Antonov An-12

The Antonov An-12 (Russian: Антонов Ан-12; NATO reporting name: Cub) is a four-engined turboprop transport aircraft designed in the Soviet Union. It is the military version of the Antonov An-10 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 aircraft were 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, Siberia. 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 (44,000 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, Antonov Aeronautical Scientific Technical Complex (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. 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, though this reputation wasn't well-known in the early stages of the war. To this regard, the aircraft was nicknamed "Black Tulip" (Russian: «Чёрный тюльпан»); the origin of the nickname is unclear. There are quite a few monuments in Russia named Black Tulip to commemorate those killed during the Afghan War. Russia During the Russian invasion of Ukraine Russia lost one An-12 on 1 June 2025 due to Ukraine's Operation Spider's Web. 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 American 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. Civil operators On 8 January 2009, following numerous incidents involving the An-12 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) issued a temporary ban of the An-12 from UAE airspace. On 1 March 2010, the ban was made permanent after the An-12 failed a GCAA airworthiness evaluation. Current Armenia Air Armenia Belarus Ruby Star Airways Mexico Air One (Mexico) Russia ATRAN Cargo Airlines SAT Airlines Thailand Air People International Ukraine Aerovis Airlines Antonov Airlines Cavok Air Meridian Motor Sich Airlines Ukraine Air Alliance Volare Airlines United States SRX Former Angola Alada Bulgaria Balkan Bulgarian Airlines Air Sofia China CAAC Airlines; see also Shaanxi Y-8 Egypt Egyptair Indonesia Asia Cargo Airlines Air Mark France Darta Guinea Air Guinee Ghana Ghana Airways – The sole An-12 was delivered in October 1961. Withdrawn from use in 1962 and returned to the Soviet Union in 1963. Iraq Iraqi Airways Nigeria Fresh Air Philippines Interisland Airlines Poland LOT Polish Airlines Russia Avial Aviation Serbia United International Airlines Sudan Azza Transport Badr Airlines Juba Air Cargo Military operators Current Angola People's Air and Air Defence Force of Angola Chad Chadian Air Force Ethiopia Ethiopian Air Force Kazakhstan Kazakh Air Defense Forces Myanmar Myanmar Air Force Nigeria Nigerian Air Force – 12 An-12s in service Russia Russian Aerospace Forces Russian Naval Aviation Sudan Sudanese Air Force Uzbekistan Uzbekistan Air and Air Defence Forces Yemen Yemeni Air Force Former Algeria Algerian Air Force Armenia Armenian Air Force Afghanistan The Afghan Air Force operated 12 from 1981 through 2001. One of their An-12s which defected to Pakistan is preserved at PAF Museum, Karachi Bangladesh Bangladesh Air Force operated from 1973 to 1980s, now all retired Ivory Coast Cote d'Ivoire Air Force Czech Republic Czech Air Force Czechoslovakia Czechoslovak 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. Egypt Egyptian Air Force - 22 acquired Georgia India The Indian Air Force 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. Indonesia Indonesian Air Force – Retired in 1970 Iraq Iraqi Air Force – Retired in 2003 Jordan Royal Jordanian Air Force Mongolia Mongolian Air Force - Retired 12 An-12 Poland Polish Air Force used two An-12B from 1966 until 1977 (crashed) and 1995 Slovakia 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. South Yemen Yemeni Air Force Soviet Union The Soviet fleet was dispersed among many of the Soviet Union's successor states. Soviet Air Force Soviet Naval Aviation Syria Syrian Air Force Tanzania Tanzania Air Force Command Turkmenistan Turkmenistan Air Forces Ukraine Ukrainian Air Force Ukrainian Naval Aviation Yugoslavia SFR Yugoslav Air Force Accidents and incidents Specifications (An-12) Data from Global Aircraft, Airliners.netGeneral characteristics Crew: 5 (two pilots, flight engineer, navigator, radio operator) Capacity: 20,000 kg (44,000 lb) payload / 60 paratroopers / 2x BMD-1 armoured vehicles Length: 33.1 m (108 ft 7 in) Wingspan: 38 m (124 ft 8 in) Height: 10.53 m (34 ft 7 in) Wing area: 121.7 m2 (1,310 sq ft) Empty weight: 28,000 kg (61,729 lb) Max takeoff weight: 61,000 kg (134,482 lb) Powerplant: 4 × Ivchenko AI-20L or AI-20M turboprop engines, 3,000 kW (4,000 shp) each equivalent Propellers: 4-bladed constant-speed reversible-pitch propellers Performance Maximum speed: 660 km/h (410 mph, 360 kn) Cruise speed: 570 km/h (350 mph, 310 kn) Range: 5,700 km (3,500 mi, 3,100 nmi) with maximum fuel 3,600 km (2,200 mi; 1,900 nmi) with maximum payload Service ceiling: 10,200 m (33,500 ft) Rate of climb: 10.2 m/s (2,010 ft/min) Armament Guns: 2× 23 mm (0.906 in) Nudelman-Rikhter NR-23 cannons in a tail turret (some aircraft) See also Military transport aircraft Related development Antonov An-22 Shaanxi Y-8 Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era Lockheed C-130 Hercules Transall C.160 Related lists List of military aircraft of the Soviet Union and the CIS References Footnotes Sources Cooper, Tom (2017). Hot Skies Over Yemen, Volume 1: Aerial Warfare Over the South Arabian Peninsula, 1962-1994. Solihull, UK: Helion & Company Publishing. ISBN 978-1-912174-23-2. Cooper, Tom; Weinert, Peter; Hinz, Fabian; Lepko, Mark (2011). African MiGs, Volume 2: Madagascar to Zimbabwe. Houston: Harpia Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9825539-8-5. Endres, Günter G. (1979). World Airline Fleets 1979. Hounslow, UK: Airline Publications and Sales Ltd. ISBN 978-0-905117-53-9.. Hoyle, Craig (8–14 December 2015). "World Air Forces Directory". Flight International. Vol. 188, no. 5517. pp. 26–53. ISSN 0015-3710. "Pentagon Over the Islands: The Thirty-Year History of Indonesian Military Aviation". Air Enthusiast Quarterly (2): 154–162. n.d. ISSN 0143-5450. Further reading Gordon Y.-Komissarov D., Antonov An-12 "Cub", Aviation Series, Midland Publishing/Crowood Press, 2004 External links