Antonov An-70

Type (Muster)
Military transport aircraft

Country (Land)
Russia / Ukraine (Rußland /Ukraine)

Manufacturer (Hersteller)
Antonow ASTC (Aeronatical/Scientific Technical Complex)
Tupolev Str. 1
252062 Kiev
Ukraine

Phone: 38-044/443-0209
Fax: 38-044/442-7098

Production is planned at the Aviant Aviation Plant (Probeda Pr. 100/1, 252062 Kiev, Ukraine, Tel: 38-044/441-5164, Fax: 38-044/442-6213) and at the Aviacor International Joint Stock Company (Psovskaja Street 32, 443052 Samara, Russia, Tel: 007-8462/270-477, Fax. 007-8462/270-691).
For marketing puroses a Medium Transport Aircraft International Consortium was formed, embracing many suppliers as well as Antonow and the production plants.

General (Allgemeine Angaben)
Crew (Besatzung): 2 - 5
Passengers (Passagiere): 110 paratroops or up to 300 soldiers if a second deck is installed in the cabin.

Power plant (Antrieb): 4 x Progress D-27 driving Aerosila SW-27 counter-rotating propfans (eight and six blades with a diameter of 4,5 m each)
Power (Leistung): 4 x 10300 kW (14000 shp) at take-off; 4 x 5030 kW (6750 shp) during cruise at a height of 11000 m

Dimensions (Abmessungen)
Length (Länge): 40,73 m
Height (Höhe): 16,38 m
Span (Spannweite): 44,06 m

Cargo compartment height (Frachtraumhöhe): 4,1 m
Width at floor (Breite): 4 m
Cargo compartment length (Frachtraumlänge): 19,1 m (22,4 m with ramp)
Floor area (Bodenfläche): 89 sq m
Cargo compartment volume (Frachtraumvolumen): 425 cu m

Weights (Massen)
Empty weight (Leermasse): 73 tons
Max. payload (Nutzlast): 47 tons
Max. fuel (max. Kraftstoff): 38 tons
Max. take-off weigth (max. Startmasse): 135 tons

Performance (Flugleistungen)
Cruise speed (Reisegeschwindigkeit): 750 - 800 km/h
Minimum speed (Minimalgeschwindigkeit): 98 km/h
Cruising altitudes (Reiseflughöhe): 9000 - 12000 m
Required field length (Startstrecke):
   - 1800 m with max payload
   - 600- 900 m with reduced payload from unpaved runways
Range (Reichweite):
   - 1350 km with 47 tons of cargo
   - 3800 km with 35 tons of cargo
   - 5000 km with 30 tons of cargo (2600 km when taking off from 900 m runway)
   - 7400 km with 20 tons of cargo (3000 km when taking off from 600 m runway)

Cost (Preis)
Not yet fully defined, but probably from 50 million US-Dollars upwards.

Customers (Kunden)
The Government of the Russian Federation has signed a decree about the production of 164 An-70s (plus 350 options), and the Ukraine has also officially announced that it intends to buy 65 An-70.
Germany, France, Italy and Spain had received offers but in mid 2000 confirmed their selection of the competing Airbus A 400M. New hopes are for sales in China.

Competition (Konkurrenz)
Airbus Military Company A 400M
Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules

Remarks (Bemerkungen)
Development of the An-70 as a replacement for the An-12 transports of the Soviet forces began in the 80s. A model was shown for the first time in April 1992, when some technical details were also released.
The first prototype rolled out from the factory on 20 January 1994, but a short first flight did not take place before December 16 that year. This aircraft was lost on the fourth flight in February 1995 due to a collission with the An-72 chaseplane, killing all seven crewmembers on board.
A second prototype was then constructed, which took longer than hoped due to the precarious financial environment in which Antonow has to work due to the break-up to the USSR: Many of the suppliers are in Russia, which is now a foreign country.
The second prototype rolled out on December 24, 1996 in the presence of Ukrainian president Leonid Kutchma. First flight was on 24 April 1997 with test pilots Alexander Galunenko and Anatoli Andronow from the Russian air force. Public debut was at the Moscow air show in August 1997.
In October 1997, German defence minister Volker Rühe announced the intention to study whether the An-70 could be the basis for a new NATO transport aircraft. Although there was much resistance in many countries, the Medium Transport Aircraft Consortium was invited on 16. October 1998 to submit a proposal for a slightly "westernised" An-70 (An-7X) to Germany, France, Italy and Spain. This offer was submitted by the end of January 1999 and was evaluated in parallel with the A400M.
To improve the chances of the An-70 in this competition, some German supplier companies like ASL (Aircraft Services Lemwerder), Autoflug, BMW Rolls-Royce, Bodenseewerk Gerätetechnik, ESG, Liebherr Aerospace and VDO had formed the Airtruck consortium in May 1999. They were supposed to act as western partners, coordinating modifications, building parts like avionics, and performing final assembly at Bremen. In the end, Germany followed in the footsteps of its NATO allies and for commonality reasons got along with the A400M. The decision, announced in the spring of 2000, was despite favourable ratings of the An-70 from military experts in the Ministry of Defence.
Meanwhile, on 4 December 1999, the Government of the Russian Federation signed a decree about the production of 164 An-70s. On 12 October 2000, the Ukrainian cabinet followed with a similar decree relating to the production of 65 An-70 at the Aviant plant, stretching from 2002 to 2018.
In October 2000, extensive stall tests with 45 different flap/landing gear/engine power combinations were completed. A minimum speed of 98 km/h was achieved. Also, the wing proved its lift coefficient of 7.2.
At the Zhuhai airshow in November 2000, Antonow tried to market the An-70 in China. As this would likely involve co-production, talks with AVIC II are at a very early stage.
On the way to cold weather trials in Yakutsk, the sole An-70 made an emergency landing on January 27, 2001, just minutes after take-off from Omsk. All 33 occupants survived (four were injured), but the plane sustained major damage in the wheels-up touchdown in a snow field. Nevertheless, Antonow is now planning to repair the aircraft at the Polyot factory in Omsk. It hopes to have the An-70 back in the air by May/July 2001, to finish off the outstanding tests. Bevore the crash, certification was expected later this year.

Last updated March 14, 2001

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