Ilyushin IL-2 "Sturmovik"IL 2 Sturmovik airplane model. The IL 2 was the symbol of Soviet air power in World War II. It is emblematic of the Soviet stress on ground attack aircraft as part of combined arms warfare. In 1938 the Ilyushin design bureau began work on a heavily armored low level attack aircraft, a 'sturmovik' in Russian. This word came to be synonymous with the Il 2. Entering production in 1940, the Il 2 sported an armament of two wing mounted armor piercing