speed 932khm

I was rushing my landings hence the wing and prop damage

@CUJO_1970 Generally not practical at all, but in an earlier run I got the Tempest to a dive speed of 922kph without any damage and then was able to take out a train and a howitzer so it might have some practical use on this plane.

[Stoopy]

56 minutes ago, Halon said:

My Career pilot and Hero of the Soviet Union Maxim Kalashnikov took to the skies once more in his beloved Donkey. I had to give the I-16 an attempt as its my bird of choice (sorry Stoopy!), I've not managed to record an improved speed so went for the altitude record. Reached 8554m above Krasnodar starting from the runway, I tried it with just 60ltrs of fuel and no ammo and as you can see if you look at the image, I ran out of fuel so can definitely go higher. I should've easily been able to land at the airstrip given the altitude I had to play with but misjudged it so went for a road instead (the surrounding fields didn't look long enough to me!). Video available on request, as is an image of the properly landed I-16 (minus a port side elevator), but I thought the one below looked much cooler.

 

Records were made to be broken, right?  Very well done Sir!  

 

[[DBS]Browning]

you guys are keeping me busy! Recorded.

[Stoopy]

5 minutes ago, [DBS]Browning said:

you guys are keeping me busy! Recorded.

 

Thank you Sir!  Understanding that there is a lot to keep track of, you may have missed my altitude record posting of 13,065 meters for the P-38J-25 about 6 or 7 posts above this. 

 

[Siv5122]

@[DBS]Browning Here's my Altitude and Speed Record for the P-51 (Can probably be beaten but would like to hold a record while I can lol) 

Altitude: 10,101m 

Speed: 812 km/h 

 

 

Edited March 1, 2021 by Siv5122
Images

[[DBS]Browning]

7 hours ago, Monksilver said:

So He111-H6 - 851kmh

So over to you

Also set 928kmh in D22

@Siv5122 Added

Edited March 1, 2021 by [DBS]Browning

[Monksilver]

FUBAR!!!

 

@[DBS]Browning  I just realised I completely messed this up having done all my records on the Kuban summer map instead of the Autumn map so all my records stand to be wiped.

 

?

[[DBS]Browning]

2 hours ago, Monksilver said:

FUBAR!!!

 

@[DBS]Browning  I just realised I completely messed this up having done all my records on the Kuban summer map instead of the Autumn map so all my records stand to be wiped.

 

?

  

 

Unless anyone challenges them, those records stand for now.

[Monksilver]

@[DBS]Browning Thanks for that but no complaints from me if they are deleted as it is my cock up. I'll probably do most or all again anyway. Don't fancy my chances on reclaiming the He111-H6 crown though.

[Cavalier]

Recorded 930kmh. same setup as before but with min fuel.

lost both ailerons but brought back to a runway as if nothing happened.

 

Also if anyone knows of any good techniques for recording in VR, please let me know. The ingame recorder is pretty jank and doesn't show the HUD.

[Monksilver]

I've had a session of doing things on the correct map this time.

 The following are less than I got before but on the right map - happy for these to replace my existing records

Bf109-K4 height 11,866, speed 875

Bf110-G2  speed 652

Ju52 - speed 652, exactly same as before.

Tempest speed 919

He111-H6 - speed 826 

 

Improved results =

Bf109-E7 speed 864

Bf109-F4 speed 905, height 10,931

Bf109-G14 speed 872, height 12,096

He111-H16 - speed 713

Ju88 speed 778

Tempest Height  10,234

 

Due to the number I'm not putting up the screenshots but they are available. I do however put up the below showing the result of a single strafing run at over 600kph as came off my 109-K4 dive the rest of the train was shot to hell too.

 

[CUJO_1970]

109E-7 Altitude: 11,126m (36,494ft)

 

[[DBS]Browning]

Records Added! Congrats!

[WheelwrightPL]

What qualifies as "successful landing" ? If your plane ends-up in pieces between trees, but the pilot is still alive, does it count  ?

My opinion is that the plane should be in one piece except for control surfaces, canopy and gear.

[Stoopy]

37 minutes ago, WheelwrightPL said:

What qualifies as "successful landing" ? If your plane ends-up in pieces between trees, but the pilot is still alive, does it count  ?

My opinion is that the plane should be in one piece except for control surfaces, canopy and gear.

 

Well that's how you can complete your record attempts, then.  I prefer the same but if someone wants to take their chances in the trees, I don't begrudge them the record if they are successful.   If Evel Knievel jumps over 40 buses and breaks every bone in his body and lives* to tell the tale, he still jumped over 40 buses and gets to file a claim for that record. 

 

* Sorry I guess I should really use past tense here since the dude has since expired (from natural causes)...

Edited March 2, 2021 by Stoopy

[Salzi]

Question about "landing" if I say fell out of the sky (lost everything and was flat spinning) and ditched into water and lived I take it that doesn't count?