Klimov VK-107

VK-107
VK-107A in Central Air Force Museum (Moscow)
Type	V12 engine
Manufacturer	Klimov
First run	1942
Developed into	Klimov VK-108

The Klimov VK-107 was a V-12 liquid-cooled piston aircraft engine used by Soviet aircraft during World War II.^[1]

Development

The VK-107 was a brand-new design having little in common with its predecessors M-105 and VK-106. To achieve a greater power output, each cylinder now had four valves (two intake and two exhaust), crankshaft and camshafts were completely revised, and a new supercharger design was implemented. Although the engine could have been ready for production as early as 1942, the Soviets' government-owned and operated aviation engine factories lacked the capacity to produce a brand new design. Thus, the less powerful Klimov VK-105PF and VK-105PF2 V12 engines were built instead. However, the appearance of Luftwaffe Messerschmitt Bf 109G with Daimler-Benz DB 605 engine in 1943 created an urgent demand for a more powerful engine. VK-107A was put into production in 1944 and was used on Yak-9U fighters. The engine was not well liked by either pilots or mechanics – it had a life expectancy of only 25 hours and war emergency power was almost never used for fear of decreasing this even more. The engine was also difficult to service, in part because its exhaust headers were on the inside of the cylinder banks, the reverse placement of most V-type liquid-cooled engine designs.

Variants

• VK-107A – production version
• VK-107R – version for hybrid piston-motorjet powered Mikoyan-Gurevich I-250 (N) and Sukhoi Su-5 fighters
• VK-108 – attempt to further develop VK-107 with 1,380 kW (1,850 hp) on takeoff, used on several Yakovlev Yak-3 prototypes but did not enter production.

Applications

• Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-7
• Petlyakov Pe-2
• Yakovlev Yak-3
• Yakovlev Yak-9

Specifications (VK-107A)

Data from Kotelnikov^[2]

General characteristics

• Type: 12-cylinder supercharged liquid-cooled Vee aircraft piston engine
• Bore: 148mm (5.83in)
• Stroke: 170mm (6.69in)
• Displacement: 35.08 liters (2,140 in³)
• Dry weight: 765 kg (1,685 lb)

Components

• Valvetrain: Two intake and two exhaust valves per cylinder actuated via an overhead camshaft
• Supercharger: Single stage, two-speed, gear-driven centrifugal type supercharger
• Cooling system: Liquid-cooled

Performance

• Power output:
  
• 1,230 kW (1,650 hp) at 3,200 rpm for takeoff
• 1,082 kW (1,450 hp) at 2,800 m (12,500 ft)
• Specific power: 35.1 kW/L (0.77 hp/in³)
• Compression ratio: 6.75:1
• Power-to-weight ratio: 1.61 kW/kg (0.98 hp/lb)

See also

Comparable engines

• Allison V-1710
• Daimler-Benz DB 605
• Rolls-Royce Griffon
• Rolls-Royce Merlin

Related lists

• List of aircraft engines

References

Notes

1. Gunston 1989, p.90.
2. Kotelnikov 2005, p. 143.

Bibliography

• Gunston, Bill. World Encyclopedia of Aero Engines. Cambridge, England. Patrick Stephens Limited, 1989. ISBN 1-85260-163-9
• Kotelnikov, Vladimir. Russian Piston Aero Engines. Marlborough, Wiltshire. The Crowood Press Ltd. 2005. ISBN 1-86126-702-9.