Last and most widely produced of the Yak series of World War aircraft , the Yakovlev Yak-7 and Yak-9 were by far the most versatile fighters produced by the Soviet Union during the conflict. Born from the Yak-7V which was itself a trainer version of the Yak-1, development eventually led to the Yak-7 close support fighter and later the Yak-9 which became the Soviet Union's most numerous fighter of 1944 onwards and contributed heavily to the attainment of air superiority for the Red Air Force once they were introduced into service during the Stalingrad campaign. Yak-9s were so versatile that they were used in the long-range escort, fighter-bomber and ground attack roles and were built in numbers that dwarfed those of its enemy: the total production run of all Yak fighters was second only to the Il-2 with the Yak-7/9 series accounting for two-thirds, numbers which the embattered German aircraft industry would find impossible to match. Production of the Yak-9 continued until 1947 where they were supplied to various communist nations including Bulgaria, China, Poland, Hungary, Yugoslavia, and also North Korea which used it in the early stages of the Korean War.

Developed from the Yak-7V trainer introduced in 1942, the Yak-7 initially featured a two seat layout although the second seat was later removed to give more room for armament and fuel. It was used as a close support fighter and a reconnaissance aircraft while a fighter-bomber variant with a jettisonable canopy was known as the Yak-7B. It's successor, the Yak-9, was built in numerous variants reflecting its wide range of roles. Among these were the Yak-9B fighter-bomber with up to 400 kg of bombs, the Yak-9D and Yak-9DD long range escorts which were used as escort of USAAF bombers during the shuttle raids, as well as the Yak-9T and Yak-9K anti-tank fighters equipped with massive 37-mm and 45-mm hub-firing cannon respectively. The ultimate fighter variant was the Yak-9U which incorporated a redesigned airframe which subtituted many wooden parts for metal. It became the most numerous Soviet fighter of the war.