PZL M-28

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PZL M-28
Skytruck / Bryza
Polish Navy PZL M-28B Bryza 1R
Type STOL transport aircraft
Manufacturer PZL Mielec
Designed by Antonov/PZL Mielec
Maiden flight 1984
Status in production
Primary users Polish Air Force/Polish Navy
Vietnamese Air Force
Royal Nepalese Army Air Service
Produced PZL Mielec
Number built 176+
Developed from Antonov An-28

The PZL M-28 / An-28 is a Polish STOL light cargo and passenger plane, produced by PZL Mielec, as a licence development of Antonov An-28. It has also military patrol and reconnaissance variants. In the Polish Navy they are designated Bryza ("sea breeze").

It is a twin-engined high-wing cantilever monoplane of all-metal structure, with twin vertical tails and a robust tricycle non-retractable landing gear, featuring a steerable nose wheel to provide for operation from short, unprepared runways where hot or high altitude conditions may exist. The M-28 is best suited for passenger and/or cargo transportation.

Contents

[edit] Development

The An-28 was the winner of a competition against the Beriev Be-30 for a new light passenger and utility transport for Aeroflot's short haul routes, conceived to replace highly successful An-2 biplane.

The An-28 is substantially derived from the earlier An-14. Commonality with the An-14 includes the high wing layout, twin fins and rudders, but it differs in having a new and far larger fuselage, plus turboprop engines. The original powerplant was the TVD-850, but production versions are powered by the more powerful TVD-10B, with three-blade propellers.

The An-28 made its first flight as the An-14M in September 1969 in the Ukraine. A subsequent preproduction aircraft first flew in April 1975. Production of the An-28 was then transferred to Poland's PZL Mielec in 1978, although it was not until July 22, 1984 that the first Polish built production aircraft flew. The An-28's Soviet type certificate was awarded in April 1986.

While of conventional design, one notable feature of the An-28 is that it will not stall, due to its automatic slats. An engine failure that would usually induce the wing to drop 30° is combated by an automatic spoiler forward of the aileron that opens on the opposite wing, restricting wing drop to 12° in five seconds.

PZL Mielec has became the sole source for production An-28s. Early planes were designated PZL An-28. They were next developed by the PZL-Mielec. The manufacturer has developed a westernised version powered by 820kW (1100shp) Pratt & Whitney PT6A-65B turboprops with five blade Hartzell propellers, plus some western (BendixKing) avionics. Designated the M-28 Skytruck, first flight was during early 1993 and it is in limited production, mostly for export (39 produced by 2006). The type received Polish certification equivalent to US FAR Part 23 in March 1996 (a distinguishing feature are exhaust pipes, sticking out on sides of engine nacelles). From 2000, newly produced M-28Bs (with PZL-10S engines) started to be euipped with five-blade propellers as well.

176 An-28s and M-28s in all variants were built in Poland by 2006. Most numerous users are former Soviet civil aviation and Polish Air Force and Navy, less numerous are used by Polish civil aviation and in the USA, Nepal, Columbia, Venezuela, Vietnam and Indonesia.

[edit] General Characteristics

  • short takeoff & landing (STOL) capability
  • perfect flight handling at low airspeeds
  • high useful load, mission versatility
  • unpaved airstrip operating capability
  • easy access through rear cargo door, fitted with a hoist for cargo loading and relocation inside the cabin
  • high-wing arrangement for protection of engines and propellers against damage when operating from unpaved airstrips
  • easy and quick conversion of the cabin interior configuration
  • low operating cost
  • PT6 engines of inverted configuration for efficient protection against foreign object ingression owing to inertial separators installed inside air inlet ducts.

[edit] Variants

[edit] Airframe Variants

  • PZL An-28 - original variant build on license from Antonov
  • PZL M-28 Skytruck - further development variant with redesigned hull and wings, new Pratt & Whitney Canada engines, new (western) avionics, new 5-blades rotors, and some other minor changes.
  • PZL M-28B Bryza - militarized variant used by Polish Air Force and Polish Navy, similar to Skytruck but with PZL-10S (licence TV-10B) engines.
  • PZL M-28+ Skytruck Plus - prototype of new lengthen variant with more internal space, not in production.

[edit] Variants in use by Polish Military

  • PZL M-28B Bryza TD / An-28 TD - Basic transport variant. Used mainly for transport and paratroop training. Further improved variants featurng avionics and airframe upgrades: An-28TD, Bryza 1TD, M-28B TDII, TDIII and TDIV.
  • PZL M-28B Bryza 1R - Navalized patrol and reconnaissance variant (equpped with: 360° Search and Surveillance Radar ASR-400, Link-11 datalink). Used mainly for sea border patrolling, search and rescue operations and protection of the national economic sea zone
  • PZL M-28B Bryza 1E - Navalized ecological reconnaissance variant.
  • PZL M-28B Bryza 1RM bis - Navalized patrol and reconnaissance variant with submarine detection capability, of 2004 (equipped with: 360° Search and Surveillance Radar, ejection of single-use hydro-acoustic sonobuoys, Thermal Imaging System (FLIR), magnetic anomaly detector, Link-11 datalink). Used mainly for sea border patrolling, search and rescue operations and protection of the national economic sea zone.

[edit] Military Operators

[edit] Specifications (PZL M-28)

General characteristics

  • Crew: 2
  • Capacity: 18 passengers, 12 airborne troops
  • Payload: 3,083 kg ()
  • Length: 13.1 m (42 ft 12 in)
  • Wingspan: 22.06 m (72 ft 5 in)
  • Height: 4.9 m (16 ft 1 in)
  • Wing area: 39.7m² (427.51 ft²)
  • Empty weight: 3.917 kg (8.635 lb)
  • Max takeoff weight: 7000 kg (15.432 lb)
  • Powerplant:Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-65B turboprops, 820 kW (1100 shp) each

Performance

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