TheIlyushin Il-28 (Russian:Илью́шин Ил-28;NATO reporting name:Beagle) is a medium-rangejetbomber, originally manufactured for theSoviet Air Forces, in service since 1950. It was theSoviet Union's first such aircraft to enter large-scale production. Total production in the USSR was 6,316 aircraft.
TheHarbin H-5 was a variant built in thePeople's Republic of China (withoutlicense). Over 319 were built, as well as 187HJ-5 training variants.[1] TheKorean People's Army Air Force is the only remaining operator, with approximately 80 aircraft, believed to be a mix of Soviet and Chinese models.
The Il-28 has theUSAF/DoD reporting name "Type 27"[5] andNATO reporting name "Beagle",[6] while theIl-28U trainer variant has the USAF/DoD reporting name "Type 30"[5] and NATO reporting nameMascot.[7][8]
After a number of attempts at a four-engined bomber (theLyulka TR-1 poweredIlyushin Il-22 and the unbuiltRolls-Royce Derwent powered Ilyushin Il-24), the IlyushinDesign Bureau began development of a new jet-powered tactical bomber in late 1947.[9] Western intelligence focused on the four-engine developments while the twin-engine Ilyushin Il-28 was created to meet a requirement for a bomber to carry a 3,000 kilograms (6,600 lb) bombload at 800 kilometres per hour (500 mph).[10][11] The new design took advantage of the sale of a number ofRolls-Royce Nene jet engines by Great Britain to the Soviet Union, which allowed Soviet engineers to quickly produce an unlicensed copy of the Nene, theRD-45, with Ilyushin designing the new bomber around two RD-45s.[10]
The Il-28 was smaller than the previous designs and carried a crew of only three (pilot, navigator and gunner). It was also smaller than the competing design from the Tupolev design bureau, the three-engined (i.e. two Nenes and aRolls-Royce Derwent)Tupolev Tu-73, which had been started long before the Ilyushin project, and flew before the design of the Il-28 was approved.[10]
An Il-28 inFinnish colors, showing the tail mounted gun turret with a window for the rear gunner. This aircraft was configured as atarget tug; the device containing the orange target is the target-deploy mechanism
The Il-28 design was conventional in layout, with high, unswept wings and aswept horizontal tail and fin. The engines were carried in bulky nacelles slung directly under the wings. The nosewheel retracted rearwards, while the mainwheels retracted forwards into the engine nacelles. The crew of three were accommodated in separate, pressurised compartments. The navigator, who also acted asbombardier, was accommodated in the glazed nose compartment and was provided with an OPB-5bombsight based on the AmericanNorden bombsight of the Second World War, while the pilot sat under a sideways openingbubble canopy with an armoured windscreen. The gunner sat in a separate compartment at the rear of the fuselage, operating a power driven turret armed with twoNudelman-Suranov NS-23 23 mm cannons with 250 rounds each. In service, the turret was sometimes removed as a weight saving measure.[12] While the pilot and navigator sat onejector seats, the gunner had to parachute out of a hatch in the floor in the event of an emergency. Two more fixed, forward-firing 23 mm cannon with 100 rounds each were mounted under the nose and fired by the pilot, while a bomb bay was located in the fuselage, capable of holding four 100 kg (220 lb) bombs in individual containers, or single large bombs of up to 3,000 kg (6,600 lb) slung from a beam in the bomb bay.[13][14]
Il-28 bomb bay
One unusual design feature of the Il-28 was that the wings and tail were split horizontally through the centre of the wing, while the fuselage was split vertically at the centreline, allowing the separate parts to be built individually and fitted out with systems before being bolted together to complete assembly of the aircraft.[15] This slightly increased the weight of the aircraft structure, but eased manufacture and proved to be more economical.[16][17]
The first prototype, powered by two imported Nenes, made its maiden flight on 8 July 1948, withVladimir Kokkinaki at the controls. Testing was successful, with the Il-28 demonstrating good handling and reaching a speed of 833 km/h (518 mph). It was followed on 30 December 1948 by the second prototype, with Soviet built RD-45 engines replacing the Nenes.[18] After the completion of state tests in early 1949 the aircraft was ordered into large scale production on 14 May 1949, with theKlimov VK-1, an improved version of the RD-45 to be used in order to improve the aircraft's performance.[19][20] The first pre-production aircraft with VK-1 engines flew on 8 August 1949, and featured reshaped engine nacelles to reduce drag, while the radome for the navigation radar was moved from the rear fuselage to just aft of the nosewheel.
Full production in three factories started in September 1949, with service deliveries starting in early 1950, allowing 25 Il-28s to be displayed at the Moscow May Day parade of 1950 (as ordered byJoseph Stalin when it was ordered into production in 1949).[21][22] The Il-28 soon became the standard tactical bomber in the Soviet forces and was widely exported.[19]
Polish Il-28 landing, 1959Egyptian Il-28 strikes IDF positions in Sinai during theWar of Attrition (1967).A formation of five brand-new EAF Il-28 bombers, seen at low level over Cairo during a parade in September 1956.Il-28/H-5s atUiju Airfield, North Korea, 2013. The Korean People's Army Air Force is the only remaining operator of the aircraft as of 2025[update].
The Il-28 was widely exported, serving in the air arms of some 20 nations ranging from theWarsaw Pact to various Middle-Eastern and African air forces.Egypt was an early customer, and targeting Egyptian Il-28s on the ground was a priority for theRoyal Air Force during theSuez Crisis and later by theIsraeli Air Force during theSix-Day War, andYom Kippur War.
The Soviet Union was in the process of providing the type for local assembly inCuba when this was halted by theCuban Missile Crisis, after whichNikita Khrushchev agreed to remove them. The type also saw limited use inVietnam and with the Afghan forces inAfghanistan. Four ex-Egyptian and two ex-Soviet Il-28s (all with Egyptian crews) were operated by theNigerian Air Force in theBiafra Wars.Finland also had four examples of this type delivered between 1961 and 1966 for target-towing duties. They remained in service until the 1980s.
The Soviet Union had relegated the Il-28 to second-line duties by the late-1950s. The supersonicYak-28 was introduced in the early 1960s to take over the Beagle's low-level attack role; some Il-28 variants lingered in Soviet service into the 1980s.[26][27] The last Soviet-built examples were still flying in Egypt into the 1990s.
The People's Republic of China received over 250 Soviet-built Il-28s from 1952,[28] and when theSino-Soviet split occurred in the late 1950s, it decided to place the Il-28 into production, despite no manufacturing license being obtained.[29] Chinese-built aircraft differed from the original Soviet aircraft in that they have a redesigned wing structure, abandoning the horizontal manufacturing break, saving 110 kilograms (240 lb) at the cost of a more difficult construction. Chinese aircraft also used a different tail turret based on that of theTupolev Tu-16, and fitted with faster-firingAM-23 cannons.[30] On 11 November 1965, a H-5 pilot defected to Taiwan with two crewmates, one committing suicide before landing. All were declared anti-communist heroes by Taiwan, and the two survivors served in theRepublic of China Air Force, but were not allowed to fly.[31] On 25 August 1985, a H-5 pilot defected, crash- landing in a rice field in South Korea, running out of fuel while being directed towardsGunsan airfield, killing its navigator and a farmer. The pilot was grantedasylum in Taiwan while a radio operator and the aircraft were returned to China.[32]
Chinese-built Il-28s designated H-5 and built byHAMC were still flying in the 1990s with several hundreds in China itself, and a smaller number inNorth Korea andRomania. The three main Chinese versions are theH-5 bomber, followed by theHJ-5 trainer, and theH-5R (HZ-5) long range (in comparison to the reconnaissance version of theShenyang J-6) reconnaissance aircraft, and later, theHD-5ECM/ESM version. The latter two types have been phased out.
The type is known to still be in active service with theKorean People's Army Air Force, although little is known as to whether they are a mix of survivors from the batch of 24 Soviet-manufactured aircraft delivered in the 1960s and some of the newer Chinese-built H-5 variant, or are solely H-5s. Some of these are probably used for spares to maintain a small group of around a dozen serviceable aircraft.[citation needed] They give North Korea a means of bombing targets in South Korea and Western Japan, although they would be vulnerable to modern anti air missiles and interceptors.
Several Ilyushin Il-28s are preserved in museums and as monuments in Russia, Germany, Hungary and in other countries.
Unarmed training version fitted with new nose housing cockpit for instructor, while the trainee sat in the normal cockpit. First flown 18 March 1950.[34]
Il-28R
Three-seat tactical photo reconnaissance version, with extra fuel in bomb bay and tip-tanks, and with one forward firing cannon removed. Fitted with revised undercarriage to deal with heavier weights. First flew 19 April 1950.[35][36]
Electronic warfare, electronic jamming version, fitted with wingtip electronic pods housed in the former wing tanks.[12][37]
Il-28T
Torpedo bomber version for theSoviet Naval Aviation able to accommodate two small or one large torpedo (including RAT-52 rocket propelled torpedoes) in a lengthened weapons bay.[38]
Il-28N
Nuclear bomber for the Soviet Air Force with modified bomb-bay and revised avionics. (N -Nositel - carrier, also known as Il-28A -Atomnyy - atomic).[39]
Proposed swept-wing version with more powerfulKlimov VK-5 engines. Unbuilt.[39]
Il-28RM
Modified Il-28R with VK-5 engine. One prototype built plus two similarly converted bombers (which carried no special designation) but no production.[39]
Il-28TM
Il-28T with VK-5. One converted, no production.[39]
Il-28PL
High-speed anti-submarine conversion of Il-28 bomber or Il-28T torpedo bomber. Capable of carrying dropping sonobuoys or acoustic homing torpedoes on direction of other anti-submarine assets.[42]
Il-28Sh
Ground attack (Shturmovik) conversion of Il-28 with 12 underwing pylons for rocket pods. Small number converted which saw limited service.[42][43]
(Hongzhaji - bomber) - Standard three-seat tactical bomber.[45] The structure of the two halves of the Soviet Union's Il-28 aircraft was changed to a common structure. The engine uses WP-5. The tail turret using H-6s caused some changes in the tail structure.
H-5A
Speculative designation of for nuclear capable H-5 variant.[46]
HD-5
(Hongzhaji Dian - bomber/electronic reconnaissance) Chinese ECM jammer version.[47]
HJ-5
(Hongzhaji Jiaolianji - bomber trainer) Chinese trainer version with similar layout to Il-28U.[45][48]
HZ-5
(Hongzhaji Zhenchaji - bomber/reconnaissance) Tactical reconnaissance aircraft. Fitted with underwing drop tanks instead of tip tanks of Il-28R.[45][47]
54 aircraft acquired (including four Il-28U examples) from 1957. Only trainers were retained beyond 1994.[51][52] All grounded during the civil war in the 1990s. Some were displayed during military parades such as the one in 1984.[53]
Aviation Regiment 4020 operated one Il-28 acquired in 1957 attached to2 Skuadrilja (2nd Squadron). This aircraft was traded for an Harbin H-5, the Chinese version of the Soviet Il-28, in 1971 and retired from service in 1992.[54]
This is a recce variant, with tip tanks for extra fuel. msn 52404. Vyskov Museum, Czech Republic. 06-10-2012Ilyushin Il-28R, LZ-32, of the 47th Reconnaissance Air Regiment of the Czechoslovak Air Force, spring 1957
Il-28 and Il-28Us locally designated B-228 and CB-228 which operated from 1954 until 1973. 90 Il-28s, 30 Il-28RTs and an unknown number of Il-28Us were delivered.
Received 70 Czechoslovakian-built Il-28s in 1956, shortly before theSuez Crisis. TheIDF rated the Il-28 as a high priority target during the Six-Day War.[58]
Received four aircraft (one IL-28 and three Il-28Rs), coded NH-1..4, in the 1960s. The aircraft were used as target tugs and for maritime reconnaissance and patrolling as well as aerial mapping until 1981. The code letters of the type (NH) originated from Neuvostoliittolainen Hinauskone (Soviet towplane) but since they also matched initials of the Soviet leaderNikita Khrushchev (spelled Hruštšov in Finnish), their usual nickname wasNikita.[59]
21st Air Squadron based atKemayoran Air Force Base, Jakarta received fourteen Il-28, two Il-28T, two Il-28R, and four Il-28U in 1959–1961. DuringOperation Trikora in 1962 (the conquest ofWestern New Guinea), two Il-28 were written off. Retired by Indonesian Air Force in 1964 and later transferred to the Indonesian Navy.[60]
500th Squadron based atJuanda Naval Air Station,Surabaya received eleven Il-28T torpedo-bombers and two Il-28U trainers in 1965. Later also received ex-Air Force Il-28s.[61] The last one was retired in 1972.[62]
An Iraqi Il-28 bomber abandoned atAl Taqaddum, Iraq.
Received twelve Il-28s, two Il-28Us and two Il-28BM target tugs starting in January 1959. Some additional aircraft may have been acquired from Egypt in the 1960s.[63] All destroyed or grounded afterDesert Storm.
Operated 16 Harbin H-5 between 1966 to 1969 under the designation B-56. These aircraft served alongside American-built Martin B-57B Canberra. The H-5s were not popular with Pakistani pilots, and they were eventually traded back to China in exchange for more Shenyang F-6C.
About 22 Il-28s, three Il-28Rs and eight Il-28Us, both Soviet- and Chinese-built, operated from 1955. All remaining Il-28s were retired from service by June 2001.
About 1,500 served with theSoviet Air Forces and theSoviet Navy (Soviet Naval Aviation), with operations beginning in 1950. Front line operations continued through the 1950s, with a few examples remaining into the 1980s. A small number of demilitarized aircraft were provided toAeroflot.[51]
Syria operated six Il-28s. Two were destroyed during the Six-Day War. The other four were dumped[68] in airbases around Syria.[69] Replaced in 1980s bySu-24.
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^Sipos, Milos; Cooper, Tom (2020).Wings of Iraq, Volume 1: The Iraqi Air Force, 1931-1970. Warwick, UK: Helion & Company Publishing. pp. 48, V.ISBN978-1-913118-74-7.
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