The Antonov An-12 (
Russian: Антонов Ан-12;
NATO reporting name
NATO reporting names are code names for military equipment from Russia, China, and historically, the Eastern Bloc (Soviet Union and other nations of the Warsaw Pact). They provide unambiguous and easily understood English words in a uniform man ...
: Cub) is a four-engined
turboprop
A turboprop is a turbine engine that drives an aircraft propeller.
A turboprop consists of an intake, reduction gearbox, compressor, combustor, turbine, and a propelling nozzle. Air enters the intake and is compressed by the compressor. ...
transport aircraft designed in the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
. It is the military version of the
Antonov An-10
The Antonov An-10 Ukraina ( ua, Антонов Ан-10 Україна, , Ukraine; NATO reporting name: Cat) is a four-engined turboprop passenger transport aircraft designed in the Soviet Union.
Design and development
Development of a four-en ...
and has many variants. For more than three decades the An-12 was the standard medium-range cargo and paratroop transport aircraft of the Soviet air forces. A total of 1,248 were eventually built.
Design and development
Developed from the
Antonov An-8, the An-12 was a military version of the An-10 passenger transport. The first prototype An-12 flew in December 1957 and entered Soviet military service in 1959. Initially, the aircraft was produced at the State Aviation Factory in Irkutsk. From 1962, production was transferred to Tashkent, where 830 were built. Later, production moved to Voronezh and Kazan.
In military use, the An-12 has capacity for up to 100 fully equipped paratroopers or 20,000 kg (44,090 lb) of cargo, which is loaded through the rear loading ramp/door.
In terms of configuration, size, and capability, the aircraft is similar to the United States-built
Lockheed C-130 Hercules. Soviet military and former-Soviet An-12s have a defensive tail gun turret.
Chinese production
In the 1960s, China purchased several An-12 aircraft from the Soviet Union, along with a license to assemble the aircraft locally. Due to the
Sino-Soviet split, the Soviet Union withdrew its technical assistance. The
Xi'an Aircraft Company and Xi'an Aircraft Design Institute reverse-engineered the An-12 for local production, and the first flight of a Chinese-assembled An-12 was delayed until 1974 after USSR ceased production in 1973.
In 1981, the Chinese version of the An-12, designated
Y-8, finally entered production. Since then, the Y-8 has become one of China's most popular military and civilian transport/cargo aircraft, with many variants produced and exported. A
Tu-16/
H-6 bomber navigator cockpit design was chosen for the Y-8 instead of the original An-12 shorter navigator cockpit design, as the H-6 bomber had been in serial production for some time.
Although the An-12 is no longer in use either in Russia or in Ukraine, the Y-8 is upgraded and produced in China. The latest Y8-F600 is a joint venture between the
Shaanxi Aircraft Company,
(ASTC), and
Pratt & Whitney Canada. The Y8-F600 has a redesigned fuselage, western avionics,
PW150B turboprop engines with an R-408 propeller system, and a two-crew
glass cockpit
A glass cockpit is an aircraft cockpit that features electronic (digital) flight instrument displays, typically large LCD screens, rather than the traditional style of analog dials and gauges. While a traditional cockpit relies on numerous ...
.
Operational history
Soviet Air Forces
The Aircraft first took flight in 1957 and was produced in the USSR until 1973. It was used in a variety of roles from search and rescue operations to equipment transportation. Its most significant use was seen during the
Soviet-Afghan War. Among Soviet Soldiers, it was infamously known that the plane would take off from Afghanistan to
Tashkent with "
Cargo 200" or coffins with the bodies of deceased soldiers. To this regard the aircraft was nicknamed "Black Tulip" (
Russian: «Чёрный тюльпан»).
Variants
In addition to its basic cargo transport role, the An-12 was adapted as a platform for a wide variety of specialist tasks and some 30 different variants were produced. Upgrades included increased take-off weights and additional fuel capacity. The upgraded variant An-12BP became the standard tactical transport of the Soviet and other air forces.
In 2019, it was announced at the military "Army-2019" Forum that Russia started working on an armed ground-attack and close air support variant of the An-12, similar to the
AC-130. In 2021, it was announced that the gunship will not be based on the An-12 after all, as it did not meet the requirements for a "flying gunner."
Operators
Currently the An-12 is popular with cargo operators, especially those in the
CIS, Africa and the
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent is a physiographical region in Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian Ocean from the Himalayas. Geopolitically, it includes the countries of Bangladesh, Bhutan, In ...
.
[Gordon, Yefim & Komissarov, Dmitry. Antonov An-12. Midland. Hinkley. 2007. ]
Civil operators
On 12 January 2009, the
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (Middle East, The Middle East). It is ...
(UAE) issued a temporary ban of the An-12 from flying over their airspace following
runway incursion
A runway incursion is an aviation incident involving improper positioning of vehicles or people on any airport runway or its protected area. When an incursion involves an ''active'' runway being used by arriving or departing aircraft, the poten ...
s at
Sharjah International Airport and the GCAA has advised operators to stop using the aircraft. The ban was made permanent in Feb 2010.
Current
;
*
Air Armenia
Air Armenia CJSC ( hy, Էյր Արմենիա) was a passenger and cargo airline with its head office in Yerevan, Armenia, and base at Zvartnots International Airport.
History
The airline was established in 2003 and started operations on 18 March ...
;
*
Ruby Star Airways
;
*
Air One (Mexico)
;
*
ATRAN Cargo Airlines
Atran, LLC (russian: ООО «Атран») is a cargo airline based in Moscow, Russia. It operates cargo charters in Europe, Russia and the CIS. Its main base is Domodedovo International Airport, Moscow.
History
The airline was established a ...
*
SAT Airlines
OJSC "SAT Airlines — Sakhalinskie Aviatrassy" (russian: Сахалинские Авиатрассы), commonly known as SAT Airlines, was an airline based in Sakhalin, Russia. It provided scheduled regional air services in Russia's Far East an ...
;
*
Air People International
Air People International is a cargo airline based in Bangkok, Thailand. It operates three times weekly cargo flights between Thailand and Dhaka, Bangladesh.
History
The airline was established in 1986 as a cargo General Sales Agent. It started ...
;
*
Aerovis Airlines
*
Antonov Airlines
*
CAVOK Air
*
Motor Sich Airlines
Motor Sich is a Ukrainian airline based in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine. It operates passenger and cargo services, including charter and scheduled flights. Its main base is Zaporizhzhia International Airport.
History
The airline was established in ...
*
Ukraine Air Alliance
Ukraine Air Alliance is a cargo airline based in Kyiv, Ukraine. It operates services to Asia, Africa and Europe. Its main bases were Boryspil International Airport (KBP) and Zhuliany International Airport (IEV).
History
The airline was e ...
*
Volare Airlines
;
* SRX, ''(still operated by
Avialeasing
Avialeasing Aviation Company is a cargo airline based in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. It operates cargo services linking cities in Asia with western and eastern Europe. Its main base is Yuzhny Airport, Tashkent.Flight International 27 March 2007 It is a ...
)''
Former
;
*
Alada
;
*
Balkan Bulgarian Airlines
*
Air Sofia
;
*
CAAC Airlines
CAAC Airlines (), formerly the People's Aviation Company of China (中國人民航空公司), was the airline division of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) and the monopoly civil airline in the People's Republic of China. It was ...
; see also
Shaanxi Y8
The Shaanxi Y-8 or Yunshuji-8 () aircraft is a medium size medium range transport aircraft produced by Shaanxi Aircraft Corporation in China, based on the Soviet Antonov An-12. It has become one of China's most popular military and civilian t ...
;
*
Egyptair
;
*
Darta
;:
*
Air Guinee
;:
*
Ghana Airways The sole An-12 was delivered in October 1961. Withdrawn from use in 1962 and returned to the Soviet Union in 1963.
;
*
Iraqi Airways
;
*
Interisland Airlines
;
*
LOT Polish Airlines
LOT Polish Airlines, legally incorporated as Polskie Linie Lotnicze LOT S.A. (corporation), S.A. (, ''flight''), is the flag carrier of Poland. Established in 1928, LOT was a founding member of IATA and remains one of List of airlines by foundat ...
;
*
Avial Aviation
;
*
United International Airlines
United International Airlines was a cargo airline with its base at Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport in Serbia.
History
United International had previously operated under the name Air Sofia and was based in Sofia, Bulgaria. On March 5, 2007, af ...
;
*
Azza Transport
Azza Transport Company (alternatively known as Azza Air Transport) was a cargo airline based in Khartoum, Sudan. It operated a cargo charter service throughout Africa and the Middle East and was planning services for Europe. Its main base was at ...
*
Badr Airlines
Badr Airlines, formerly Sarit Airlines (from 1997 to 2004), is an airline based in Khartoum, Sudan, operating cargo and passenger air services for humanitarian aid missions, and chartered VIP flights. Its main base is Khartoum International Airpor ...
*
Juba Air Cargo
Juba Air Cargo was a cargo airline based in Khartoum, Sudan. It was established in 1996 and operated domestic cargo services. Its main base was at Khartoum International Airport. In 2008 the airline ceased all operations.
History
The airline has ...
Military operators
Current
;
*
People's Air and Air Defence Force of Angola
The National Air Force of Angola or FANA ( pt, Força Aérea Nacional de Angola) is the air branch of the Armed Forces of Angola.
With an inventory of more than 300 aircraft, FANA is (on paper) one of the largest and strongest air forces of A ...
[Hoyle ''Flight International'' 8–14 December 2015, p. 32.]
;
*
Chadian Air Force
The Chadian Air Force (french: Armée de l'Air Tchadienne or AAT) is the aviation branch of the Chad National Army. It was formed in 1961 as the Chadian National Flight/Squadron ( or ENT).
The force shares a base with French forces at N'Djamen ...
;
*
Ethiopian Air Force
The Ethiopian Air Force (ETAF) () is the air service branch of the Ethiopian National Defence Force. The ETAF is tasked with protecting the national air space, providing support to ground forces, as well as assisting civil operations during natio ...
[Hoyle ''Flight International'' 8–14 December 2015, p. 37.]
;
[Hoyle ''Flight International'' 8–14 December 2015, p. 41.]
;
*
Myanmar Air Force
;
*
Nigerian Air Force – 12 An-12s in service
;
*
Russian Air Force[Hoyle ''Flight International'' 8–14 December 2015, p. 46.]
*
Russian Naval Aviation
;
*
Sudanese Air Force
The Sudanese Air Force ( ar, القوّات الجوّيّة السودانيّة, Al-Quwwat al-Jawwiya As-Sudaniya) is the air force operated by the Republic of the Sudan. As such it is part of the Sudanese Armed Forces.
History
The Sudanes ...
[Hoyle ''Flight International'' 8–14 December 2015, p. 48.]
;
*
Uzbekistan Air and Air Defence Forces[Hoyle ''Flight International'' 8–14 December 2015, p. 53.]
Former
;
*
Algerian Air Force
The Algerian Air Force (AAF) ( ar, القُوَّاتُ الجَوِّيَّةُ الجَزَائِرِيَّةُ, links=, lit=, translit=al-Quwwāt al-Ǧawwiyyah al-Ǧazāʾiriyyah, french: Forces aériennes algériennes, links=, lit=, translit ...
;
*
Armenian Air Force
;
* The
Afghan Air Force
The Air Force of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, also referred to as the Islamic Emirate Air Force and the Afghan Air Force, is the air force branch of the Armed Forces of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
The Royal Afghan Air Force was e ...
operated 12 from 1981 through 2001. One of their An-12s which defected to Pakistan is preserved at PAF Museum, Karachi
;
*
Bangladesh Air Force
The Bangladesh Air Force (BAF) ( bn, বাংলাদেশ বিমান বাহিনী, Bangladesh Biman Bahini) is the aerial warfare branch of the Bangladesh Armed Forces. The Air Force is primarily responsible for air defence of ...
operated from 1973 to 1980s, now all retired
;
*
Cote d'Ivoire Air Force
;
*
Czech Air Force
;
*
Czechoslovakian Air Force : Czechoslovakia's fleet numbering two was divided evenly between the Czech Republic and Slovak Republic upon split with Slovakia. All CzAF An-12s were phased out of active service in the 1990s.
;
*
Egyptian Air Force - 22 acquired
;
;
* The
Indian Air Force
The Indian Air Force (IAF) is the air force, air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its complement of personnel and aircraft assets ranks third amongst the air forces of the world. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct ...
inducted the first of these aircraft in 1961, when it raised No.44 Squadron "The Himalayan Geese". Six of these aircraft soon took part in airlifting army reinforcements to Ladakh during the
Sino-Indian War of 1962. The An-12 was subsequently used to raise No.25 Squadron. The An-12s were also used as heavy bombers during the
Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. All IAF An-12s were phased out of active service in the 1990s. One of them is preserved at the
Indian Air Force Museum, Palam, New Delhi.
;
*
Indonesian Air Force – Retired in 1970
;
*
Iraqi Air Force – Retired in 2003
;
*
Royal Jordanian Air Force
The Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF; ar, سلاح الجو الملكي الأردني, Silāḥ ul-Jawu al-Malakī 'al-Urdunī) is the aerial warfare branch of the Jordanian Armed Forces.
History
Early days
Jordan gained independence in 1 ...
;
*
Mongolian Air Force - Retired 12 An-12
;
*
Polish Air Force
The Polish Air Force ( pl, Siły Powietrzne, , Air Forces) is the aerial warfare branch of the Polish Armed Forces. Until July 2004 it was officially known as ''Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej'' (). In 2014 it consisted of roughly 16,425 mi ...
used two An-12B from 1966 until 1977 (crashed) and 1995
;
*
Slovak Air Force received one An-12BP registered 2209 in 1993. It was sold to Moldavia in 1999 and now serves with Angolan Air Force.
;
*
Yemeni Air Force
;
* The Soviet fleet was dispersed among many of the Soviet Union's successor states.
*
Soviet Air Force
The Soviet Air Forces ( rus, Военно-воздушные силы, r=Voyenno-vozdushnyye sily, VVS; literally "Military Air Forces") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Soviet Air Defence Forces. The Air Forces ...
*
Soviet Naval Aviation
;
*
Syrian Air Force
;
*
Tanzania Air Force Command
The Tanzania Air Force Command ( sw, Kamandi ya Jeshi la Anga) is the aerial service branch of the Tanzania People's Defence Force (TPDF). The current commander of the Tanzania Air Force Command is Major General SB MANI
, who replaced major g ...
;
turkmenistan airforce
;
*
Ukrainian Air Force
The Ukrainian Air Force ( uk, Пові́тряні си́ли Збро́йних сил Украї́ни) is the air force of Ukraine and one of the five branches of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Its headquarters are in the city of Vinnytsia. Wh ...
*
Ukrainian Naval Aviation
;
*
SFR Yugoslav Air Force
Accidents and incidents
Specifications (An-12)
See also
References
Footnotes
Sources
*
*
* .
*
*
External links
List of all An-12 aircraft used by Polish Air ForcePictures of An-12Hundreds of An-12 photosRussianplanes.net1968 plane crash victim's remains recovered
{{DEFAULTSORT:Antonov An-012
An-012
1950s Soviet cargo aircraft
1950s Soviet military transport aircraft
Four-engined tractor aircraft
Four-engined turboprop aircraft
High-wing aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1957