Antonov An-70

An-70
Role	Military transport aircraft
Design group	Antonov
Built by	Aviant
First flight	16 December 1994[1]
Status	completed state tests
Produced	1994 - 1996 2012 - present
Number built	2 prototypes
Unit cost	€67–70 million[2]

The Antonov An-70 is a four-engine medium-range transport aircraft, and the first large aircraft to be powered by propfan engines. It has been developed in the late 1980s by the Antonov design bureau to replace the obsolete An-12 military transport aircraft. However, the dissolution of the Soviet Union prevented the mass production of the type. Maiden flight of the first prototype took place on 16 December 1994 in Kiev, now independent Ukraine, and the plane was lost in less than a year. Numerous further attempts to start production have been so far unsuccessful.

Design

Antonov An-70 in 2009

The An-70 is a high-wing monoplane with four wing-mounted propfan engines, it has a full glass cockpit and fly-by-wire controls. The aircraft has a 19.1 metre (22.4 metre with the ramp) x 4 metre x 4.1 metre cargo space and can carry 47 ton of cargo, or approximately 300 troops or 200 injured personnel.^[2] Powered by four Progress D-27 propfan engines, each turning a pair of contra-rotating scimitar propellers.

The An-70 was the first Eastern-bloc transport aircraft to be built according to the new IAC AP-25 norms that conformed with JAR-25. This would allow civilian certification in both Western Europe and North America. Another first was the use of a MIL-STD-1553B-compatible data bus, which allows NATO avionics and defensive suites to be installed

Early development and testing history

Work on the An-70 began in Soviet Union in 1978.^[2] There were plans to establish serial production of the model in both Kiev and Samara, Russia, guaranteeing employment of about 80,000 people in the two countries. The initial contract to build the An-70 was concluded in May 1989.^[3] The Soviet government had shown interest in purchasing 160 planes for its military. But in the post-Soviet days of reduced military budgets in Russia, funding for the An-70 was cut. Antonov decided to proceed with self-funding.

1995 incident

The first prototype was lost during its fourth flight on 10 Feb 1995 in a mid-air collision with an Antonov An-72 being used as a chase plane, the test crew of seven were killed. The aircraft proved so promising during its first three flights that Antonov decided to press on and converted the static-test prototype into a flying prototype. The second airframe took to the air only 21 months after the crash of the first one, on 8 December 1996.^[4][5]

An-7X and Future Large Aircraft (FLA)

The An-70 was first considered in the early 1990s as an FLA-platform but was then rejected. In October 1997, the German defense minister Volker Rühe announced his intention to study whether the An-70 could be the basis for the Future Large Aircraft (FLA). Rühe wanted to use the An-70 based programme as example of the German foreign policy in Eastern Europe. The German Government was searching for routes to provide industrial aid to Eastern Europe.^[6] In December 1997, France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine agreed to evaluate the An-70 as a candidate for the FLA programme.^[7]

Antonov proposed a "westernised" version of the An-70, the An-7X. The German government tasked DaimlerChrysler Aerospace (DASA) with a study, the purpose of which was to evaluate the An-70 and assess if it would fulfil the European Staff Requirement for a common tactical airlifter. DASA depended on data provided by Antonov and was not able to test-fly the aircraft themselves. However they conducted wind-tunnel tests and the results confirmed the data. According to the DASA study from 1999 the An-70 fulfilled the ESR, and that westernisation is possible, but work in key areas would have been necessary and risks existed. Areas identified include the introduction of a full-authority digital engine control, integrated engine monitoring system, prop synchronising system, completely new cockpit, new flight control system computer, replacement of CIS military equipment, replacement of the digital flap/slat-system computer, fuel-jettison system and in-flight refuelling capability, a possible lengthening of the axles of the landing gear, a new digitally controlled braking and steering, new wires for the electrical system, the auxiliary power unit, the cargo-handling system and the loadmaster station. DASA recommended a change in the manufacturing method of the CFRP-components. Also the fuselage manufacturing-method was considered uneconomical. They were not able to assess the manufacturing of the wing because no data was available. DASA stated that the manufacture meets ISO 9000 quality standards but the East-West processes and procedures have to be harmonised. German, Ukrainian and Russian companies had formed the joint-venture “Airtruck” to plan and manage the modifications needed to westernise the An-70. German Companies in Airtruck included DASA Aircraft Services Lemwerder, Autoflug, BMW, Rolls-Royce and Liebherr Aerospace.^[8]

The German government, for political reasons, preferred the An-70-based solution, while the industry, DASA, preferred the A400M from the military branch of Airbus. In the meantime France, Italy and Spain have also shown interest in the An-70. Other contenders for the FLA were the Boeing C-17 and Lockheed Martin C-130J.^[9] Had the An-70 been chosen, fifty percent of the aircraft would have been manufactured by Airbus; in the end, the A400M was chosen for the FLA project.^[7]

2001 incident

To make matters worse, shortly after losing its bid, the second An-70 prototype made a crash landing on its belly in January 2001 after losing power in two engines on take-off during cold weather testing in Omsk, and was severely damaged. It looked as though the A400M was now going to have the market all to itself. But Antonov recovered the crashed aircraft and repaired it in record time, but the project still lacked funding.^{[10][11][12][13]}

Recent development

In 2002 Russia and Ukraine had agreed on a 50–50 risk-sharing deal on production.^[1] In May 2005 a senior Russian Air Force officials claimed that bilateral development and further testing of the An-70 would continue.

In April 2006 Russia announced its complete withdrawal from the project. The head of the Russian Air Force, Vladimir Mikhaylov, claimed that the An-70 has grown into a heavy, expensive cargo plane. The Russian military plans to use the 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 percent of the estimated $5 billion invested in the project to date.^[14][15][16]

The project continued but work was delayed by Russia's $60 million unpaid debts on the project.^[17] Russia resumed cooperation and restored funding on the An-70 project in late 2009.^[18] However Russia did not pay its forfeit penalties, according to Antonov.^[3]

In August 2010, it was reported that user testing was taking place, and that the Ukrainian Air Force expected to take delivery of the first An-70 in 2011. Volga-Dnepr Airlines signed an agreement for a possible purchase of up to five An-70T aircraft.^[19] A requirement for 60 An-70s was included in Russia's 2011–2020 national armament programme when it was issued in December 2010.^[20] After an extensive series of modifications, including revised avionics (which allowed the flight crew to be reduced from five to four) and changes to the aircraft's propellers to improve reliability and decrease noise, the second prototype An-70 flew again on 27 September 2012 and took part in the Aviasit XI airshow at Kiev.^[21][22] In June 2012, it was decided to carry out assembly of the An-70 at the KAPO factory in Kazan, Russia. The aircraft's wings, tail surfaces and engine nacelles would be built by Antonov in Kiev.^[22][23]

Production of the first new fuselages in 16 years began in December 2012,^[24] and tests were completed by April 2014.^[25]

In March 2015 Russia Defence ministry declared that they are ruling out the An-70 for state procurement. They also declared that, as in their opinion, Ukraine has withdrawn from the military and defence agreements signed before the crisis between them by completing the plane without Russian involvement, they would request return of 2.95 billion rubles that Russian government had spent on An-70 project.^[26]

Variants

Proposed An-112KC variant

An-70T

An-7X

An-112KC

A proposed aerial refueling version of the An-70, except with two jet engines from the team of U.S. Aerospace and Antonov for the U.S. Air Force's KC-X program.^[27][28] The USAF rejected the proposal,^[29] and the appeal was later dismissed.^[30][31]

An-188

Program to develop this variant was launched at the 2015 Paris Air Show. ^[32] This variant will essentially be a four jet engine powered heavy-medium transport with modernized NATO- compatible western cockpit, slightly enlarged wings, winglets and ariel refueling capabilities.^[33] The An-188 is intended to fill the gap between a C-130 and C-17 while being a direct competitor to the A400M. Plans include incorporating a western engine option (as well as a Ukrainian one) to appeal to western markets and reduce dependency on eastern markets. ^[34]

Operators

 Ukraine

• Ukrainian Air Force – In 2010 two deliveries were expected in 2011 and 2012. However, as of 2015 the status of this order is unknown.^[19]

Specifications (An-70)

Data from Back in the Air^[23]

General characteristics

• Crew: 4 (Two pilots, navigator and flight engineer)
• Capacity: 300 troops or 206 stretcher cases^[35]
• Payload: 47,000 kg (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)
• Max. takeoff weight: 145,000 kg (319,670 lb)
• Powerplant: 4 × Progress D-27 propfans, 10,350 kW (13,880 hp) each

Performance

• Maximum speed: 780 km/h (421 knots, 485 mph)
• Cruise speed: 750 km/h (405 knots, 466 mph)
• Stall speed: 113 km/h (61 knots, 70 mph)
• Range: 6,600 km or 5,000 km (3,564 nm or 2,700nm) with 20 or 35 tonnes of cargo
• Service ceiling: 12,000 m (39,370 ft)
• Rate of climb: 24.9 m/s (81.7 ft/s)

See also

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era

• Airbus A400M

References

• Butowski, Piotr. "Back in the Air". Air International, Vol.83 No, 6, December 2012. ISSN 0306-5634. pp. 86–89.
• Jackson, Paul. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 2003–2004. Coulsdon, UK: Jane's Information Group, 2003. ISBN 0-7106-2537-5.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Antonov An-70.

• Antonov product page