The Polikarpov I-16 was a single-seat fighter of Soviet decent. Developed in the early 1930s, the I-16 became a very popular aircraft based on its high top speed (304 mph) and excellent rate of climb. In fact, over 7,000 I-16s would ultimately be produced. The aircraft was equipped with four 7.62 mm ShKAS machine-guns (some had two 20 mm ShVAK cannons), an option for a 12.7 mm UB machine-gun, and a capacity for 441 pounds of bomb-load on the underwing racks.