Military transport aircraft - army air cabs

In Russia, work continues on the creation of a new heavy military transport aircraft, which should replace the proven, but already rather outdated Il-76, An-22 and An-124 Ruslan. The project received the code name PAK TA, which stands for "Promising Aviation Complex of Transport Aviation". He is currently on initial stage, designers and the military determine the appearance and characteristics of future aircraft, so there is still little information about the new car (or family of cars) and it is rather contradictory.

The new transport aircraft would come in very handy not only for the military. One of the largest Russian transport companies Volga-Dnepr in 2018 announced plans to purchase 20 American Boeing 747-8F cargo aircraft. The deal is worth billions of dollars. It is likely that Russian carriers would prefer a domestic transport aircraft, if it existed in nature.

Military transport aviation: current state

Currently, the transport aviation of the armed forces of the Russian Federation has four types of aircraft, the main difference of which is their carrying capacity. These are light transport aircraft (An-26) with a payload of 6 tons, medium (An-12, payload 20 tons), heavy (IL-76, load up to 60 tons) and super-heavy aircraft, which include An-124 "Ruslan" capable of taking on board a load of 120 tons. The total number of transport vehicles in service with the Russian army is about 250 units.

In addition to the armed forces, the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia also has its own transport aviation. It includes Il-76 and An-74.

The most massive military transport aircraft of the Russian army (about 100 units) is the Il-76 of various modifications. In 2012, a modification of the Il-76MD-90A aircraft appeared, with more economical engines and modern on-board equipment.

In the Soviet Union the main design bureau, which was engaged in the development of transport vehicles, was the Antonov Design Bureau in Kiev. The lion's share of transport aircraft, which are used today both in the army and in civilian life, was developed by the designers of this bureau. After the collapse of the USSR, difficult hours began for this aircraft manufacturing enterprise. "Antonov" and today is engaged in the development and construction aviation technology, however, the number of aircraft produced has decreased significantly.

The serial production of the pride of the Soviet aviation industry - the super-heavy An-124 Ruslan aircraft - has long been discontinued, and the resource of the machines that are used today is gradually being exhausted. In August 2018, Antonov State Enterprise banned Russian enterprises from independently carrying out maintenance of the An-124. This may lead to Russian aircraft They just won't let them out of the country.

Over the years that have passed since the collapse of the USSR, the Russian and Ukrainian authorities have repeatedly tried to revive the former cooperation in the aircraft industry, but most of these attempts have remained unfulfilled. The current situation in relations between the two countries is likely to put an end to cooperation in this area.

And what about the transport aviation of potential adversaries?

The United States has the world's largest fleet of transport aircraft, with more than 400 aircraft of several types. In many ways, this allows the American army to conduct large-scale operations many thousands of kilometers from its borders. The main transport aircraft of the US Air Force (and the entire NATO bloc) are the C-130 Hercules (capacity 19 tons) and C-17 Globemaster III (can lift up to 80 tons of cargo) and C-5 Galaxy (up to 120 tons of cargo).

At present, Europeans and Americans consider the development and mass production of transport vehicles with a carrying capacity of more than one hundred tons to be expensive and unnecessary exotic, although they do not hesitate to hire Ruslans to transport military and civilian goods.

Russian promising projects

In 2014, the plans of the Military-Industrial Commission under the Government of the Russian Federation regarding the implementation of the PAK TA program were announced. The characteristics of the new transport aircraft for the Russian army, to put it mildly, surprised.

According to the announced information, PAK TA will have supersonic speed(about 2000 km / h), a flight range of at least 7 thousand kilometers and a carrying capacity of up to 200 tons. Until 2024, the Russian armed forces should receive at least 80 such monsters. According to the developers, this air fleet will be able in the shortest possible time to deliver an armored fist of 400 (!!!) ultra-modern Armata tanks and other armored vehicles created on its basis to anywhere in the world.

PAK TA will have a deck with several levels, as well as the ability to parachute any equipment.

Such characteristics do not look too realistic: a supersonic aircraft of such a carrying capacity (and size) must consume a huge amount of fuel, only special runways. In addition, the technical difficulties that will certainly arise before the creators similar aircraft, is hardly on the shoulder of the modern Russian aircraft industry, and the cost of production and maintenance of such machines will be prohibitive.

In addition to the aforementioned project, materials about other promising transport aircraft, also called PAK TA, appear with enviable regularity in the domestic media.

First of all, we are talking about the Ilyushin machines Il-106 and PTS "Ermak".

Il-106 is a rather old Ilyushin project, the development of which began back in the mid-80s. Then a competition was announced for the creation of a new transport aircraft that would replace the Il-76. Design Bureaus of Tupolev, Ilyushin and Antonov presented their proposals, the Ilyushin project was declared the winner. The new aircraft received the designation Il-106, it was planned to finish it before 1995, and in 1997 to launch it into a series. For obvious reasons, this never happened.

According to the project, the IL-106 had a carrying capacity of up to 100 tons, was made according to the classical aerodynamic configuration and could carry cargo over a distance of 5 thousand km. The new aircraft was planned to be equipped with front and rear cargo ramps.

That new PAK TA is nothing more than a modified Il-106, Nikolay Talikov, general designer of Ilyushin, told the TASS agency in 2018. It is likely that the old Soviet design will serve as the basis for a new transport aircraft. There was information that the new machine will be equipped with the most powerful Russian civil aircraft engine NK-93. There is information that the preliminary design of the PAK TA began in 2018.

Another machine that is often talked about when PAK TA is mentioned is the Yermak PTS. This is also a project of the Ilyushin Design Bureau, the first mention of which appeared in 2013. New car will have characteristics similar to IL-106: carrying capacity up to 100 tons, normal aerodynamic scheme. Work on the creation of "Ermak" is planned to begin in 2018. Serial production of the machine is expected by 2024.

It is likely that the developments on the Il-106 aircraft will become the basis for the creation of the Yermak.

For the successful implementation of a complex project to create a modern super-heavy transport aircraft, a new corporation will be created: in addition to OAO Il, it will include EMZ im. V.M. Myasishchev and UAC - Transport Aircraft, as well as the two largest Russian aircraft factories - Ulyanovsk and Voronezh (VASO).

The idea of ​​using aviation to transport troops and military cargo, including behind enemy lines, was born and received its first practical confirmation back in the years of the First World War, and then the Civil War. In the period between the two world wars, the Soviet Union was the first in the world (in 1930) to create Airborne Forces, to work out the theory and practice of using airborne assault forces and aviation to deliver them deep behind enemy lines in major exercises and maneuvers. At the same time, the issues of transporting troops, military equipment and cargo by air under special conditions are being developed.

In March 1931, the command of the Red Army decided to create an experimental airborne detachment in the Leningrad Military District, which was attached to a heavy bomber squadron of 12 TV-1 aircraft used as military transport, as well as a corps squadron of 10 R-5 aircraft, reclassified in military transport aircraft. The day of the formation of this detachment - June 1, 1931 is considered to be the birthday of the national military transport aviation.

In the pre-war years, our aviation gained significant experience in landing troops and air transportation during exercises, maneuvers and participation in local wars and conflicts of the pre-war period. However, at that time, military transport aviation as an association of the Air Force did not yet exist. There were also no specialized military transport aircraft. To perform specific tasks in the pre-war period and during the war years, bomber aircraft TB-1, TB-3, Il-4 (DB-3), Li-2, Po-2, PR-5, etc., passenger and cargo aircraft GVF G-1, G-2, PS-84 (Li-2), PS-89, S-47 (American-made, supplied to the USSR under Lend-Lease), etc. In 1941-1945. they were used for airborne landings, transportation personnel and armament of the Ground Forces, the delivery of ammunition, food and other supplies from the rear of the country to the front, the evacuation of the wounded and sick.

In 1941 - 1945 Soviet aviation It was used for landing airborne troops behind enemy lines, transporting personnel and weapons, evacuating the wounded, supplying partisan detachments.

About the role of aviation air transport during the war years, evidenced by the fact that in total, for the performance of airborne missions, the front-line units of the Civil Air Fleet, long-range aviation, front-line aviation and special-purpose aviation divisions made over 1.7 million sorties, or 31.4% of the total number of aircraft - sorties of our aviation in those years.

At the beginning of the war, part of the military transport tasks was assigned to formations of heavy bombers TB-Z from the long-range aviation, and in the spring of 1942 the first airborne transport formation equipped with Li-2 and DC-3 aircraft was created. The VTA were mobilized and passenger aircraft PS-40, PS-41, PS-7 and PS-9. During the war, new Yak-6 and Shche-2 military transport aircraft were created and put into mass production, extremely simple and technologically advanced, meeting the conditions of wartime production to the maximum extent. The serial production of the most massive domestic military-technical cooperation of the 1940s, the La-2, also continued (in total, 1214 aircraft of this type were transferred to the Air Force during the years of the Great Patriotic War). The construction of landing gliders A-7, G-11, KTs-20 and BDP-2 was also carried out. However, during the war years, gliders were not widely used in the Soviet armed forces.

In March-April 1946, military transport aviation was created as an aviation association as part of the Airborne Forces - the Airborne Transport Aviation of the Airborne Forces. It included five aviation divisions of the Air Force on Li-2 and Po-2 aircraft. The Li-2 aircraft formed the basis of the VTA aircraft fleet until the end of the 1950s. At the same time, Il-12D (1948), Tu-4D (1955), Il-14T (1956), Mi-4 helicopters (1953) and landing gliders Ts-25 and Yak -14.

In 1955, the VTA was withdrawn from the Airborne Forces and transformed into a form of the Air Force with direct subordination to the Commander-in-Chief of the Air Force. The Command of the Military Aviation Administration of Russia is a means of the Supreme High Command and the main component of the air transport system Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, which have a strictly centralized control.

In the 1950s, special military transport aircraft An-8 and An-12 were developed, which at the end of 1958 entered service with the formations and units of the VTA. New aircraft with turboprop engines and cargo hatches in the tail section that open in flight, with a carrying capacity 3-5 times greater than that of the first generation aircraft, equipped with more advanced aiming and navigation, airborne transport equipment and means of inter-aircraft navigation, made a revolution in matters of combat use of the BTA. Military transport aviation has become all-weather, capable of parachuting formations and units of the Airborne Forces with standard equipment and weapons in combat formations, transporting heavy equipment and weapons of other branches of the Armed Forces.

In 1967, the VTA fleet was replenished with An-22 Antey aircraft, which made it possible to solve the problem of air transportability of the military equipment of the Ground Forces by 100%. In 1974, the first domestic military transport aircraft with Il-76 turbojet engines entered service with the VTA, which became the main aircraft of military transport aviation by the mid-80s. For a long time this universal machine ensured the fulfillment of all the main tasks of the VTA.

In 1987, the heavy long-range An-124 aircraft significantly expanded the capabilities of the BTA for the strategic transportation of heavy large equipment and cargo. In addition, a significant number of transport aircraft such as An-12, -72, -74, -26, Il-76, etc. are in service with transport units and subunits of other Air Force formations and branches of the Armed Forces. All VTA aircraft are equipped with modern equipment that allows air transportation and landing day and night in difficult meteorological conditions, with strong opposition from enemy air defenses. During the post-war period, military transport aviation has accumulated a wealth of experience in performing practical tasks in the interests of the state, its Armed Forces and National economy. She participated in most local wars and armed conflicts. A special place in the history of military aviation is occupied by the war in Afghanistan, where military transport aviation was the main, and often the only means of communication with the mainland. In total, the BTA crews performed almost 27,000 flights in Afghanistan and transported over 880,000 personnel and 426,000 tons of various cargoes. For the courage and flying skills shown at the same time, more than 1,700 officers, ensigns and soldiers were awarded government awards, and Colonel Zelenov E.A. and Lieutenant Colonel Kopyrkin A.S. awarded the title of Hero Russian Federation. The BTA has repeatedly proved its significant role in eliminating the consequences of earthquakes, technological disasters, in the urgent delivery of peacekeeping forces to areas of interethnic conflicts and in conducting peacekeeping operations according to the plans of the CIS and the UN.

Ever since military strategists have been able to airlift manpower and equipment from the rear directly to imaginary or real theaters of war, military transport aircraft very quickly proved their professional suitability in this area.

In a few hours, with their help, you can transfer from one point of the planet to another an entire motorized rifle unit, which is in full combat readiness. There is no alternative to such aircraft yet, and it is not expected in the near future.

There is a landing - you need a platform

Young, ambitious red commanders, who received a good military education and practice, at the turn of the thirties of the last century, convinced the leadership Soviet Union carry out a qualitative rearmament of the Red Army.

New types of troops appeared - motorized rifle, airborne. For their delivery to the theaters of military operations in the Red Army Air Force, for the first time, a squadron of heavy vehicles was created, which included TB-1 and R-5 bombers specially reconstructed for transporting people and military equipment.

After a series of military conflicts (Spain, Finland, Far East) and World War II, started with new force spin the flywheel of militarization.

The question arose about the possibility of transferring military equipment over considerable distances.

At the initiative of the creator of the Airborne Forces, General Vasily Margelov, the designers of future transport aircraft were given the task of ensuring the possibility of parachute landing of troops and equipment.

The creation of a heavy transport aviation fleet for the Armed Forces of the USSR was entrusted to the design bureau under the leadership of Oleg Antonov and Sergey Ilyushin.

Design features

Due to the fact that a large internal space is required to accommodate military equipment and manpower inside transport workers, the design of the airframe has one feature. To load equipment in the design of transport vehicles, a loading hatch is required. It can be located in front, under the cockpit, or in the rear of the fuselage.

By 1955, a range of requirements for the design of military transport vehicles had been formed:

• cantilever vysokoplan with swept wing;
• two or four turbojet engines on pylons under the wings;
• cargo hatch behind (more rarely - in front) of the fuselage;
• carrying capacity - not less than 20 tons.

In the middle of the twentieth century, transport workers were supplied with piston engines. They were replaced by more modern, turbojet ones. The number of keels is one or two. The airframe is made of high-strength sheet steel, or titanium alloys. The cross section of the fuselage of most vehicles aircraft- round.

Some of the modern heavy machines have a pear-shaped fuselage. The multi-support chassis of transport workers must ensure landing on unsuitable unpaved grounds.

Past and present of military transport aviation

As mentioned above, a series of local military conflicts, and then the Second world war, somewhat slowed down the emergence of military transport aviation. Only by the end of the forties did the leading aviation powers begin to develop projects for specialized cargo winged vehicles.

It is quite reasonable that the USSR and the USA were the first to produce large-capacity transporters.

Until 1954, the C-119 Flying Boxcar, C-47 Skytrain, and C-46 Commando were already produced in the United States. But after the war in Korea, where the main transport load fell on the only Convair XC-99 with a carrying capacity of 45 tons, it became obvious that it was obsolete. A full-fledged truck was needed to transport airborne brigades and light assault armored vehicles to the conflict site.

This aircraft was the Lockheed C-130 Hercules. Since 1954, vehicles of this brand have taken part in 22 US military operations around the world. Since 1993, a more payload modification, the C130-J30 Super Hercules, has been included in the US Air Force.

Following the S-130, the An-12 specialized military transport aircraft was put into service with the USSR Air Force. It had the same carrying capacity as the S-130, but significantly lost to the "American" in terms of usable volume (90 m3 versus 124 m3). The new aircraft is the unification of the design documentation for the An-10. Over fifteen years, more than 1.5 thousand An-12 units were produced.

Design Bureau of Oleg Antonov became the absolute leader in the number of various modifications of military transport vehicles for the Air Force. The best planes military transport aviation designed in Kyiv. For example, thanks to the wide (2.4 m) cargo hatch, the An-26 was able to carry bulky cargo. An-74 was designed for operation in the Far North. The unique chassis design allows take-off and landing on runways of any complexity.

The record holder of the seventies, the largest turboprop aircraft An-22 "Antey" is a high-wing aircraft with four NK-12MA engines on unswept wings.

For the first time, a two-keel tail assembly was tested on it, later used in the construction of the An-225. The payload is over 60 tons.

On the modification under the An-122 coding, the designers achieved an outstanding, for that time, carrying capacity - 120 tons. Since the mid-seventies, the production of turboprop machines began to be curtailed. The time has come for more modern turbojet aircraft.

Giants of the twentieth century

From 1977 to the present, the flagship of the military transport aviation of the USSR, and later the Russian Federation, has been the development of the Design Bureau. S.V. Ilyushin - Il-76 heavy transport turbojet aircraft. Since the late seventies, the Il-76 has been the flagship of the Russian airborne troops.

The aircraft showed its excellent flight qualities in the Afghan war and the Chechen conflict. With its help, the transfer and landing of military equipment and manpower is carried out.

The demand of time forced the design bureau to them. S.V. Ilyushin to carry out a phased deep modernization of the aircraft - first to the Il-76MD90-A, a little later - to the Il-476. The changes affected mainly the power plant. But if the MD90 has been successfully flying for a long time, then the IL-476 is the future of Russian transport aviation.

In the United States, the mid-sixties were marked by a confrontation between Boeing and Lockheed-Martin for the right to create a heavy military transport aircraft.

And although Lockheed won the tender, the Boeing bosses did not lose out either.

The result of the struggle between the designers of the two firms was the creation of excellent machines - the medium-duty military transport C-141 Starlifter (payload weight - 27.2 tons), and the cargo-passenger Boeing 747.

The latest modification of the Boeing - 747-8F is now successfully used by the US Department of Defense for the transfer a large number military personnel and cargo.

One of the most popular winged transport aircraft is the C-5A Galaxy. The machine is capable of carrying in its womb 119 tons of payload supplied inside the fuselage through the front cargo hatch. Until 1982, the C-5 was the largest military aircraft, transporting US military supplies.

With a flight range of more than 10,000 kilometers, the S-5 can easily transfer an entire military formation from one continent to another in one day - up to 400 soldiers, tanks, combat vehicles, artillery installations, helicopters and other equipment. We add that the C-5A is the fastest among military transport aircraft, and by and large - the best military aircraft in the world among transport workers.

The biggest of the biggest

The An-124 Ruslan took the palm for the title of super giant from the C-5. With payload characteristics similar to those of the C-5, it has a unique 1,050 m3 cargo hold.

Following him, in 1988, a giant plane took off into the sky, which for thirty years occupied the first line in the list of the largest aircraft.

The An-225 "Mriya" is a project modified on the basis of the An-124 for transporting bulky cargo weighing up to 250 tons. For this, the cargo hatch was moved from the tail to the nose of the aircraft, and the number of landing gear legs was increased. To increase the stability of the aircraft, a two-fin tail was used.

This machine set an absolute load capacity record - 253.8 tons. The only An-225 in operation today hovered between Kiev and Beijing. The real owners of the rights to Mriya are known only to a very narrow circle of people. Another machine designed to transport the modules of the Energia-Buran complex is the VM-T project of Viktor Myasishchev Design Bureau. For seven years (1982-1989) two cars made more than 150 flights to Baikonur.

To date, the range of combat aircraft of the Russian military transport purpose, which are in actual operation in the countries of the NATO bloc and in Russia, is limited to the above models. The Chinese Air Force transports are mostly licensed copies of already flying giants. For comparison, here are the main operational characteristics of the best military transport aircraft in the world:

Comparative characteristics of the main indicators of military transport aircraft

The number of army military transport aircraft of the VTA RF as of the beginning of 2017 is about three hundred units. If it is known for certain how many military transport aircraft Russia has, the United States is not eager to fully disclose data on the number of transport aircraft in service. First of all, because of the wide spread of their "geopolitical interests" around the world.

The future of transport aviation

Promising scientific developments make it possible to imagine what the military aircraft of the future, designed to transport cargo, will be like. The ambitious Russian projects Il-112 and Il-106 are to replace Russia's most popular military aircraft An-22, An-26 and Il-76.

The heavy Il-106 is the basis for the development of a promising aviation complex for transport aviation (PAK TA). Its characteristics include a rather large (up to 100 tons) carrying capacity. Futuristic in its design, the Ermak PTS (the second name of the project) looks like a picture from a science fiction movie.

The design idea in the USA does not stand still. In 2017, the world's largest Stratolaunch aircraft was rolled out at the Mojave test site. It is unusual in that it has two fuselages united by a central beam. The wingspan of a six-engine machine is 117 m, take-off weight is 590 tons.

However, the prospects for operation and the scope of the apparatus of this design cause slight bewilderment. Suspension of the space system on the inter-wing space between the fuselages is a very dangerous undertaking.

For almost half a century, the designers of military transport vehicles have followed the path of increasing the flight resources of existing models through their constant modernization.

Over the years, we have seen how wonderful military transport aircraft are, these good-natured heavy-duty giants. Their takeoffs, landings, flight - a breathtaking sight. Now, apparently, the time has come for big changes, the result of which should be the emergence of completely new types of transport aircraft.

In 1935, the state commission, headed by A. N. Tupolev, through the Amtorg Trading Corporation acquired Douglas DC-2 aircraft in the USA. After comprehensive tests that were carried out by TsAGI, on March 21, 1936, the Council of Labor and Defense decided to purchase a license for the production of this machine in the USSR. In the summer of 1936, a special commission arrived in the United States, which was personally led by the head of TsAGI N. M. Kharlamov. The commission chose to purchase a more advanced version of the aircraft - DC-3. On June 17, the parties signed a joint agreement with Douglas for a total amount of 340,000 rubles and for a period of 3 years. The subject of this agreement was not only the acquisition of a license and a finished copy, but also the internship of Soviet specialists at the American enterprises of Douglas. Within the framework of this agreement, in 1937-1938, the USSR acquired about 18 more DC-3 aircraft from the USA.

In parallel with the acquisition of DC-3 aircraft, the USSR also bought a license to assemble its DC-3-196 modification, which was mastered at Plant No. V.P. Chkalov in Khimki near Moscow, the aircraft was named PS-84 (Passenger aircraft of plant No. 84). Starting from the middle of 1938, domestic enterprises began the introduction and mass production this aircraft. Since September 1942, he acquired his middle name Li-2, named after the chief engineer of the plant, Boris Pavlovich Lisunov, who led the project for its implementation.

Military transport aircraft Li-2

In April 1941, the plant in Khimki produced its 100th PS-84 aircraft, by the beginning of World War II Aeroflot had 72 PS-84 aircraft at its disposal, 49 more aircraft were in the Air Force, and 5 were in the Navy. Initially, the crew of the passenger version of the car consisted of 5 people: 2 pilots, a flight mechanic, a radio operator and a stewardess, who was called a barmaid. Immediately after the start of the war, all PS-84s were assembled into special air groups of the Civil Air Fleet, which were engaged in supporting combat operations. On June 25, they already had 68 PS-84s and DC-3s. Since the beginning of the war, the plant for the production of these aircraft was evacuated to Tashkent, where after 1 month it restored the production of aircraft by 30%, producing mainly its military transport version. From July 1941, all "Douglases" began to receive defensive weapons. In total, during the war years, the Tashkent Aviation Plant produced 2258 Li-2 aircraft.

The design of the aircraft was all-metal with fabric covering of the ailerons and rudders. When adapting its production, it was successfully solved quite difficult task- conversion to metric measures of all sizes and thicknesses of the materials used, with a thorough recalculation of all structural elements according to Soviet strength standards, bringing them to GOSTs. After carrying out this work, the weight of the aircraft increased slightly, but safety was improved. The transfer of dimensions from inches to millimeters and the processing of drawings in relation to domestic technology was led by V. M. Myasishchev. The civilian version of the aircraft had 21 passenger seat. When adapting passenger compartment and the cab were somewhat reconfigured, suspension struts designed for heavy loads were designed, the wheels were replaced with domestic ones.

Power point the aircraft included 2 M-62IR engines, which had a take-off power of 1000 hp. every. The maximum power of the motors at an altitude of 1500 m was 840 hp. This engine could be called the "cousin" of the American motor Wright "Cyclone" SGR-1820-G2. Both of these motors were a product of improving the original SR-1820-F3, which was produced by the domestic industry under the brand name M-25. The aircraft used variable-pitch propellers of the VISH-21 type.

The defensive armament of the aircraft consisted of 4 ShKAS machine guns, one of them was installed motionless in the nose fairing in front of the cockpit, one in the turret turret (later it was replaced by a 12.7-mm UBT machine gun) and one each on the left and right on pivot installations in the side hatches of the aircraft. The side gunner was in charge of servicing the upper machine gun mount, the pivot machine guns were serviced by a radio operator and flight engineer, who, in the event of an air threat, moved to the tail of the aircraft. The commander of the ship himself fired from a course machine gun. The installed weapons "ate" on different heights up to 14-17 km/h from top speed with the same takeoff weight. The flight range also fell to 2350 km. and the rate of climb worsened - to a height of 5 km. the car climbed 10 minutes longer. The armored backs of the crew seats also became mandatory.

It was not difficult to convert the aircraft into a sanitary variant; for this purpose, the flight mechanic had enough 10 minutes. In this case, 18 stretchers were installed in the cargo compartment in 3 tiers - 9 from each side. Six stretchers from the first tier were located directly on the floor and were fastened to it with leather straps. Stretchers of the second tier were mounted on collapsible brackets, and the third tier with folding brackets and suspension brackets embedded in the ceiling. In addition, folding seats could accommodate 2 more lightly wounded and 1 medical worker.

Since the summer of 1942, a bomber version of the aircraft was also produced. In this case, 1000 kg holders were installed under the center section. bombs, the maximum fuel supply increased to 3,100 liters, and takeoff weight aircraft reached 11,500 kg, with a pre-war norm of 10,900 kg. A load of 1 ton of bombs ensured the maximum flight range, working on the "short arm" the aircraft could take much more bombs, but there was nowhere to hang them. In such cases, the crews often took small bombs directly into the fuselage, from where they dropped them through the door with their hands. The main bomb racks of the aircraft were equipped with standard electric bomb releases, as well as emergency mechanical ones. Aiming was carried out using a primitive sight, which was installed at the right window of the cockpit. To look into it, you had to stick your head out the window.

Dimensions: wingspan - 19.66 m, length - 29.98 m, tail height - 5.17 m.
Wing area - 91.7 square meters. m.
The takeoff weight of the aircraft is 10,900 kg.
Engine type - 2 M-62IR, power of each 1000 hp.
Maximum speed - 320 km / h.
Practical flight range: 2500 km.

Service ceiling: 5,600 m.
Crew - 4 people.
Payload: up to 27 paratroopers or 18 stretchers or up to 2000 kg. cargo.

Shche-2 transport aircraft

By the beginning of World War II, the TB-3 (G-2) airships, as well as the light multi-purpose U-2 (Po-2) airships, formed the basis of the transport aviation of the Red Army Air Force. At the same time, these aircraft differed by an order of magnitude in their carrying capacity - the TB-3 could carry from 2,000 to 4,000 kg of cargo, while the U-2 did not exceed 400 kg. At the same time, a light and economical aircraft that could be used to transport medium-weight cargo (up to 1,200 kg) simply did not exist. That is why there was a need to design a medium-duty aircraft that would serve parts of the army in the field.

A group of engineers led by Alexei Yakovlevich Shcherbakov took up the solution of the problem on their own initiative. In 1941, Shcherbakov was the director and at the same time the chief designer of an aircraft repair plant, which not only repaired aircraft, but also launched the production of special wing containers for the transport of small loads, which were installed on R-5 and U-2 aircraft, as well as fighter planes. Prior to this, Shcherbakov worked for many years in the design bureau, it was he who was the first in the USSR to create pressurized cabins that were tested on serial machines I-15, I-15bis, I-153, La-5, MiG-1, Yak-7B, as well as a large series of experimental machines.

The TS-1 was a strut-braced monoplane, the construction of which was mainly wooden. The location of the wing was the top. The aircraft had a two-fin tail and a two-wheeled non-retractable landing gear. On the prototype, there were 2 M-11D engines with a power of 115 hp each. TS-1 was designed to transport any aircraft engines (star and in-line), wings, aircraft components and other military equipment, small anti-tank guns, as well as other oversized cargo weighing up to 1 ton. At the same time, the aircraft could land on sites of limited size. This type transportation was very important in the conditions of warfare, when urgent repairs of combat aircraft had to be carried out directly at airfields in the field.

In August 1943, flight tests of the new aircraft were completed, and the People's Commissariat of the Aviation Industry recommended it for serial production under the designation Shche-2. The release began in October, and the lead aircraft of the series was ready by the summer of 1944; a total of 567 copies of this aircraft were built. The Shche-2 transporter was accessible and easy to operate even for semi-skilled personnel. At the same time, the power of two engines of 115 hp each. was clearly not enough to transport 1 ton of cargo. In essence, the Sche-2 was a motor glider with the unrealized capabilities of a full-fledged aircraft. The situation could be corrected by aircraft engines with a power of 150-200 hp, but such engines were not mass-produced in the USSR.

Tactical and technical characteristics of Sche-2:

Dimensions: wingspan - 20.48 m, length - 14.27 m, height - 3.8 m.
Wing area - 63.9 square meters. m.
The takeoff weight of the aircraft is 3,400 kg.
Engine type - 2 M-11D, power of each 115 hp.
Maximum speed - 160 km / h.
Practical flight range: 850 km.
Service ceiling: 2,400 m.
Crew - 2 people.
Payload: up to 16 people or 9 paratroopers or 9 stretchers or 1000 kg. cargo.

Information sources:
-http://www.airpages.ru/ru/li2.shtml
-http://www.airwar.ru/enc/cww2/li2.html
-http://www.luxavia.ru/item/105
-http://ru.wikipedia.org

Links to previous parts of the museum visit are below.



Il-12T - 10 red - Russia (USSR) - VVS /1948/

The operator was the USSR Air Force. It was operated by the Air Force until January 1959. February 17, 1959 made the last flight to Monino (pilot Saprykin) and transferred to the Air Force Museum. IL-12 (according to NATO codification: Coach - “Coach”) is a passenger (transport) aircraft for short and medium-haul airlines. By design - all-metal twin-engine low-wing traditional layout with piston engines and tricycle landing gear with a nose wheel. The first flight was made on August 15, 1945 under the command of test pilot Vladimir Kokkinaki. IL-12 replaced Li-2 and DC-3 on the USSR airlines. Later, a more advanced Il-14 was created on its basis.

Il-76M - CCCP-86047 - Russia (USSR) - VVS /1979/

Delivered from the factory to VTAP 196 (Tartu). It stood in Monino as a teaching aid, after it was transferred to the museum. There were several aviation incidents with the aircraft:
In 1979: A month later, in a night flight in a circle of a b / t on takeoff, he pressed the button for retracting the landing gear until the aircraft lifted off the runway. There were sparks from the wheels. The crew did not understand what it was. After landing, one wheel burst, the remaining 15 pneumatics were cut down to the last cord, but did not burst. Technicians enthusiastically lifted the plane onto the goats and changed the pneumatics with the whole regiment (they were just retraining, because the matter was new). Then they handed over the board to Kėdainiai.
In 1985, the board was put on the belly in Kazlu-Ruda (they forgot to release the landing gear). They lifted the side onto the goats, replaced the pneumatics and landing gear doors, patched up the cabin, Then they handed over the side to Panevezys.
In 1987, concentrating on exiting exactly on the runway, the pilot lost altitude and, with a drawdown, walked along the tops of a small grove that grew near the airfield. Seeing the trees rushing towards him, the pilot jerked up the speed, the engines roared, but the heavy car had already crashed into the thicket with its belly. Having disheveled the trees, the plane went up. Who was the pilot and for what reason there was a drawdown. The landing gear doors were severely damaged, after the incident the plane was landed not on the base (Panevėžys) but in Kėdainiai, the landing gear was released in an emergency.
Il-76 (according to NATO codification: Candid - English sincere, direct) is a Soviet and Russian heavy military transport aircraft developed by the Ilyushin Design Bureau. Serially produced in Uzbekistan, at the Tashkent Aviation Production Association named after V.P. Chkalov. Production was transferred to Ulyanovsk Aviastar-SP.

An-8 - 10 green - Russia (USSR) - VVS /1959/
Had side number 10 red. Flight time 3350 hours, made 3450 flights. May 20, 1976 transferred to the Air Force Museum in Monino. Behind Carcass


An-8 (according to NATO codification: Camp - “Camp”) is a military transport aircraft developed in the OKB. O. K. Antonova. It is intended for the transportation of various cargoes, landing and parachute landing of the Airborne Forces with the equipment and weapons attached to them, as well as for the transportation of the wounded.

An-12 - 04 red - Russia (USSR) - VVS /1958/

The operator was the USSR Air Force. Had tail number 04 blue. It passed factory tests until September 13, 1958 (the flight time during testing was 32 hours 44 minutes). Transferred to the USSR Air Force. Operated in the USSR Air Force until January 1964. Flight time 818 hours, made 562 flights. On January 10, 1964, he was transferred to the training and airfield base of the VVIA named after. N. E. Zhukovsky, where it was used as a teaching aid. July 17, 1973 transferred to the Air Force Museum in Monino. The tail number 04 is red. An-12 (product "T", according to NATO codification: Cub - "Novichok") - Soviet military transport aircraft.

An-22 - CCCP-09334 - Russia (USSR) - VVS /1972/

Assigned to Ivanovo (2 AE 81 VTAP). Aircraft leader. On March 13, 1987, in the absence of runway illumination, he made a rough landing at the Addis Ababa airport. It was restored, but further operation was recognized as inappropriate. Transferred to the Air Force Museum in Monino in 1987.
An-22 "Antey" ("product 100", according to NATO codification: Cock - "Rooster") - Soviet heavy turboprop transport aircraft. The first Soviet wide-body aircraft, the world's largest turboprop aircraft. The first flight was made in 1965. Serially produced 68 copies, including two for strength testing.