page_title: PZL TS-11 Iskra
section_title: Operational history
hierarchical_section_title: PZL TS-11 Iskra / Operational history
caption_attribution_description: English: HUD mounted in PZL TS-11F Iskra (MSPO 2008). Polski: HUD zamontowany w PZL TS-11F Iskra (MSPO 2008).
context_page_description: The PZL TS-11 Iskra is a Polish jet trainer, developed and manufactured by aircraft company PZL-Mielec. It has been used by the air forces of Poland and India. It is notable as being the first domestically-developed jet aircraft to be produced by Poland, its service for over 50 years as the principal training aircraft of the Polish Air Force, and as the oldest jet-propelled aircraft still in service in Poland.
  As a part of efforts to preserve Poland's ability to independently develop aircraft in an era of political and economic subservience to the neighbouring Soviet Union, during the 1950s, Polish engineers at the Poland's Aviation Institute commenced early work upon the design of what would become the first jet aircraft to be developed in Poland. Following the death of Joseph Stalin, work on the initiative could be performed more openly and government officials became supportive of such a venture. The fledgling design was heavily influence by the requirements specified by the Polish Air Force, who had formalised a requirement for a jet-propelled aircraft for training purposes.
context_section_description: During 1964, the TS-11 prototype broke four separate world records in its class, including a speed record, having been recorded as having attained a top speed of 839 km/h (524 mph) during one flight. From 1969 onwards, various TS-11s have been used by the Polish Air Force's aerobatics display team, which was initially called Rombik and is currently named Biało-Czerwone Iskry (Translates to English as White-and-Red Sparks). Unusually for an Eastern European aircraft of the era, the TS-11 never received a NATO reporting name (for jet trainers, a two-syllable word starting with letter M) for the type.
  During the 1960s, the Iskra competed to be selected as the standard jet trainer for the Warsaw Pact, the Soviet Union had given Poland a promise to support its aviation industry and to favour the procurement of suitable aircraft for this purpose from Polish manufacturers. However, the Iskra was not selected for this role, it had lost out to the Czechoslovak Aero L-29 Delfín, another newly-designed jet-propelled trainer aircraft; according to aviation author John C. Fredrikson, this outcome had been highly unexpected and surprising to several observers. Largely as a result of this decision, Poland became the only Warsaw Pact member to adopt the Iskra while most others adopting the rival Delfin instead.
  During 1975, an initial batch of 50 Iskra bis D trainer aircraft were exported to India, the type's sole export customer; during the 1990s, a further 26 aircraft were delivered to the Indian Air Force. During its Indian service, a total of seven aircraft were reportedly lost, killing four crew. During December 2004, the Indian Air Force officially withdrew the last of its Iskra trainers. By 1987, a total of 424 aircraft had reportedly been constructed, after which point production of the type was terminated due to a lack of demand.
  During 2002, the Polish Air Force reportedly still operated a fleet of 110 TS-11s, including 5 TS-11R reconnaissance aircraft. The Iskra became the first and so far the only Polish jet trainer to reach serial production – the programme intended to produce a successor, the PZL I-22 Iryda (later designated as the M-93 Iryda), failed for several reasons and only a few were completed during the 1990s before the program was aborted. In its place, the TS-11 has been considered for upgrades to better enable its continued service; however, during 2010, the Polish Air Force issued a tender for a new advanced jet pilot training system to eventually replace the TS-11.
  By 2013, Poland was stated to have a total of 30 (total number of school aircraft: TS-11, PZL-130) operational Iskras still in service. During 2016, Poland took delivery of its first few Alenia Aermacchi M-346 Masters, a modern trainer aircraft which, in conjunction with ground-based training equipment such as flight simulators, shall progressively take on the Polish Air Force's training needs.
caption: HUD mounted in PZL TS-11F Iskra (MSPO 2008).
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