No #7 like its Western contemporary the DHC-1 Chipmunk, the Yakovlev Yak-18 entered service in 1946 as the primary two-seat trainer for the Soviet Air Forces. The early Yak-18A was built in large numbers and then later versions were developed as aerobatic and light transport aircraft. Sizeable numbers also were built in China as Nanchang CJ-5s and CJ-6s. The four-seat Yak-18T -- shown here -- and the two-seat Yak-54, another derivative of the Yak-18, are still in production.
