Antonov An-12 (Cub)

The Antonov An-12 "Cub" was a product of requirement by the Soviet Union during the Cold War years. With more land area to defend than any other superpower of the time, the Soviet military was faced with the daunting prospect of finding ways to mobilize and transport large amounts of men, equipment and weapons to hotspots wherever they may arise. As such, the nation went through an extended period of developing medium and heavy freighters (which continued to this day) to help fill this important logistical role.

The An-12 was designed by Russian Oleg Antonov whose bureau shares his name. The system itself was developed from his commercial An-10A design though modified for the rigors of military usage. The resulting An-12 was also of a turboprop design, sporting (then) 4 x Ivchenko turboprop engines capable of 4,000 horsepower or more and were mounted high on monoplane wings. Additionally, the tail section was designed to accommodate a cargo door and formed the unique rearward design of the aircraft. The fuselage would sit low to the ground on three landing gear with the uplifted tail section allowing entry and exit of materials from the rear.

The Cub would go on to fill a myriad of other roles for both wartime and peacetime. Chief among these were an airborne early warning station, inflight refueling tanker and crew trainer. India received no fewer than forty examples of the An-12 and converted some as bombers in their 1970's war with Pakistan. China began license-production of the system as the Shaanxi Y-8 and has since produced a reconnaissance variant for maritime use in their navy. Exporting was restricted to "Soviet Friendly" nations.

The Antonov An-12 "Cub" series was replaced by the more capable Ilyushin IL-76 "Candid" series.

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