Antonov An-70
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The Antonov An-70 is a next-generation four-engine medium-distance transport aircraft, and the first large aircraft to be powered by propfan engines. Developed by the Antonov design bureau to replace the obsolete An-12 military transport, work on the An-70 began in the early 1990s.
Maiden flight of the first prototype took place on December 16, 1994 in Kiev, Ukraine.
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[edit] History of production and marketing
Russia and Ukraine have (as of 2002) agreed on a 50-50 risk-sharing deal on production. Particularly, there were plans to establish serial production of the model in both Kiev and Samara, Russia, guaranteeing employment of about 80,000 people in two countries. The Russian government has shown interest in purchasing 160 planes for its military.
The first prototype was lost in 1995 during test flight. The second prototype suffered damage in a 2001 emergency landing during cold weather testing in Russia, but was repaired. Soon after the first crash, Russian authorities started to question the An-70's abilities and demanded further development.
In May 2005, senior officials of Russian Air Force claimed that bilateral development and further testing of the plane continue, though inside sources (Piort Butowski) report that the An-70 is rapidly losing ground to the upgraded IL-76MF, with the Tu-330 and IL-214 coming up strongly on the outside. In November 2005, Ukraine's Defence Ministry announced plans to buy five AN-70s for the Ukrainian Air Force. In December 2005, Antonov maintained that production of the aircraft remains a priority.
In April 2006, Russia announced its complete withdrawal from the project. The head of the Russian Air Force, Vladimir Mikhailov, claimed that the An-70 has grown into a heavy, expensive cargo plane. The military plans to use the lighter Ilyushin Il-76MF, which reportedly costs half as much as the An-70. After the Orange Revolution in late 2004, and with Ukraine openly aiming for NATO membership, political will for the project evaporated. Russia has provided around 60 per cent of the estimated USD 5 billion invested in the project to date. [1] [2] [3]
As of 2006, the plane was fully tested and internationally certified, though Russian and any potential Western customers have yet to purchase or invest in the serial production of the An-70. A turbofan powered derivative is also under development.
[edit] Technology
Fully fly-by-wire, the An-70 features a glass cockpit and uses composite materials throughout. It is powered by four Progress D-27 Propfans, each turning a pair of contra-rotating propfans, and reaches 90% efficiency (claimed) in cruise at jet speeds.
[edit] Specifications (An-70)
General characteristics
- Crew: 3-5
- Capacity: 300 troops or 206 wounded
- Payload: 47 tonnes (103,620 lb) of cargo
- Length: 40.7 m (133 ft 6 in)
- Wingspan: 44.06 m (144 ft 7 in)
- Height: 16.38 m (53 ft 9 in)
- Empty weight: 66,230 kg (146,000 lb)
- Loaded weight: 108,860 kg (240,000 lb)
- Max takeoff weight: 130,000 kg (286,600 lb)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 780 km/h (420 knots, 485 mph)
- Range: 6,600 km (3,600 nm, 4,100 mi) with 20 tonnes of cargo
- Ferry range: 8,000 km (4,320 nm, 4,970 mi)
- Service ceiling: 12,000 m (40,000 ft)
- Rate of climb: 24.9 m/s (4,900 ft/min)
[edit] References
- (Russian) Reports on design progress by Aviatsiya i Vremia journal in Issue 2 and 3 of 1994
- (Russian) Первый полет Ан-70 // Авиация и Время. - К. : 1995. - №1. - Стр.25. (Report on first flight of the An-70 by Aviatsiya i Vremia journal, including photogallery of the plane)
- (Russian) "Interfax-Ukraine" news lines of December 1 and December 28, 2005; November 11, 2005; May 17, 2005
- (Russian) Russia and Ukraine do not cease work on the developing of An-70 (Russian govt. E-zine reporting on bilateral development of the plane; May 17, 2005)
- (Russian) Optimistic Future (Russian govt. E-zine article on bilateral development of the plane; June 7, 2004)
- (Russian) Our plane, common ground and their alliance (Ukrainian Glavred e-zine article on the disagreement over An-70 purchase; May 5, 2003)
- (English) Russia Pulls out of An-70 Joint Venture in Ukraine (UkraineExpress e-zine article on the Russian pull-out from the An-70 joint-venture; page 4, Tuesday, June 6, 2006)
