Yak-42D - short-haul passenger aircraft: characteristics and reviews

2024 Author: Harold Hamphrey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:06

There is a great variety of domestic aircraft that take to the air over our country every day, and not all of them are equally known to the townsfolk. So, few people know about the Yak-42D model. The car is unique, deserves close attention.

YAK-42 these days

The plane is on the service of flights of Saratov airlines. There is nothing surprising, it was in Saratov that the construction of this transport was established at one time. In addition to the Saratov air transport hub, the Yak-42D is seen in Domodedovo. The aviation company has 14 aircraft in its fleet, with 4 in storage.

Transport available in company parks:

• "KrasAvia";
• "IzhAvia";
• "Tulpar-Air";
• "Grozny Avia";
• EMERCOM of the Russian Federation.

There was a Yak (aircraft) and in service with Gazprom Avia, but recently the company completely abandoned its use. Several cars even fly abroad: in China, Pakistan and Iran, in Cuba.

Facts from history

YAK-42 from Yakovlev Design Bureau was developed from 1972 to 1980. The goal was to replace the TU-134 - good, but rapidly becoming obsoleteairplane. 1988 was marked by the start of serial production of a brand new model - the Yak 42D. The car won with increased takeoff weight and long flight range.

Industry produced 183 aircraft of this modification. Two of them were intended for strength tests. 11 were constructed between 1977-1981. at the aircraft factory in Smolensk, 172 were manufactured at the Saratov aircraft factory. Yak is a reliable aircraft, but its construction was still stopped. This happened in 2003. Ready-made fuselages of aircraft that were not destined to go to the runway were cut into scrap metal.

Since the task was to make the Yak-42 as a short-haul passenger aircraft, it was designed with the expectation of a variety of airfields. The vehicle does not need a long runway or a large landing area, which is typical for the much more widely used Boeings and Airbuses. The design made it possible to avoid the use of an airfield ladder.

Aircraft feature

The Yakovlev Design Bureau designed unique aircraft sides. Now, in the slang of hangar workers, it is customary to call them drops. Maintenance of such a board is a difficult task. As you know, the Saratov Aviation Plant first became bankrupt, after which it completely stopped. Obviously, the release of products, including repair kits, spare parts, is discontinued. But love for their work helps mechanics to bring the Yaks to a satisfactory condition over and over again - and the carsagain leaving for the runway.

If you read reviews about the Yak-42D, you will get the impression that the car is not very good, so the cessation of production is not such a bad event. It is often mentioned that transport in operation was uneconomical. Nevertheless, the prospects were not bad. The designers suggested the following steps:

• replace the engine with a more efficient system;
• install new equipment for aviation;
• lengthen the hull to accommodate more passengers.

The last proposal was implemented in the form of Yak-42M. The vehicle serves 168 customers during the flight.

However, it was not possible to realize the ideas. But the reviews of those who still manage to fly the Yak-42 to this day clearly say that the plane is still good, despite moral obsolescence.

Interesting facts

YAK-42 has atypical engines - operation is configured without reverse. This allows the unit to land at a very low speed, it does not need additional means of deceleration, except for the brakes built into the chassis and the help of a powered wing.

In Georgia, in Rustavi, a plane very similar to the Yak-42 (a type of transport Yak-40) was decommissioned, converted and opened a kindergarten inside.

YAK-42D is also reflected in the music. So, Sergei Minaev, writing a parody of a famous Swedish song, wrote the following lines:

"If planes don't fly in bad weather, it doesn't matter, "Ils" can't, but "Yaks" can.

And it's notempty words, because the requirements for the host site and weather conditions for "Yakov" are significantly lower.

Now this is no longer remembered, but decades ago there was a project of a transport aircraft based on the Yak-42.

Variety of patterns

The characteristics of Yak-42D aircraft vary somewhat from assembly to assembly. It depends primarily on belonging to the aircraft class:

• VIP;
• regular passenger.

The key difference is in the arrangement of the passenger cabin. VIP package has:

• meeting lounge;
• rest room;
• 1st class salon;
• accompanying salon.

For the main passenger, the rest room is equipped with a swivel chair and a sofa for two, which can be expanded into a full bed. There is a work table (folds if necessary), a wardrobe and a private bathroom.

Special meeting room has 4 swivel chairs that can be moved around the salon. There is a large table, two sofas, designed for 7 people. There is a video communication system and access to a satellite phone.

The first-class cabin is equipped with two-seat seats, divided into blocks. There are 4 blocks in total. Folding tables (two pieces) are installed between them. The accompanying group flies in the designated area, designed for the simultaneous placement of 18 people.

In the high-class Yak-42D aircraft, the cabin is comfortable for long flights, equipped withbuffet, kitchen equipment installed. VIP equipment includes the latest equipment for navigation, piloting, as well as the latest generation of radio systems. Yak-42s are flying equipped with domestic systems, there are cars with foreign control systems on board.

Step forward: Yak-42A

The Yak-42A was supposed to be a development of the Yak-42D idea. Serial production started in 1999. Improved compared to the previous model:

• left door;
• noise dampening system;
• APU launch height (new level - 5 km);
• flap locking system.

The left door gave passengers access to traditional airstairs and modern telescopic walkways installed in almost all airports. Fixed flap positions improved aircraft performance. Updates to navigation and pilot equipment made it possible to use the aircraft on domestic and international routes.

YAK-42D: specifications

The aircraft has the following parameters:

• wing span 34.88 m;
• horizontal plumage is 10.8 m;
• vehicle length 36.38m;
• parking height 9.83 m.

The Yak-42D chassis is characterized by the following values:

• track 5, 63 m;
• base 18, 786 m.

Aircraft in the classic configuration is designed to carry 120 passengers, the VIP version serves no more than 49 people per flight.

From the plane toweather station

YAK-42D is a serial, time-tested machine. This was the basis for the choice of designers, who were given the task of making a weather station capable of collecting weather data at different points in the atmosphere. The restructuring of the passenger vehicle was carried out by employees of the plant. Myasishchev.

The task required bringing sensors to the surface of the aircraft, provided with reliable protection. In order for the aircraft to withstand all the research blocks, it was necessary to complete the construction of six pylons on the wings. The fuselage was covered with a variety of systems, devices for reading information about the environment. Most of them are used in the work of lidar, which measures how transparent the air is.

The total weight of the meteorological flying laboratory is 7 tons. The team has an operator who keeps a log and writes down what can be distinguished by human vision: atmospheric phenomena, features of the surrounding space. The viewing area is expanded with plexiglass blisters. The designers built them on both sides. By sticking your head into the blister, you can see everything that happens around the vehicle.

It would seem, why make a meteorological station out of the Yak-42D? All data can be obtained from the satellite, is more really needed? But satellites fly strictly in a given orbit, at high speed, at a great distance from the surface of the planet. But the plane is over a specific area, controlling the atmosphere. Satellite data needs to be further verified, but the aircraft provides accurate information. Thesesignificant advantages became the impetus for the development of a unique mobile weather station. Finally, the aircraft is equipped with a system for releasing silver iodide into the environment, which provokes precipitation.