KHUJAND, June 25, 2009, Asia-Plus — Two An-2s have retuned to Khujand from Aktyubinsk, Kazakhstan after major repairs, according to the Sughd branch of the Republican Voluntary Society of Assistance to Defense of Tajikistan.
These biplanes belong to the Republican Flying Club and they will be ferried to Dushanbe within the next few days, the source said.
The source noted that the Republican Flying Club currently had eleven planes, including AN-2s and Yak-52s.
The Antonov An-2 is an extremely durable, light, single-engine biplane, which first flew on August 31, 1947. It is used as a light transport, capable of carrying 12 passengers, and for parachute drops and agricultural work.
The Yakovlev Yak-52 is a Soviet primary trainer aircraft, which first flew in 1976. The Yak-52 was designed originally as an aerobatic trainer for students in the Soviet DOSAAF (Voluntary Society of Assistance to the Army, the Air Force and the Navy) training organization, which trained both civilian sport pilots and military pilots. Since the early 1990s and the fall of the Soviet Union, many Yak 52s have been exported to the west. Of the approximately 1,800 produced to date, most now fly in the United States, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia and other western countries.
“33 persons, including residents of Sughd province, took flying training course on AN-2 at the flying club last year,” the source said, noting that they are establishing the flying club’s branch in Sughd. According to him, they now have one An-2 and one Yak-52. “However, we have to get the flying training license,” the source said.
