A marvel of Soviet engineering: 4 aircraft that are still flying

In the 20th century, civil aviation developed rapidly in the Soviet Union. The air fleet evolved from a wooden biplane to a supersonic civil aircraft. Some aircraft built by Soviet engineers are still in operation in Russia and abroad.

Il-62

The first Soviet turbojet long-range passenger aircraft was developed at the Ilyushin Design Bureau in 1960. The first flight of the Il-2 took place in January 1963. The plane served as the "board number 1" for the leadership of the USSR.

Il-62 characteristics:

Wingspan — 43.2 m
Aircraft length — 53.12 m
Wing sweep angle — 32.5°
Engine — NK-8-4
Maximum flight range — 10,000 km
Cruising speed — up to 850 km/h
Passenger capacity — 168 people

An-2

The Soviet light multi-purpose aircraft was developed by engineers of OKB-153 under the leadership of aircraft designer Oleg Antonov. Biplane with a guy-wire wing (guy-wire — a thin cable pulled in any direction to connect parts of the structure in a certain position). The An-2 made its first flight in 1947.

An-2 characteristics:

Wingspan of the upper wing — 18.7 m
Aircraft length — 12.4 m
Powerplant — ASH-62IR
Powerplant power — 1000 hp
Cruising speed — 236 km/h
Flight range — 990 km
Passenger capacity — 12 people

Yak-40

The world's first three-engine turbojet short-haul passenger aircraft, developed in 1964 at the Yakovlev Design Bureau. The first flight of the Yak-40 took place in 1966. The plane replaced the outdated Il-12, Il-14.

Yak-40 characteristics:

Length — 20.36 m
Wingspan — 25 m
Maximum take-off weight — 17,200 kg
Powerplant — TRDD AI-25
Auxiliary power unit — AI-9 GTD
Cruising speed — 510 km/h
Flight range with load — 820 km
Passenger capacity — up to 40 people

Tu-204

Soviet medium-range narrow-body passenger aircraft, developed at the Tupolev Design Bureau to replace the Tu-154. The first flight of the Tu-204 took place in 1989. Modifications of the aircraft are produced at factories in Ulyanovsk and Kazan.