Antonov An-22
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| An-22 "Antei" | |
|---|---|
 An Antonov An-22 on the tarmac. |
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| Type | Strategic airlifter |
| Manufacturer | Antonov |
| Designed by | Oleg Antonov |
| Maiden flight | 27 February 1965 |
| Introduced | 1967 |
| Status | Some remain in active service |
| Primary users | Soviet Air Force Aeroflot Antonov Airlines |
| Produced | 1965-1975 |
| Number built | 68 |
Antonov An-22 Антей (Ukrainian Antaeus) (NATO reporting name "Cock") was the world's largest aircraft, until the advent of American C-5 Galaxy and later the Soviet An-124. Powered by 4 contra-rotating turboprops, the design remains the world's largest turboprop-powered aircraft. It first appeared outside the Soviet Union at the 1965 Paris Air Show.
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[edit] Design features
The An-22 has the general appearance of an enlarged version of the earlier Antonov An-12 except that it is fitted with a twin tail. This gives the An-22 better engine-out performance, and reduces height restrictions for hangars. Also of note are large anti-flutter masses on the top of each tail.
Being designed as a strategic airlifter, it has the capability to takeoff from austere, unpaved and short airstrips. This is achieved by four pairs of contra-rotating propellers, similar to those on the Tupolev Tu-114. The engines generate significant thrust, and produce a slipstream over the wings and large double-slotted flaps. The landing gear is ruggedized for rough airstrips, and, in early versions, tire pressures could be adjusted in flight for optimum landing performance, although that feature was removed in later models.
The An-22 follows traditional cargo transport design with a high-mounted wing allowing a cavernous cargo space of 33m in length and a usable volume of 639m³. The forward fuselage is fully pressurized and provides space for 5 to 8 crew and up to 28 passengers, but the cargo space is pressurized to only 3.55 PSI allowing the for a lighter airframe. A door equipped pressure bulkhead is located at frame 14, separating the cargo attendant's compartment from the main cargo compartment. This allows the rear cargo doors to be opened during flight for paratroops and equipment drop. Like the An-12, the aircraft has a circular fuselage section. The An-22 has set a number of payload and payload-to-height world records[citation needed].
Only one production variant was built, the standard An-22. Prototypes, such as the one first featured at the 1965 Paris Air Show had fully-glazed noses that lacked the nose mounted radar of production models. Those aircraft had the radar mounted below the right wheel well fairing, forward of the wheels.
[edit] Operational History
The An-22 was originally built for the Soviet Air Force and Aeroflot, the state airline. One unit that operated it was the 566th 'Solnechnogorsk' Military Transport Aviation Regiment, which used the An-22 from 1970 to 1987. Approximately 45 remained in service by the mid-1990s, mostly with the Russian Air Force, but these are slowly being replaced by the bigger turbofan-powered Antonov An-124. The remaining An-22s appear to be operated by an independent military transport aviation squadron at Tver (Migalovo), commanded in 2004 by Lt. Col. V. Borisenko. Currently one An-22 is in use for civilian cargo duties with Antonov Airlines.
A proposed civil airliner version capable of seating 724 passengers on upper and lower decks was not built. (For comparison, a typical Boeing 747 can carry 400-500 passengers.)
As of 2004 there had been 8 accidents with a total of 83 fatalities.
The aircraft is also used in special operations.
[edit] Variants
- An-22
- Prototypes built at Kiev-Svyetoshino with glass nose, three built.
- An-22
- Initial production variant with external start system, 37 built at Tashkent.
- An-22A
- Improved variant with air-start capability, modified electrical system, and updated radio and navigation equipment, 28 built at Tashkent.
[edit] Operators
[edit] Military
[edit] Civil
In August 2006 a single Antonov An-22 aircraft remains in airline service with Antonov Airlines.[1]
Operators included:
- Sofia Air Cargo (leased)
[edit] Specifications (An-22)
General characteristics
- Crew: 5-6
- Capacity: 29 passengers
- Payload: 80,000 kg (180,000 lb)
- Length: 57.9 m (190 ft 0 in)
- Wingspan: 64.4 m (211 ft 3 in)
- Height: 12.53 m (41 ft 1 in)
- Wing area: 345 m² (3,713 ft²)
- Empty weight: 114,000 kg (251,330 lb)
- Max takeoff weight: 250,000 kg (551,000 lb)
- Powerplant: 4× Kuznetsov NK-12MA turboprops driving contra-rotating propellers, 11,030 kW (15,000 shp) each
Performance
- Maximum speed: 740 km/h (400 knots, 460 mph)
- Range: 5,000 km (2,700 nm, 3,100 mi)
- Service ceiling 8,000 m (26,240 ft)
[edit] Gallery
 Cockpit |
 Navigator's station |
 Navigator's instruments |
 Cargo bay |
[edit] See also
Related development
Comparable aircraft
Related lists
- List of cargo aircraft
- List of military aircraft of the Soviet Union and the CIS
[edit] References
- ^ Flight International, 3-9 October 2006
- Pyotr Butowski, 'Air Power Analysis - Russian Federation Part 2' in International Air Power Review, Volume 13, Summer 2004, AIRtime Publishing Inc., Norwalk, CT.
- Goebel, Greg (2006-01-01). The Antonov Giants. Air Vectors. Retrieved on 2006-06-28.
- Lundgren, Johan (1996-2006). Antonov An-22 Antheus. Airliners.net. AirNav Systems LLC. URL accessed on 2006-06-28.
[edit] External links
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