Antonov An-2 'Colt'With an interest in gliding that datedfrom his schooldays, Oleg Antonov wasto become an established designer ofgliders and sailplanes During World WarII he was concerned primarily with development and production of aircraft butworked also as a designer within theYakovlev organisation Post-war heformed his own bureau to design and de-velop a new do anything-go anywhereaeroplane resulting in the AntonovAn-2 'Colt' identified briefly as theSKh-1 (Selskokhozyaistvennyi 1 , or'agricultural economic-1) before theAntonov designation was applied It is amost appropriate designation, if for noother reason than the fact that the lettersAn begin the word anachronism whichis how an observer in the 1990s must regard this large biplane First flown in pro-totype form on 31 August 1947 it stillcontinues in production although not byAntonov in the USSR since the late1960s

A single-bay sesquiplane with a singlestreamline interplane strut on each sideand dual flying- and landing wire bracingthe An 2 is almost entirely of all metalconstruction The exceptions are thewings aft of the front spar andtailplanewhich are fabric-covered The largecapacity fuselage is a semi-monocoquestructure, providing a comfortableheated and ventilated crew compart

ment to accommodate two The tail-plane is strut braced and the robustwide-track tailwheel type landing gearcan be provided with low-pressure tyresfloats or skis to cater for all surfaces

Exceptional operating characteristicsare provided by the wings the upperwing includes electrically-actuated auto-matic leading-edge slots trailing edgeslotted flaps, and ailerons which can beused conventionally for roll control butcan also be drooped collectively up to20° to complement the flaps The lowerwing has only full-span slotted trailingedge flaps Powerplant of the prototypeconsisted of a 567-kW (760-hp) Shvet-sov ASh-21 radial engine but later pro-duction aircraft from Antonov had a746-kW (1 000-hp) Shvetsov ASh-62IRengine

Since 1960 production has been byWSK PZL in Poland and the An 2 hasalso been built under licence in China asthe Type 5 Transport Aeroplaneand combined production from the threeabove sources is estimated at 15 000 ofwhich about 60 per cent have been builtin Poland

An 2s are still used extensively, andalso in a variety of roles not includedamong the above designations Theyhave served widely in a passenger transport capacity (carrying up to 12 adultsand 2 children) with Aeroflot and airlines

of countries aligned with the East butvery few now remain in scheduled ser-vice there is no doubt that many ofthese reliable aircraft are still used forpassenger carrying among other routinetasks

Variants(Russian built)An-2F: experimental artillery-observation model of 1948 with glazedfuselage mid-section, dorsal machine-gun position and twin vertical tailsurfacesAn-2L: fire-fighting model equippedfor the carriage of chemicals in glasscontainers under the wings andfuselage

Still an effective utility transportmore than 40 years after itsdebut, the Antonov An-2 remainsin Polish production in numerousforms, especially for theagricultural role.

An-2P (Passazhirskii) basic general-purpose model for up to 1 2 passengersor 1240 kg (2 733 Ib) of freightAn-2P (Protivopozharnyi) fire fightingmodel of the An 2V developed in 1964and able to uplift 1240 litres (271 Impgal) of water in its floatsAn-2S: agricultural model of the An-2Passazhirskii with spray equipmentand long-stroke mam landing gear legs

An-2V: twin float model with shorterpropeller bladesAn-2ZA: high-altitude meteorologicaresearch model with an extra cockpitforward of the fin for an observer towatch ice growth

Variants(Polish built)An-2 Geofiz: geophysical surveymodelAn-2M: twin float version of theAn-2T basically similar to the RussianAn-2VAn-2P: passenger mode! with bettersoundproofing than the Russianversion and fitted with an improvedpropellerAn-2PK: five seat executive modelAn-2P-Photo: special modelequipped for photogrammetncoperationsAn-2PR: television relay modelAn-2R: specialised agricultural modelintroduced in 1964 with hermeticsealing of the cockpit revised tailsurfaces of greater area a moreadvanced propeller and a fibreglasscontainer for 1960 litres (421 Imp gal) ofchemicals or 1350kg (2 976lb) offertiliser dustAn-2S: ambulance model withfittings for six litters and medicalattendantsAn-2T: basic general-purpose modelAn-2TD: paratroop model with tip-upseats for 12An-2TP: passenger/freight modelbased on the An-2TDLala-1: experimental model of 1972,with rear fuselage/empennagereplaced by twin booms and revisedtail allowing installation of a turbofan inthe stump fuselage as development forthe M 15 Belphegor agricultural aircraft

SpecificationAntonov (WSK-PZL) An-2PType: general-purpose biplanePowerplant: one 746-kW (1 000-hp)Shvetsov ASh-62IR radial piston enginePerformance: maximum speed258km/h (160mph) at 1750m (5 740ft),economic cruising speed 185km/h(115mph) service ceiling 4400m(14425ft) range 901 km (560 miles)with 500-kg (1 102-lb) payload atoptimum altitudeWeights: empty 3450kg (7,605lb),maximum take-off 5500kg (12,125 lb)

Antonov An-2s were supplied in sizeablenumbers to client states of the Soviet Union,for use in a variety of utility duties. Thisaircraft wears the colourful markings of theCuban national airline.

Since 1960 the An-2 has been built in Polandby WSK-PZL, and this company has producedseveral new variants, many adapted toagricultural needs. China also builds the typeunder licence.

Dimensions: span upper 18 18m(59ft 7% in), lower 14 24m (46 ft8'/2in) length 1 2 74m (41f t 9V2in),

height 400m (13 f t 116in) wing areaupper 43 60m2 (469 32sqft), lower280m2 (301 4sqft)

Antonov An-3/4Antonov An-4 is the design bureaudesignation for the An-227, a variant ofthe An-2 intended specifically for therole of high-altitude meterologicalresearch with a glazed positionimmediately in front of the tail fin for anobserver The ZA suffix stands forZondirovanie Atmosfery translatableas air sampling'

The ASh-62IR engine has a TKsuper-charger mounted on thestarboard side of the cowling Thisarrangement enables the An-4 tomaintain power up to an altitude of1000 m (32 810 ft) The spinner of theAn-2 standard model is deleted to aidengine cooling and the original aileronshave been replaced by an unslottedvariety

The Antonov design office proposeda turboprop version of the An-2 as anew standard agricultural aeroplane foruse mainly m the USSR and thecountries of Eastern Europe Thismodel was the Soviet design bureau'sresponse to the development in Polandof the WSK-PZL Mielec M-15Belphegor agricultural aeroplane with aturbofan engine The first plans for thisturboprop-powered variant of the An-2appeared in 1972, but the designbecame concrete only in 1979, whenthere appeared illustrations clearlyrevealing the existence of new An-3prototypes The only difference fromthe An-2 was the powerplant of one701-kW (940-shp) Glushenkov TVD-10B turboprop

The supplementary cabin in front of the An-4's otherwise standardunit was designed to accommodate a geo physical observer.

Antonov An-12 'Cub'Developed simultaneously with theAn 10 the An-12'Cub'was a generallysimilar transport for mil tary service withthe Soviet air force The major differencewas the provision of a comp etely newrear fuselage which was more sharplyupswept to incorporate underfuselageloading doors which when openedallowed for the direct on loading of vehicles Also included was a gunner s position in the extreme tail position the gunner being seated just below thetrailing edge of the rudder The An 1 2 became a standard freight and paratrooptransport n Soviet air force use Over100 remained in service n 1989 for thispurpose plus a small number of An-12'Cub-A' and 'Cub-B' electronic ntelligence (Flint) and An-12 'Cub-C' electronic countermeasures aircraft TheCub A has extra blade aerials theCub B has a variety of ventral radomes

while the Cub C has other radomes ineluding one in place of the twin 23 mmtail cannon of the Cub An 12s havebeen supplied also for service with theair forces of countries such as AlgeriaBangladesh Egypt India IndonesiaIraq Poland Sudan Syria and Yugoslavia

In 1965acv i l versonof the An 12 wasdemonstrated at the Pans Air Salon Thishad a differing arrangement of underfuselage doors which fold to perm t theuse of a detachable ramp for loading andunloading Between the mam aft cargohold and the flight deck a pressurisedarea was provided allowing for theaccommodation of 1 4 passengersThese mixed passenger/cargo An 12sbegan to enter service wth Aeroflot inFebruary 1966 and these have the tailgun pos tion of the military freighter deleted and enclosed by a smooth fairingSince that time civil An 12s have beensuppl ed for similar mixed passenger/cargo serv ces with several airlines

Production ended n 1973 after some850 An 12s had been produced for eviland military operators

Balkan Bulgarian Airlines hasfour An-12 freighters in service.

Antonov An-12 'Cub'

SpecificationType, mixed passenger/cargotransportPowerplant. four 2983 ekW (4 000ehp) Ivchenko Al 20K turbopropsPerformance- maximum cruisingspeed 600km/h (373mph) normalcruising speed 550km/h (342 mph) at7620m (25 000ft) service ceiling10200m (33465ft) range 3400km(2 1 1 3 miles) with 10000 kg (22 046 b)payload and one hour fuel reservesWeights: norma take off 54000kg(119050 lb) maximum take off61000kg (134482lb)Dimensions span 38 00m (124ft8m) length 33 10m (108ft 7Am)height 10 53m (34ft 6/2in) wing area1 2 1 70m2 (1 310sqft)

Several An-12s serve with civilairlines, but most are in use withmilitary forces. Included in theSoviet fleet are many configuredfor electronic duties, such asreconnaissance.

Antonov An-14/ -28The Antonov An-14 'Clod' was designed in 1957 as a STOL (short take offand land ng) freighter and feederl nerwith handling character ist ics whichwould enable it to be flown by mexpenenced pilots With its high aspectratio braced wing and twin tailfins itshows signs of msp ration from theFrench Hurel Dubois transports of theearly 1950s the exper mental designswhich also led to the Brtish Shorts Skyvan and 330

The development of the An 14 wasprotracted and t was not until 1965 thatthe type entered service Production versions feature a very d fferent tail designfrom the prototype and the planform ofthe wng and the arrangement of thehigh lift devices are also mod fied Thenose was slightly lengthened and clamshell doors were fitted to the rear fuselage

If the evolution of the An 14 has beenslow that of its turboprop developmentthe An-28 'Cash' has been even lesshurried It was announced in 1967 that aturboprop version of the type was underdevelopment and the first prototypedesgnated An-14M flew at K ev inSeptember 1969 Powered by two

604 kW (810 shp) TVD 850 turbopropsthe new vers ion was stretched toaccommodate up to 15 passengers andweighed 5600kg (12 500!b) fully loadedA production prototype of the aircraftwas demonstrated n 1974 at whichtime the change n designation to An 28was announced Production is by PZL nPoland and the aircraft is in serv ce withboth civil and military users

All variants of the An 14 and An 28share the same pod and boom fuselagelayout perm ttmg easy loading of cargoin the freight role The h gh wing carriesfull span double slotted flaps and slatsailerons being built into the outer flapsectons

SpecificationAntonov An-14Type: STOL light transportPowerplant: two 224 kW (300 hp)Ivchenko Al 14RF radial piston enginesPerformance: cruising speed 170180km/h (105 120mph) at 2000m(6560ft) maximum range with sixpassengers or 570 kg (1 200 Ib) payload650km (400 miles) service ceiling5000m (16400ft) take off run 1001 1 0 m (330360ft) landing run 1 1 0 m(360ft)Weights: empty 2600kg (5 700Ib)normal take off 3450kg (7 600lb)maximum take off 3630 kg (8 000 Ib)

Antonov An-14 'Clod' of the EastGerman air force

Dimensions: span 22 Om (72ft 3in)length 1 1 36m (37ft 31/2in) height463m (15ft 2/2in) wing area 39 72m2

(422 8 sq ft)

Antonov An-28Type: STOL light transportPowerplant: two 715 kW (960 shp)PZL built Glushenkov TVD 10VturbopropsPerformance: max mum cruis ngspeed 350 km/h (217 mph) econom calcru sing speed 300km/h (186mph)range with 20 passengers 510km (317miles)Weights: empty 3500kg (7 716lb)maximum take off 6100kg (13 448Ib)Dimensions: span 22 06m (72ft41/2 n) length 1 2 98m (42ft 7m) he ght4 6m (15ft 1 in) w ng area 40 28m2(433 5sqft)

Antonov An-22The Soviet Union has always been facedwith the difficult problem of transportingcargo across its vast terr tones th s resuits not only from the very long distances involved but also from a widevariety of terrain and the need to providea serv ce of this nature into areas whereI ttle or no surface routes exist A r transport has provided a solution to this problem and explains why there has beenconsderable development and production of heavy cargo and cargo/passengera rcraft in the USSR

Antonov s bureau was given the taskin early 1962 of orgmatmg the design ofan a rcraft wh ch would be able to carryheavy or large loads over long rangesand which would n addition be able tooperate from and nto a variety of unprepared fields The resulting AntonovAn-22 Ante! 'Cock' prototype wasflown for the first time on 27 February1965 and was first seen by the Westernaerospace industry when exhibited atthe Pans Air Salon some four monthslater Almost certainly th s aircraft wasthe prototype and it was then suggested that in addition to being availableas a bulk cargo transporter it was able tobe made available in evil airliner formwith upper and lower deck cabins toaccommodate a total of 724 passengersTwo years later again at the Pans Saloncame the news that this latter proposalhad been abandoned

Antonov s design to meet thedemand ng requ rements has resulted ina very large all metal aircraft of high wingmonoplane configuration the wing ineluding wide span double slotted trailing edge flaps The large capacity fuselage includes an upswept rear sectionw th a large loading ramp door for directonloadmg of veh cles and to providestabilty during such operatons retractable jacks can be extended at a pointadjacent to the loading ramp hingesTwin fins extend above and below theta Iplane with the rudders likewise ntwo halves The landing gear is of the retractable tricycle type but sdesgnedtopermit off runway operaton the steerable nose unit carres twin wheels but

each mam unit consists of three tw nwheel levered suspens on units in tandem so that on the ground the An 22 issupported on no fewer than 14 wheelsTyre pressures of these wheels areadjustable in flight or on the ground toprovide optimum performance for anyparticular airfield surface It is reportedthat operation into and from water sodden grass fields s possible

Powerplant of product on An 22scomprises four Kuznetsov turbopropengines each of which drives a pair ofcontra rotating four blade propellersAccommodation is provided for a crewof five or six and in common with manySoviet transport aircraft there is a smallcabin area at the forward end of the fuselage aft of the flight deck wth seating

for 28 or 29 passengersAn 22s have establ shed many pay

load to height and speed with payloadrecords and are able to a rhft the army sT 62 tank Serving both with Aeroflot andthe Soviet airforce the numbers remaining in servce in 1989 were estimated at20 30 and 55 respectively

SpecificationType: long range heavy transportPowerplant: four 1 1 1 8 6 kW (15 000shp) Kuznetsov NK 12MA turbopropsPerformance: maximum speed740km/h (460 mph) cruising speed560 640 km/h (348 398 mph) range5000km (3 107 miles) with maximumpayload range 10950km (6 804 miles)

For several years the world'slargest aircraft, the An-22's giantturboprops enable it to lift outsizeloads. Among the moreinteresting applications is thetransport of complete An-124wings carried 'piggy-back'.

with maximum fuel and 45000 kg(99 208 ib) payloadWeights: empty equipped 114000kg(251 327 Ib) maximum take off250000kg (551 156lb)Dimensions: span 6440m ( 2 1 1 f t31/2in) length 57 80m (189ft 7/2in)height 12 53m (41ft 1 /4 in) wing area345m2 (3 713 7sqft)

Antonov An-24With the requirement for a turbineengmed short-range civil transport to replace the piston engmed llyushm I! 14 inAeroflot service the Antonov bureau inmated in late 1957 the design of a 32 40seat aircraft which could be employedover short/medium range routes Its design had to include the ability to operatefrom small unpaved airfields and also required that flight characteristics andpowerplant should be such that it couldbe used between points with considerable variations in altitude and/or temperature It was not until just over two yearslater in April 1960 that the first of twoprototypes had flown the period between the beginning of the design andcompletion of the first prototype hadbeen extended somewhat by a capacitychange to 44 seat accommodat on

Typically Antonov in its high wingconfiguration the An-24 'Coke' is fitted with a wing having wide span Fowler type trailing edge flaps these beingdouble slotted outboard of the enginenacelles and single-slotted inboard Thetail unit is conventional with the additionof a fairly large ventral fin on productionaircraft and the fuselage is a semimonocoque s t ruc ture in t roducingbonded/welded cons t ruc t i on Thehydrauhcally retractable tricycle typelanding gear has twin wheels on eachunit a steerable and fully castonng noseunit and includes the means of adjusting

tyre pressures in flight or on the groundto permit operation from a variety of dif-ferent surfaces The powerplant comprises two Ivchenko Al 24A turbopropengines each driving a constant speedand fully feathering propeller

Production aircraft began to enter service with Aeroflot in 1962 for crew train-ing and proving flights but it was notuntil September 1963 that the first 50-seat An-24Vs were used on the routesbetween Moscow Voronezh and Saratov Subsequent versions have includedthe An-24V Srs II avai lable withstandard 50 passenger accommodationbut also with alternative mixed passen-ger/freight convertible cargo/passen-ger all freight or executive interiors theAn-24RV similar to the foregoing butwith a 900 kg (1 985 Ib) thrust auxiliaryturbojet installed in the starboard enginenacelle and used for remote field enginestarting and operable also to improvetake off or airborne performance theAn-24T equipped as a specialisedfreighter with the standard rear cabinpassenger door deleted and replaced byan upward opening ventral freight doortwin ventral fins outboard of the freightdoorto replace the single ventral fin andwith cargo hoist and conveyor installedand the An-24RT as the An 24T butwith aux hary turbojet installed Alsoevaluated was an An-24P equipped toairdrop parachute equipped firelighters

to provide fast reaction to newly reported forest fires

Production of the An 24 series for civiland military operators totalled some1 100 and the type continues in production and under development in China asthe Xian Y-7

SpecificationAntonov An-24VType: short range transportPowerplant: two 1902 ekW (2 550ehp) Ivchenko Al 24A turbopropsPerformance: cruising speed450km/h (280mph) service ceiling

China's Xian Aircraft Company isdeveloping new and improvedversions of the An-24 under theY-7 designation.

8400m (27 560ft) range withmaximum payload 550km (342 miles)range with maximum fuel 2440km(1 491 miles)Weights: empty 13300kg (29 321 Ib)maximum take off 21000kg (49 297 Ib)Dimensions: span 29 20m (95ft91/2in) length 2353m (77ft 21/2in)height 832m (27ft SVzin) wing area74 98m2 (807 1 sq ft)

Antonov An-26, An-30 and An-32Development of a military freighterbased on the Antonov An 24 airliner waslogical especially in view of the increased performance available with theaddition of the auxiliary engine mtroduced on the An 24RV

As things turned out three variationswere developed on the theme of theAn-24 The first of these was the Anto-nov An-26 'Curl' which began toenter service in 1970 and is distinguishable by its more powerful 2103 ekW(2 820 ehp) Ivchenko Al 24T turbopropsand redesigned rear fuselage This latterincludes a large downward-hinged rearramp/door which can be slid forwardbelow the cabin floor to facilitate airdrop-ping of freight or the direct loading ofcargo (up to 5 5 0 0 k g / 1 2 1 2 5 l b ) attruckbed height Small vehicles can bedriven straight into the hold while otherloads can be handled by inbuilt poweredconveyors and winches A large bulgedobservation window is fitted to the leftside of the fuselage just to the rear ofthe flight deck for increased accuracy inpara dropping operations The An 26 isin service as a light tactical transport (40passengers orfreight) with Warsaw Pactair arms and considerable efforts havebeen made to export the type It wouldappear to be a logical replacement forthe Lisunov Li 2 and llyushm II 14 TheChinese are developing their own version known as the Xian Y-14.

The second variation is the AntonovAn-30 'Clank' which first flew in1974 This is a specialised aerial surveyversion of the An 26 with a raised flightdeck and an extensively glazed nose to-gether with ventral ports for camerasand other survey equipment It seemslikely that the An 30 s principal role is as

The An-26 is the standardtransport of the Soviet Union andits client states. Shown is an EastGerman machine.

part of the major geophysical effort tolocate mineral resources within theUSSR

The third variation appeared in 1979 inthe form of the Antonov An-32'Cline' This was designed specificallyto offer better performance in hot andhigh conditions and is powered by two3863-ekW (5 180 ehp) Ivchenko Al 20Mturboprops offering some 83 per centmore power than the Al 24s of theAn 26 The Al 20M is an uprated versionof the turboprop which powered the

much larger Antonov An-12 and requiresa propeller of greater diameter than theAl 24 of the An 26 In order to avoid totalredesign of the wing therefore in theAn 32 the engines have been relocatedto a position well above the wing Thepropeller axes are thus above the widestpoint of the fuselage with the advantagethat asymmetric control problems areless than if the engines had been movedoutwards rather than upwards How-ever the destabilising effect of thelarger cowlmgsand propellers has had to

be balanced by additional tail area (in theventral fins) and the higher thrust linehas necessitated an increase in outerwing chord resulting in a dog tooth lead-ng edge and inverted slots on the tailplane lead ng edge No auxiliary turbojetis f tted and production for civil and milltary operators began in 1980 The An 32is readily capable of operations from airfields as high as 4600m (15 000ft) andhas a maximum payload of 6000kg(13228lb)

SpecificationsAntonov An-26Type- short haul transportPowerplant: two 2103 ekW (2 820ehp) Ivchenko Al 24T turbopropsPerformance (at normal take offweight) cru s ng speed at 6000m(19 675ft) 435km/h (270mph) ntialcl mb rate 480m (1 575ft) per m nuteservice ce ling 8100m (26 575ft) rangewth 4500 kg (9 920 Ib) payload 900km(559 miles)Weights: empty 15020kg (33 133lb)normal take off 23000kg (50 706lb)maximum take off 24000kg (52 911 Ib)Dimensions, span 29 20m (95ft9/2 n) length 23 80m (78ft 1 in) heght8 575m (28ft 1 / 2 n) wing area7498m2 (807 1sq f t )

Antonov An-32Type short/med um range transportPowerplanf two 3862 ekW (5 180ehp) Ivchenko Al 20M turbopropsPerformance: normal cru s ng speed510km/h (317mph) service ceil ng9500m (31 150f t ) range with 6000 kg(13 228 Ib) payload 800km (497 miles)Weight: maximum take off 26000kg(57320lb)Dimensions- span 29 20m (95ft9/2 n) length 2380m (78ft 1 n) height8 575m (28ft 1 /2 n) wngarea74 98m2 (807 1 sq ft)

With an airframe similar to theAn-26, the An-32 is intended forhigh performance operations

Antonov An-72/-74F rst f lyng on 22 December 1977 theAn-72 was designed pr rK pally as a replacement for the An 26 freighter andthe aircraft will form a basis for a sizeablefam lyofvanantss milarto the earl erdesign Bearing a similarity to the BoeingY C 1 4 the An 72 is a STOL freghterwth many advanced features suited tothe ma n role The high w ng mountstwo large D 36 turbofans above the wingclose to the fuselage keeping them freefrom foreign object damage These areset to be replaced by the more powerfulLotarev D 436

Engine efflux is blown over the topsurface of the wing When the largemult slotted flaps are deployed the jetefflux is deflected downwards (theCoanda effect) by st eking to the flap

surface thereby increasing lift enormously The An 72 is ta lored to operations from unprepared fields featurngmulti wheel low pressure landing gearand a rear load ng ramp The An 72 andits derivatives are in service with bothAeroflot and the Soviet air force Production at the Kharkov plant numbers about20 per year

VariantsAn-72 'Coaler-A': pre product ona rcraft numbering two fly ngprototypes one stat c test a rframe andeight pre production mach nesAn-72A 'Coaler-C'- ma n product onversion wth increased fuselage lengthand w ng spanAn-72AT 'Coaler-C'. specialistcargo carry ng version equ pped toaccommodate standard containersAn-72S 'Coaler-C': executiveversion with three cabins separated bybulkheads In the front are to let galleyand cloak facilities the central sectionhas work and rest areas while the rearconta ns 24 armchairs Provis on forcargo or vehicle carnage is madeAn-74 'Coaler-B': arctic support

vers on dent fied by observationblisters on fuselage sides and enlargedradar n bulged radome Able to befitted wth ether wheels or skis theAn 74 also has ncreased fuel capac tyand better nav gallon equipmentAn-74 'Madcap': airborne earlywarning version with redes gned tailunit The swept forward fin has a largerotodome mounted on top hous ng thesurveillance radar while the horzontatail surfaces have been moved to aconventional low set position Thecabin conta ns operator stat ons andassocated a on cs

SpecificationAntonov An-72A 'Coaler-C'Type STOL transportPowerplant. two Lotarev D 36turbofans each rated at 63 74kN(14 330lb) thrust to be replaced byLotarev D 436 turbofans of 73 6kN(16550 lb ) thrustPerformance: maximum speed at10000m (32 800ft) 705km/h(438mph) servce ceiling 10700m(35105f t ) take off run 930m (3 050ft)landing run 465m (1 525ft) range withmax mum payload 800 km (497 miles)range wth maximum fuel 3250km

(2 020 miles)Weights: max mum take off from1800m (5905ft) runway 34500kg(76060lb) maximum take off from1000m (3 280ft) runway 27500kg(60625IWDimensions: span 31 89m (104ft7/2in) length 2807m (92ft 1 /4 in )heght 8 65m (28ft 4/2in) wing area9862m2 (1062sqft)

This pre-production An-72 showsthe unusual engine arrangement,chosen so that efflux blows backacross the large flaps

Antonov An-124At the time of its first flight on 26 Decemher 1982, the An-124 was the largestaircraf t in the world Antonov s expenence with the huge turboprop An-22gave it a head start when design beganon the new giant, as did knowledge ofthe sl ightly smal ler Lockheed C 5Galaxy Indeed apart from its low-settailplane, the An-124 is very similar to theLockheed product

Four Lotarev D-18T turbofans powerthe giant, slung in pods under the largeanhedralled wing Full span leading-edge slats and large flaps give theAn 124 impressive short field capabilitywhile its 20 main wheels allow the typeto use rough fields Two nose-wheelunits each have a pair of wheels andthese can be retracted on the groundallowing the aircraft to 'kneel' to assistloading Like the Galaxy, the An-124 hasan upward-hingemg nose visor and rearclamshell/ramp doors to allow front orrear drive-on loading

Accommodation on the flight deckcaters for six crew (two pilots, twoengineers a navigator and a radio oper-ator), and behind this is a rest areaBehind the wing on the upper deck isaccommodation for up to 88 passen-gers The 36m ( 1 1 8 f t ) long mam cabin ispressurised and has two electric cranesin the roof, each lifting up to 20000kg(44,100 Ib) Two winches are fitted, ableto pull loads through the cabin Control ofthe aircraft is effected by a quadrupleredundant fly-by wire system

Following its first flight with VladimirTerski at the controls, the A n - 1 2 4showed few problems, and production

aircraft appeared quickly The second air-craft, named Ruslan, appeared at the1985 Pans Air Salon The aircraft enteredservice with Aeroflot in early 1986, andnow serves principally on the Siberianrun, carrying outsize items to the oil andmineral exploitation industries In 1987the An-124 began service with the airforce Production is reportedly eight toten aircraft peryear, and by 1989 over 25had been completed The An-124 wasassigned the NATO reporting name'Condor'

SpecificationType: heavy transportPowerplant: four Lotarev D-18Tturbofans each rated at 229 5kN(51,590 Ib) thrustPerformance: maximum cruisingspeed 865km/h (537mph), approachspeed 240km/h (149mph), take-offfield length at maximum weight3000m (9,850ft), landing run at maxweight 800m (2,625ft), range withmaximum payload 4500km (2,795miles), range with maximum fuel

16500km (10,250 miles)Weights: maximum take-off weight405000kg (892,872 Ib) maximum fuel230000kg (507,063Ib) maximumpayload 150000kg (330,693Ib)Dimensions: span 73 30m (240ft53Ain), length 6910m (226ft SVzin),height 2078m (68ft 2Viin) wing area628 Om2 (6,760sqft)In service with both Aeroflot andthe Soviet air force, the An-124'Condor' is also available toWestern firms who wish to lease it.

Antonov An-225 MriyaCurrently the world s largest aircraft, theAn-225 Mriya (dream) stemmed fromthe need to transport large items for theSoviet space programme Previously aconverted Myasishchev Mya-4 'Bisonbomber had been used to carry outsizeitems on its back, but this had a limitedpayload capacity, meaning many com-ponents had to be disassembled or notcarried at all

In mid-1985 Antonov was entrustedwith the design of a new aircraft able tocarry the Buran shuttle orbiter, largecomponents of the Energiya launch vehi-cles and other outsize items for con-struction and mining industries Con-struction of the An 124 provided thebasis for the new aircraft, Antonov usingmany of the same components to keepcost and development effort down

The fuselage and wings are similar tothe An-124, the cabin retaining the samecross-sectional dimensions but with in-creased length To save weight the rearloading ramp is removed, but the An-225retains the nose visor Standard An-124wings are grafted on to a new centresection, thereby increasing the spanwhile keeping the engine installationsthe same An additional pair of D-36Tturbofans is fitted to the new centre sec-tion, raising thrust to an amazing 1377kN(309,540 Ib) In order to support the in-creased weight, seven pairs of wheelsare fitted to each side as opposed to fivein the An-124

The world's largest aircraft, themighty s/x-eng/ned An-225 wasdeveloped primarily as atransport for the Soviet spaceshuttle and rocket launchercomponents.

Outsize loads that cannot fit into thecapacious cabin (including Buran and En-ergiya components) are carried 'piggy-back', the load supported on two mamattachments above the centre sectionThese supports and other smaller onesalong the fuselage top are faired overwhen not in use To avoid buffeting fromthe 'piggyback' load, the An 225 hastwin vertical fins mounted on the end ofa large tailplane

The prototype made its first flight on21 December 1988, and in March 1989set up no fewer than 106 world and class

records in one flight from Kiev, at a maxi-mum take-off weight m excess of500000kg (1,100,000 Ib) Only two havebeen completed so far, and the first flewwith Buran on 13 May 1989 This combmation made a dramatic appearance inthe West for the first time a month laterat the Pans Air Salon

SpecificationType: heavy transportPowerplant: six Lotarev D 1STturbofans, each rated at 229 5kN(51 590Ib) thrust

Performance: (estimated) cruisingspeed 800km/h (497 mph), take-off runcarrying Buran 2500m (8,200ft)turning radius about nosewheels 50m(164ft)Weights: maximum take-off600000kg (1,322 750lb) maximumpayload (internal or external) 250000kg(551 150lb)Dimensions: span 88 4m (290ft),length 840m (275ft 7 in), height 1 8 1 m(59ft 4%m), tailplane span 32 65m(107ft 1V2in) length of freight hold43m (141 ft)