Antonov An-26

The Antonov An-26 is a twin-engined turboprop regional airliner and military transport aircraft, designed and produced in the Soviet Union from 1969 to 1986, with the NATO reporting name Curl and the Soviet nickname Nastia. It is the third member of the An-24 family, after the An-24 and An-30 and before the An-32. The Antonov design bureau began development in 1966 because the ventral loading hatch of the An-24T limited cargo handling. The new aircraft used most of the An-24 airframe but added a retractable cargo ramp that let vehicles drive in and let the hold be sealed and pressurised in flight. It has two Ivchenko AI-24 turboprops, with a small turbojet in the starboard nacelle for auxiliary power and extra take-off thrust. Most early production went to Soviet military transport aviation, and the type is still licence-produced in China as a version of the Xi'an Y-7.