Antonov An-3

An-3
Antonov An-3T of MChS Rossii in June 2007.
Role	Multipurpose aircraft
Manufacturer	Antonov
First flight	13 May 1980
Introduction	1990s
Status	In production
Primary user	Private agricultural interests
Produced	1990s–present
Number built	25
Unit cost	US$ 1 500,000
Developed from	Antonov An-2

The Antonov An-3 is a Soviet (later Ukrainian and Russian) civil multipurpose and agricultural aircraft. It is essentially a turboprop-powered development of the An-2 designed to upgrade or replace it. The first example flew as early as May 13, 1980, but because of a lack of official interest in the project, work proceeded very slowly–flight testing was not complete until 1991. It is one of the few turbine-powered biplane designs to date.

The project was revitalised in the late 1990s when it was taken over by Polyot State Aerospace Enterprise, and a marketing campaign began in earnest in 2000, although sales have been limited. It is available in two forms, the basic agricultural aircraft (An-3SKh—"Selsko-Khosiajstwenni", Agricultural) and a civil transport version (An-3T) able to carry 12 passengers or 1,800 kg (4,000 lb) of cargo.

Although it is designated An-3, this number is not assigned sequentially. Antonov assigned it to the plane because it was meant to replace the An-2.

Another attempt to replace the An-2 on Soviet farms was made in the 1970s with the WSK-Mielec M-15 Belphegor, but it failed.

From 2007, the “Polyot” Production Association started to upgrade the first 10 An-2s of the Russian Airborne Troops to An-3T-10 standard. The overall requirement is estimated at approximately 200 aircraft.

Data from Antonov An-2

General characteristics

Performance

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