Thursday, December 20, 2012

A noteworthy retirement


It seems amazing to find a modern First World air force still flying a biplane . . . but until December 14th, the Polish Air Force was still operating the Antonov An-2 utility aircraft.  It had done so since 1951.




The Antonovs were finally retired at a ceremony attended by the commanding officer of Poland's Air Force, Lieutenant-General Lech Majewski.

However, the An-2 soldiers on elsewhere.  The Russian, Chinese and North Korean air forces still operate it, and there may be others.  Despite the fact that we live in an age of supersonic stealthy jets,  the military utility of fabric-covered twin-winged prop-jobs is not yet over.  I suspect many World War I fliers are looking down and nodding in amused approval . . .





Peter

2 comments:

Old NFO said...

The Russians STILL fly them for certain kinds of operations...

Chris said...

There are plenty of jobs where they are all that is needed, and they are much cheaper to operate.