Category An Illustrated History of the World’s Largest Airline

The Smallest Jetliner

The Soviet industry had, by the late 1960s, acquired a reputa­tion — deserved, no doubt, in some cases — of copying western aircraft designs. But one aircraft owed nothing to western influ­ence. The Yakovlev Yak-40 was a small jet, seating up to 32 passengers, for use on feeder routes which did not generate enough traffic to justify even the 40-48-seat Antonov An-24.

The distinguishing feature of the Yak-40 was its tri-jet engine configuration, with two in fuselage-mounted pods, and one fared into the vertical stabilizer, all at the rear, like the engines in the Trident, the Boeing 727, or the Tupolev Tu – 154, but on a much smaller scale. The normal entrance was by a ventral stair. A. S. Yakovlev, who had produced the Yak-9 and Yak-3 fighter aircraft that did such an outstanding job in the Great Patriotic War, thus made his debut in the commercial arena with a unique formula. Not only that, but in so doing, and allowing for certain shortcomings such as a shortage of baggage space (only one overhead rack, as a rule, on the right side; and no under-floor hold), Yakovlev pro­duced a small jet airliner for successful inter-city use; and this accomplishment has not been matched in the West.

The Yak-40 made its first flight on 21 October 1966 and entered service with Aeroflot on 30 September 1968. More than 1,010 were built at the Saratov production line and 130 were exported to 17 countries.

A. S. Yakovlev

Yakovlev pro­duced a mini-air­liner that has no equivalent in the west, (courtesy: Von Hardesty)

The Smallest Turboprop

Not long after the introduction of what may be described as the world’s first mini-airliner, another small aircraft, designed for a similar air transport role, appeared on the scene. This was the 15-seat Let L410 (later produced as a 19-seater), sometimes known as the Turbolet, and was produced by the Let Narodni Podnik (Let National Corporation) in Czechoslovakia. The pre-war Czech aircraft industry had been obliterated by the Nazi occupation, but it pulled itself togeth­er again after the War, and by the late 1960s, was ready with innovative designs. The small turboprop seemed to be just

right for Aeroflot as a replacement for the aging Antonov An-2.In the event, it did not completely replace, but was a worthy complement to the ‘Annuchik’ in its versatility in using grass or gravel strips.

Like the Yak-40, the L410’s baggage hold is at the back, but access is through a hydraulically actuated door in the left rear fuselage. Unlike the small tri-jet, however, there are no overhead baggage racks in the three-abreast configuration. A total of 902 of the Czech mini-airliners were exported to the Soviet Union.

Productivity

During the peak period of chemical spraying, more than

3,0 aircraft are put to use, although the number is declining as ecological concerns have reduced the activity in some areas. Ninety-five percent of the work is performed by the Antonov An-2, for which, in this application, the much – used word ‘workhorse’ is perfectly apt. The remainder, special­ized work in small gardens, vineyards, and small fields, is done by helicopters.

The productivity is impressive. In pollination work, for example, the An-2s can cover 400 times as much area as by manual applications; and for crop-spraying, the factors in at least 600- fold.

Doubie Duty

To fly the crop-sprayers, hour after hour, day after day, is demanding on the pilots, who must exercise strict control and discipline, with no margin for error. The An-2s fly at an altitude of three meters (10ft), and each crew makes between 30 and 50 flights per day, each flight lasting between four and 15 minutes.

Seventy percent of Aeroflot captains start flying in agricul­tural aviation, working their way up from the grass roots — almost literally. Many an Ilyushin 11-86 or 11-62 captain will look back on his agricultural apprenticeship with a certain affection, which is also directed at the veteran biplane, the Annachik, or, as it is sometimes called, by the name that it inherited from the Polikarpov U-2, the Kukuruzhnik.