The Yak-15 was one of the Soviet Union’s first jet fighters. It was a marriage of the proven Yak-3 fighter design and a copy of the German Jumo 004 jet engine. They were used to help Soviet pilots get used to flying jet fighters.

The Yak-15 was one of the first generation Soviet jet fighters designed around the proven Yak-3 fighter design and the German Jumo 004 jet engine.

It was achieved basically by substituting the jet engine for the previous piston engine in the nose of the fighter.

Design began in April 1945 and the prototype flew for the first time on 24 April 1946.

There were several problems associated with the effect of the hot jet exhaust on the airframe and the thick Yak-3 wing that limited the speed of the new fighter.

Production began in early 1947 and 280 were built in that year.

They were mainly used as conversion trainers to accustom Soviet pilots to jet aircraft operations.

This model represents a Yak-15 in Russian service c.1947.

Anigrand 1/144 kit completed by Leigh Edmonds in January 2021.