Aircraft Technical Data

Antonov An-12 & Shaanxi Y-8

Details
Country of Origin Ukraine and China
Type Mid sized turboprop freighter
History

The An-12 (NATO reporting name "Cub") was developed to fulfil a Soviet air force requirement for a turboprop freighter. Based on the twin turboprop An-8 which was developed for Aeroflot service, the four engine An-12 was developed in parallel with the commercial passenger An-10. The prototype An-12 flew in 1958, powered by Kuznetsov NK-4 turboprops, and was essentially a militarised An-10 with a rear loading cargo ramp. Approximately 100 An-10s were built, the type seeing service between 1959 and 1973. Series production of the An-12 in a number of mainly military variants continued until 1973, from which time it was replaced in Soviet service by the Ilyushin Il-76 (described elsewhere). The An-12BP is the basic military transport version of the Cub. Other military versions are in use as Elint and ECM platforms. The defensive rear gunner's turret is faired over on civil An-12s. Operators have included Aeroflot, Cubana, LOT Polish Airlines and Bulair for civil and quasi military work. China's Xian began redesign work of the An-12 in 1969, but after the first prototype the program was transferred to Shaanxi. A number of Chinese versions were developed, including the civil variants Y-8B and Y-8C, the latter developed with cooperation from Lockheed, similar Y-8F-200, Y-8F livestock carrier and Y-8H aerial survey model.

Powerplants An-12 - Four 2490kW (3495shp) Ivchenko AI-20K turboprops driving AV68 four blade constant speed propellers. Y-8A - Four 3170kW (4250shp) Zhuzhou WJ-6 turboprops driving four blade constant speed propellers.
Performance An-12 - Max speed 777km/h (420kt), max cruising speed 670km/h (361kt). Range with max payload 3600km (1940nm), range with full fuel load 5700km (3075nm). Y-8A - Max speed 660km/h (357kt), economical cruising speed 530km/h (286kt). Range with max fuel load 5615km (3030nm), range with max payload 1275km (690nm).
Weights An-12 - Empty 28,000kg (61,730lb), max takeoff 61,000kg (134,480lb). Y-8 - Empty equipped 35,490kg (77,237lb), max takeoff 61,000kg (134,480lb).
Dimensions An-12 - Wing span 38.00m (124ft 8in), length 33.10m (108ft 7in), height 10.53m (34ft 7in). Wing area 121.7m2 (1310sq ft). Y-8 - Same except for length 34.02m (111ft 8in), height 11.16m (36ft 8in). Wing area 121.9m2 (1311.7sq ft).
Capacity Flightcrew consisting of two pilots, a flight engineer, radio operator and navigator housed (the latter in the glazed nose). Can be arranged to accommodate 14 passengers plus freight, with military versions carrying up to 90 troops. Max payload 20,000kg (44,090lb).
Production Production totals for the An-12 are estimated at 1243 aircraft, with more than 200 having nominally seen civil service with Aeroflot, plus many other Soviet client state airlines. Shaanxi had reportedly delivered 75 by 2001 for military and civil use.
Related Links Antonov An-12 & Shaanxi Y-8

The backbone of this section is from the The International Directory of Civil Aircraft by Gerard Frawley and used with permission. To get your own copy of the book click here.