Antonov An-24 Explained

The Antonov An-24 (Russian/Ukrainian: Антонов Ан-24) (NATO reporting name: Coke) is a 44-seat twin turboprop transport/passenger aircraft designed in 1957 in the Soviet Union by the Antonov Design Bureau and manufactured by Kyiv, Irkutsk and Ulan-Ude Aviation Factories.

Design and development

First flown in 1959, the An-24 was produced in some 1,000 units of various versions; in 2023 there are 93 still in service worldwide, mostly in the Commonwealth of Independent States and Africa.[1]

It was designed to replace the veteran piston Ilyushin Il-14 transport on short to medium haul trips, optimised for operating from rough strips and unprepared airports in remote locations. The high-wing layout protects engines and blades from debris, the power-to-weight ratio is higher than that of many comparable aircraft and the machine is rugged, requiring minimal ground support equipment.

Due to its rugged airframe and good performance, the An-24 was adapted to perform many secondary missions such as ice reconnaissance and engine/propeller test-bed, as well as further development to produce the An-26 tactical transport, An-30 photo-mapping/survey aircraft and An-32 tactical transport with more powerful engines. Various projects were envisaged such as a four jet short/medium haul airliner and various iterations of powerplant.

The main production line was at the Kyiv-Svyatoshino (later renamed "Aviant") aircraft production plant which built 985, with 180 built at Ulan Ude and a further 197 An-24T tactical transport/freighters at Irkutsk. Production in the USSR was shut down by 1978.

Production continues at China's Xi'an Aircraft Industrial Corporation which makes licensed, reverse-engineered and redesigned aircraft as the Xian Y-7, and its derivatives. Manufacture of the Y-7, in civil form, has now been supplanted by the MA60 derivative with western engines and avionics, to improve performance and economy, and widen the export appeal.

The aircraft introduced in Mongolia was initially planned to be used by the air force, but was eventually handed over to a private airline company for use, and some were later used in research facilities. Since then, as the aircraft has deteriorated, it has been stored in Ulaanbaatar.[2]

Total production

Variants

An-24
  • Designation for prototypes. Four built.
    An-24A
  • (first use) Proposed production version powered by Kuznetsov NK-4 turboprops, discontinued when the NK-4 was cancelled.
    An-24A
  • (second use) Production 50-seat airliners built at Kyiv with the APU exhaust moved to the tip of the starboard nacelle.
    An-24ALK (Avtomatizeerovannaya [sistema] Lyotnovo Kontrolya – automatic flight check system)
  • Several An-24s were converted for navaids calibration tasks, with one An-24LR 'Toros' re-designated An-24ALK after conversion. This aircraft was fitted with a photo-theodolite and powerful light sources for the optical sensors.
    An-24AT
  • A 1962 project for a Tactical transport with rear loading ramp and powered by Isotov TV2-117DS coupled turboprops.
    An-24AT-RD (RD – Reaktivnyye Dvigateli – jet engines)
  • The An-24AT tactical transport project with two turbojet boosters pod-mounted under the outer wings and a wider loading ramp.
    An-24AT-U (Uskoriteli – boosters)
  • A projected Tactical transport from 1966 with three or five PRD-63 (Porokhovoy Raketnyy Dvigatel – gunpowder rocket engine) JATO bottles, wider cargo ramp and provision for up to three brake parachutes.
    An-24B
  • The second 50-seat airliner version with one extra window each side, single-slotted flaps replacing the double-slotted flaps and extended chord of the centre-section to compensate for the lower performance flaps. Some aircraft were delivered with four extra fuel bladders in the wing centre-section.
    An-24D
  • A projected long-range airliner version of the An-24B with a single RU-19 booster jet engine in the starboard nacelle, stretched fuselage with seating for 60, strengthened structure and increased fuel capacity.
    An-24LL (Letyushchaya Laboratoriya – flying laboratory)
  • The generic suffix LL can be applied to any test-bed, but in the An-24's case seems to refer to a single aircraft equipped for metrology (science of measurement), to be used for checking the airworthiness of production aircraft.
    An-24LP (LesoPozharnyy – forest fire fighter)
  • Three An-24RV aircraft converted into fire bombers/cloud seeders by installing a tank in the cabin, optical smoke and flame detectors, provision for a thermal imager, racks for carrying flare dispensers and the ability to carry firefighters for para-dropping.
    An-24LR 'Toros' (Ice Hummock)(Ledovyy Razvedchik – ice reconnaissance)
  • At least two An-24Bs converted to carry the 'Toros' SLAR (sideways looking airborne radar) either side of the lower fuselage, for ice reconnaissance, guiding icebreakers, convoys and other shipping.[4]
    An-24LR 'Nit' (Thread)
  • One An-24B was converted to with 'Nit' SLAR in large pods along the lower fuselage sides.
    An-24PRT (Poiskovo-spasahtel'nyy Reaktivnyy [Uskoritel'] Transportnyy – SAR boosted transport)
  • The production search and rescue aircraft based on the An-24RT, eleven built.
    An-24PS (Poiskovo-Spasahtel'nyy – SAR)
  • A single An-24B aircraft converted for search and rescue duties, rejected after acceptance trials in favour of a derivative of the An-24RT.
    An-24RR ([samolyot] Radiotsionnyy Razvedchik – radiation reconnaissance [aircraft])
  • Four aircraft converted as Nuclear, biological and chemical warfare reconnaissance versions of the An-24B, carrying RR8311-100 air sampling pods low on the forward fuselage and a sensor pod on a pylon on the port fuselage side.
    An-24RT (Reaktivnyy [Uskoritel'] Transportnyy – boosted transport)
  • Similar to the AN-24T, fitted with an auxiliary turbojet engine.
    An-24RT (Retranslyator – relay installation)
  • A few An-24T and An-24RT aircraft converted to Communications relay aircraft. Sometimes referred to as An-24Rt to differentiate from the An-24RT.
    An-24RV (Reaktivnyy [Uskoritel'] V – boosted V)
  • Turbojet boosted export version, similar to the An-24V but fitted with a 1,985-lb (8830 N) thrust auxiliary turbojet engine in the starboard nacelle.
    An-24ShT (Shtabnoy Transportnyy – Staff/HQ transport)
  • A tactical Airborne Command Post for use by commanders, also capable of forming ground-based communications and HQ.
    An-24T (Transportnyy – transport)
  • (first use) Tactical transport version, rejected due to poor field performance and range, together with inability to load or air-drop vehicles during acceptance testing.
    An-24T (Transportnyy – transport)
  • (second use) A tactical transport version with a ventral loading hatch, cargo winch and escape hatch aft of the nose landing gear.
    An-24T 'Troyanda' (Ukrainian – rose)
  • From the 1960s the Soviet Union was faced with nuclear submarine threats that were virtually undetectable with the technology available. To assist in the development of advanced optical, chemical, sonic, infra-red and electromagnetic detection systems, several aircraft were built or modified as test-beds. One significant aircraft was the An-24T 'Troyanda' which was built new, for the development of sonobuoy and infra-red detection systems. As well as equipment inside the cabin, sensors could be mounted in large teardrop fairings either side of the lower forward fuselage, and extra equipment could be carried in extended wing centre-section fairings.
    An-24TV (Transportnyy V – transport V)
  • The export cargo version of the An-24T.
    An-24USh (Uchebno-Shturmanskiy (samolyot) – Navigator training aircraft)
  • Seven An-24Bs were converted to An-24USh navigator/air traffic controller trainers with five training stations and four standard rows of seats for trainees in waiting. Outwardly the USh was distinguishable by the bulged windows at each training station.
    An-24V-I
  • The initial export version of the An-24B 50-seat airliner with the early narrow chord inner wings, double-slotted flaps, single ventral fin.
    An-24V-II
  • Export late production 50-seat mixed passenger, cargo and freight aircraft with extended chord inner wing, single-slotted flaps, twin ventral fins and powered by AI-24T(SrsII) engines.
    An-26
  • Tactical transport with cargo ramp.
    An-30
  • Survey/photo-mapping aircraft.
    An-32
  • Designed to withstand adverse weather conditions better than the standard An-26.
    An-34
  • The initial designation of the An-24T production tactical transport.
    An-44
  • Projected cargo aircraft developed from the An-24. Ice reconnaissance and transport versions were also planned.
    An-50
  • A mid-1960s project for a jet-powered An-24, with four Ivchenko AI-25 turbofan engines in podded pairs, pylon mounted forward of the wings. Not proceeded with due to competition from the Yak-40.
    Xian Y-7
  • The Y-7 is a Chinese built derivative of the An-24/An-26 family.
    MA60
  • Upgraded and Westernised Y-7.
    An-24
  • In the early 1990s, North Korea installed N-019 Topaz pulse-Doppler radars on at least one of its An-24 aircraft in an attempt to achieve a rudimentary Airborne Early Warning capability.[5]

    Operators

    Military operators

    : Korean People's Army Air Force - 1 (converted to a rudimentary airborne early warning aircraft)
    : Syrian Air Force – 1[6]
    : Royal Cambodian Air Force - 2

    Civil operators

    As of July 2018, 86 An-24s were in airline service.[7]

    Following fatal incidents in July 2011 Russian President (now Prime Minister) Dmitry Medvedev proposed the accelerated decommissioning of An-24s,[8] which resulted in a ban for this type from scheduled flights inside Russia.[9] However, later the ban was cancelled and, as of 2023, An-24 are still in limited commercial service in Russia.

    Former civil operators

    Civil operators have included:

    +An-24 operators within Aeroflot and post Soviet countries
    UGA – (Oopravleniye Grazhdahnskoy Aviahtsii
    - Civil Aviation Directorate)    		OAO – (Otdel'nyy Aviaotryad – independent flight detachment)LO – (Lyotnyy Otryad – flight squad) / (Aviaeskadril'ya – squadrons)Home baseCIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) Airline
    Arkhangel'sk2nd Arkhangel'sk392ndArkhangel'sk-Vas'kovoAVL Arkhangelsk Airlines
    AzerbaijanBaku360th / 1st & 3rd squadronsBaku-BinaAZAL (no An-24s)
    BelorussianGomel'105th / 1st squadronGomel'Gomelavia
    1st Minsk353rdMinsk-Loshitsa (Minsk-1)Belavia
    Minsk-Avia
    MogilyovMogilyovMogilyov-Avia
    Central RegionsBelgorodBelgorodBelgorod Air Enterprise (no An-24s)
    BryanskBryanskBravia (Bryansk-Avia)
    Bykovo61stMoscow-BykovoBykovo Avia
    IvanovoIvanovo-Yuzhnyy (Zhukovka)IGAP (Ivanovo State Air Enterprise)
    KostromaKostromaKostroma Air Enterprise
    KurskKurskKurskavia
    Ryazan'Ryazan'Ryazan'aviatrans
    Tambov169thTambov-DonskoyeAviata (Avalinii Tambova)
    Tula294thTulaTula Air Enterprise
    Voronezh243rdVoronezhVoronezhavia
    VladimirVladimirVladimir Air Enterprise / Avialeso'okhrana
    East SiberianBobaidoBobaidoBobaido Air Enterprise
    Chita136th / 1st SquadronChitaChita Avia
    Irkutsk134thIrkutsk-1Baikal Airlines
    Ust'-IlimskUst'-IlimskUst'-Ilimsk Air Enterprise
    Ust'-KutUst'-KutUst'-Kut Air Enterprise
    Ulan-Ude138thUlan-Ude / MukhinoBuryatia Airlines
    Far EasternSakhalin CAPA / Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk UAD147th / 1st SquadronYuzhno-Sakhalinsk / KhomutvoSakhalinskiye Aviatrassy
    1st Khabarovsk289thKhabarovskDalavia Far East Airlines Khabarovsk
    KazakhChimkent158thChimkentKazakhstan Airlines
    Chimkent-Avia
    Gur'yev156thGur'yevKazakhstan Airlines;Atyrau Air Ways
    Karaganda14thKaragandaKazakhstan Airlines
    Kustanay155thKustanayKazakhstan Airlines
    Tselinograd239thTselinogradKazakhstan Airlines;Air Astana
    Kirghiz(dissolved by 1987)
    KomiSyktyvkar366thSyktyvkarKomiavia;Komiinteravia
    KrasnoyarskAbakan130thAbakanKhakassia Airlines (Abakan A.E.)
    LatvianRiga106th / 2nd SquadronRiga-SpilveLatavio
    LeningradPskov320th / 2nd SquadronPskov
    LithuanianVilnius277th / 4th SquadronVilniusLithuanian Airlines
    MagadanAnadyr'Anadyr'-Ugol'nyyChukotavia
    Chaunskoye6thChaunskoyeChaunskoye Air Enterprise
    1st Magadan185th / (1st or 3rd Squadron)Magadan-SokolKolyma-Avia
    MoldavianKishinyov407thKishinyovAir Moldova
    North CaucasianAstrakhan'110thAstrakhan'-NarimanovoAstrakhan' Airlines
    Krasnodar241st/ 3rd SquadronKrasnodarALK Kuban Airlines
    Makhachkala111thMakhachkalaDaghestan Airlines
    Stavropol'Stavropol'SAAK (Stavropol' Joint Stock AL)
    TaganrogTaganrogTavia
    TajikLeninabad292nd / 2nd SquadronLeninabadTajikistan Airlines
    Training Establishments DirectorateKVLUGA (Kirovograd Civil Aviation Higher Flying School)KirovogradUkraine State Flight Academy
    TurkmenAshkhabad165th / 1st SquadronAshkhabadTurkmenistan Airlines/Akhal
    Krasnovodsk360th / 1st SquadronKrasnovodskTurkmenistan Airlines/Khazar
    Mary Composite Independent Air SquadronMary
    TashauzTashauz
    Tyumen'SalekhardSalekhardTyumen' Avia Trans
    Surgut358thSurgutSurgut Avia
    UkrainianDonetskDonetskDonbas – East Ukrainian Airlines
    Kyiv86th / 2nd SquadronKyiv-ZhulyanyAir Ukraine / Avialinïi Ukraïny
    KirovogradKirovograd-KhmelyovoyeAir URGA
    L'vov88thL'vovLviv Airlines
    Simferopol84thSimferopolAviakompaniya Krym / Crimea AL
    VoroshilovgradVoroshilovgrad
    UralsIzhevskIzhevskIzhavia
    KirovKirovKirov Air Enterprises (no An-24s)
    MagnitogorskMagnitogorskMagnitogorsk Air Enterprise
    1st Perm'Perm'-Bolshoye SavinoPerm Airlines
    1st SverdlovskSverdlovsk-Kol'tsovoUral Airlines [Yekaterinburg]
    UzbekSamarkand163rdSamarkandUzbekistan Airways
    Tashkent160thTashkent-YuzhnyyUzbekistan Airways
    VolgaCheboksaryCheboksaryCheboksary Air Enterprise
    CheboksaryNizhnekamsk Independent air SquadronNizhnekamskNizhnekamsk Air Enterprise
    Gor'kiyGor'kiy-StriginoNizhegorodskie Airlines (sic)
    TatarCAPA / 1st Kazan'408thKazan'Tatarstan Airlines
    Orenburg195th / 2nd SquadronOrenburg-Tsentral'nyyOrenburg Airlines
    Penza396thPenzaPenza Air Enterprise
    SaranskSaransk
    SaratovSaratov
    Ufa415thUfaBAL Bashkirian Airlines
    Yoshkar-OlaYoshkar-Ola
    West SiberianKemerovo196thKemerovo
    KolpashevoKolpashevo
    Novosibirsk6th(?)Novosibirsk-Severnyy2nd Novosibirsk Air Enterprise
    Tolmachevo448thNovosibirsk-TolmachevoSibir'
    Novokuznetsk184thNovokuznetskAerokuznetsk
    Omsk365th / 2nd SquadronOmskOmsk-Avia
    Tomsk119trhTomskTomsk Avia
    YakutianYakutsk271stYakutskSakha Avia
    MirnyMirnyAlmazy Rossii – Sakha (Alrosa)
    GosNII GVF ("state scientific test institute for civil air fleet")Moscow - Sheremetyevo-1

    Accidents

    See main article: List of accidents and incidents involving the Antonov An-24.

    References

    Bibliography

    External links

    Notes and References

    1. Web site: AeroTransport Data Bank .
    2. Web site: Antonov An-24 .
    3. Web site: Антонов Ан-24 . 2019-08-22 . russianplanes.net.
    4. The An-24 incident at Gambell, Alaska occurred 27 February 1974, when a Soviet Antonov An-24LR "Toros" (CCCP-47195) ice reconnaissance aircraft, low on fuel, carrying three crew members and twelve scientists, landed at Gambell Airport.
    5. Bermudez . Joseph S. Jr. . April 2011 . MiG-29 in KPAF Service . KPA Journal . 2 . 4 . 2.
    6. Book: The military balance. 2023 . 2023 . James Hackett, International Institute for Strategic Studies . 978-1-003-40022-6 . London . 1372013483.
    7. Web site: World Airline Census 2018 . 2018-08-22 . Flightglobal.com . en-GB.
    8. Web site: Odynova . Alexandra . 15 July 2011 . Medvedev's Impossible Airplane Ban . 3 January 2024 . The Moscow Times.
    9. Web site: 11 July 2011 . Во исполнение поручения Президента Российской Федерации Минтрансом России рассматривается возможность вывода самолетов Ан-24 из эксплуатации на регулярных воздушных линиях . 12 February 2013 . press release . The Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation.

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