TS-9 „Junak-3” – the Polish school and training plane

The “Junak” aircraft was designed by engineer Tadeusz Soltyk. This aircraft was to replace the obsolete and difficult-to-operate UT-2, used in Polish aviation schools after World War II. Design work at the Pilot Aviation Workshop (Lotnicze Warsztaty Doswiadczalne (LWD)) in Łódź, where the first design office in post-war Poland was established, began in 1947. The experience, gained in the production of LWD "Žak" aircraft, was used in the construction of the new aircraft. The prototype was named LWD “Junak” and later renamed “Junak-1”. It first took to the air on February 22, 1948, and was piloted by Antoni Szymanski. The aircraft is equipped with an M-11 engine - the same, as the one installed in the UT-2 and the most famous "kukuruznik" - Po-2. An improved version of the “Junak-2” aircraft was manufactured and tested in the air in 1949, and series production began in 1951 with a more powerful M-11FR engine. Production lasted from 1951 to 1954, during which time 105 “Junak-2” aircraft were produced at the WSK-4 plant in Okecie. The “Junak-2” was to replace the TS-7 “Chwat” aircraft, designed by engineer Soltyk, but it was not accepted at the top of Polish aviation. Instead, Soltyk offered an upgraded version of the “Junak” with a three-point landing gear (with a front wheel) and other improvements. It was marked TS-9 “Junak-3”, and its first flight took off on June 7, 1953. The new version was heavier, reducing the top speed from 223 km / h to 205 km / h. In 1953 - 56 146 copies of “Junak-3” produced.

A moderately complicated, well-detailed and well-designed model of a training aircraft for modelers of any experience. Only beginners and inexperienced modelers are offered to work under the supervision of a more experienced colleague.