Yakovlev Yak-38 – Photos & Video

The Yakovlev Yak-38 (Russian: Яковлев Як-38; NATO reporting name: “Forger”) was Soviet Naval Aviation’s only operational VTOL strike fighter aircraft, in addition to being its first operational carrier-based fixed-wing aircraft. It was developed specifically for and served almost exclusively on the Kiev-class aircraft carriers.

Yak-36M “Forger” : The initial pre-production version, differing slightly from the Yak-38. It weighed only 6,650 kg (14,660 lb) compared to the Yak-38’s 7,370 kg (16,250 lb) and the engines were slightly less powerful.

Source: Yakovlev Yak-38 on Wikipedia

The Yakovlev Yak-38 was a VTOL fighter aircraft developed by the Soviet Union in the 1970s. It was the first operational carrier-based fixed-wing aircraft of the Soviet Naval Aviation and served on the Kiev-class aircraft carriers. The Yak-38 had a unique configuration with a main engine in the rear for propulsion and two smaller engines in the front for vertical lift. The Yak-38 was limited in performance and payload and was mainly used for air defense and ground attack missions. The Yak-38 was replaced by the more advanced Yak-141 in the late 1980s.