This is indeed the beautiful en face of I-16. I had a rare pleasure to enjoy itīs sleek, classic lines
at the Artillery Museum in St. Petersburg last summer, where it hangs peacefully above peoplesī heads.
A very interesting construction, but - alas - in 1941 it was as good as PZL p11c in 1939. The greatest differences though were in their numbers: the Soviets had masses of them. The Poles - just a few. The other difference was in the quality of pilots. While the Polish approach was a thorough training, the Soviets had their ideas of achieving clear sky by means of the destruction of enemy aviation on the ground. As a consequence, the pilot training there was in the period before Barbarossa limited to 3 months. I am not sure if all pilots had their training so severely limited, but those who were to attack ground targets - had.
Tak, Stellan.
Jacek