Belyayev DB-LK

Long-Range Bomber Prototype [ 1939 ]

The Belyayev DB-LK was an interesting Soviet long-range bomber design of the pre-World War 2 period - one example being built and flown.

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 02/21/2022 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site.

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The Belyayev DB-LK ("Bomber - Long range") was a pre-World War 2 aircraft design of the Soviet Union conceived of for the long-range bomber role. It emerged prior to the fighting in 1939 and saw its first-flight the following year with flight trials undertaken thereafter. Despite its relatively positive showing (save for a few bumps including a collapsed landing gear and ongoing issues related to its awkward center-of-gravity), the aircraft was not ordered by the Soviet Air Force.

Design of this entry fell to one Viktor Nikolayevich Belyayev who arrived with an extensive aeronautics engineering history with players such as Aeroflot and Tupolev. Utilizing his experience garnered through development of gliders, flying wings, and twin-boom concepts, he forged the DB-LK which incorporated embedded fuselage booms and a near-all-flying-wing design planform - a vertical tail fin mounting the horizontal planes kept it from being a true flying wing. Each boom housed not only a powerplant with tractor propellers but also the crew compartments. The mainplane ran through the design and tapered at the tips. Light alloy stressed skinning was used in the construction of the aircraft while sheet aluminum alloy covered the wing members. A "tail-dragger" undercarriage (retractable) was featured with main legs set under each boom and a tailwheel supporting the tail unit.

Aft of the two traditional cockpit positions there were glazed, aft-facing cones set at the extreme ends of the fuselage booms to house specialists covering radio and gunner roles (for a total crew count of four). Due to the placement of the cockpits, the primary pilot would have had an offset position from centerline (some nine feet from the point), making take-off and landings somewhat of a challenge.

The aircraft was powered by the relatively new Tumansky M-88 air-cooled radial piston engine and each of the two units were rated at 950 to 1,000 horsepower and these were used to drive three-bladed propeller units.

As built, the aircraft had a running length of 32 feet, a wingspan of 70.10 feet and a height of 11.11 feet. Empty weight was 13,236lb and gross weight reached 23,528lb.

During testing, the aircraft managed speeds of 303 miles-per-hour and ranged out to 1,800 miles while having a service ceiling of 27,890 feet. Its primary operating domain would have been around 20,000 feet. Rate-of-climb was 1,210 feet-per-minute. Despite these rather promising figures, the unorthodox design was not furthered beyond the single, flyable prototype.

In its finalized form, the operational-ready bomber would have been outfitted with a pair of 7.62mm Medium Machine Guns (MMGs) in fixed, forward-firing mountings at the wing center section and defensive-minded 4 x 7.62mm ShKAS machine guns at each fuselage boom end (two guns to a gunner position). Bombs would have been carried externally, set under the wing center section, with multiple hardpoints intended to carry up to twenty-four total conventional drop bombs depending on bomb weight/type.©MilitaryFactory.com

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Specifications

Belyayev - Soviet Union
Manufacturer(s)

Soviet Union (tested)
Operators

1939
Service Year

Soviet Union
National Origin

Cancelled
Project Status

4
Crew

1
Units

GROUND ATTACK
Ability to conduct aerial bombing of ground targets by way of (but not limited to) guns, bombs, missiles, rockets, and the like.

X-PLANE
Aircraft developed for the role of prototyping, technology demonstration, or research / data collection.

MULTI-ENGINE
Incorporates two or more engines, enhancing survivability and / or performance.

RUGGED AIRFRAME
Inherent ability of airframe to take considerable damage.

HIGH-SPEED PERFORMANCE
Can accelerate to higher speeds than average aircraft of its time.

HIGH-ALTITUDE PERFORMANCE
Can reach and operate at higher altitudes than average aircraft of its time.

EXTENDED RANGE PERFORMANCE
Capability to travel considerable distances through onboard fuel stores.

SUPER PERFORMANCE
Design covers the three all-important performance categories of speed, altitude, and range.

BAILOUT PROCESS
Manual process of allowing its pilot and / or crew to exit in the event of an airborne emergency.

CREWSPACE PRESSURIZATION
Supports pressurization required at higher operating altitudes for crew survival.

CREW-MANAGED
Beyond a pilot, the aircraft takes advantage of additional crew specialized in specific functions aboard the aircraft.

GUN POSITIONS
Defensive gun positions for engagement / suppression.

ENCLOSED CREWSPACE(S)
Features partially- or wholly-enclosed crew workspaces.

RETRACTABLE UNDERCARRIAGE
Features retracting / retractable undercarriage to preserve aerodynamic efficiency.

32.1 ft
(9.78 meters)
Length

70.9 ft
(21.60 meters)
Width/Span

12.0 ft
(3.65 meters)
Height

13,239 lb
(6,005 kilograms)
Empty Weight

23,534 lb
(10,675 kilograms)
Maximum Take-Off Weight

+10,296 lb
(+4,670 kg)
Weight Difference

monoplane / mid-mounted / straight
Mainplane Arrangement

Monoplane
Design utilizes a single primary wing mainplane; this represents the most popular modern mainplane arrangement.

Mid-Mounted
Mainplanes are mounted along the midway point of the sides of the fuselage.

Straight
The planform involves use of basic, straight mainplane members.

2 x Tumansky M-88 air-cooled radial piston engines developing 950 to 1,000 horsepower driving three-bladed propeller units.
Propulsion

326 mph
(525 kph | 283 knots)
Max Speed

303 mph
(488 kph | 263 knots)
Cruise Speed

+23 mph
(+37 kph | 20 knots)
Speed Difference

27,887 ft
(8,500 m | 5 miles)
Ceiling

1,802 miles
(2,900 km | 1,566 nm)
Range

1,210 ft/min
(369 m/min)
Rate-of-Climb

MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

♦

PROPOSED, STANDARD:
2 x 7.62mm ShKAS machine guns in fixed, forward-firing mountings at center wing section.
2 x 7.62mm ShKAS machine guns in rear-facing emplacements at end of port side fuselage boom.
2 x 7.62mm ShKAS machine guns in rear-facing emplacements at end of starboard side fuselage boom.

PROPOSED, OPTIONAL:
Up to 24 x Conventional drop bombs.

12
Hardpoints

X

Hardpoints Key:

Centerline

Wingroot(L)

Wingroot(R)

Wing

Wingtip

Internal

Not Used

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