Aerial cartography aircraft An-30B 1/144 Eastern Express 14472

Aerial cartography aircraft An-30B
1/144 scale plastic model kit
Eastern Express 14472

Manufacturer: Eastern Express (Russia)
Scale: 1/144
Material: Plastic
Paint: Unpainted, Unassembled, Kit do not contain paints and glue.
Condition: New in Box

The Antonov An-30 (NATO reporting name: Clank), is a development of theAn-24 designed for aerial cartography.The first aerial survey version of the Antonov An-24 was designed by the BerievOKB and designated An-24FK. The FK stood for fotokartograficheskiy (photo mapping). The prototype was converted from a production An-24A at Beriev's No. 49 construction shop during 1966. The An-24FK made its first flight on 21 August 1967, with state acceptance trials being completed in 1970 and civil certification completed in 1974. Redesignated An-30, production began in 1971 at the Antonov. 123 production An-30s were manufactured between 1971 and 1980 in Kiev in 2 main versions.The Antonov An-30 is a derivative of the An-24 fitted with an entirely new fuselage forward of frame 11. The fuselage nose is extensively glazed, reminiscent of the Boeing B-29. Housed within the new nose section is the navigator and precise navigational equipment, including an optical sight for ensuring accuracy of aerial photography. To enable accurate and repeatable survey flights, standard equipment for the An-30 included computer flight path control technology. This additional equipment replaced the radar. The positioning of the new navigational equipment required the flightdeck to be raised by 41 cm in comparison to the An-24, giving the aircraft its other main feature, a hump containing the cockpit, similar to the Boeing 747.As well as its principal use as a survey aircraft, it has also been used by Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Romania, Russia and Ukraine to carry out surveillance under the Open Skies Treaty.

The An-30 has also been used as a weather control aircraft as the An-30M. Some have been fitted with frozen tanks of carbon dioxide to be ejected into the sky to form artificial rainclouds. These An-30s have also been put to use to avoid crop-damaging hailstorms and also to maintain good weather for, as examples, new airplane maiden flights, important parades like the 1st of May and the 850th anniversary of Moscow in September 1997.

Between 1971 and 1980 total 115 aircraft were built and 23 were sold abroad to Afghanistan, Bulgaria, China, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, Mongolia and Vietnam.

Machines of this type completely mapped Afghanistan in 1982, with one machine shot down during use, and Cuban machines were operated in Angola in 1987.

An-30
Role	Aerial cartography
Manufacturer	Antonov
Designer	Beriev
First flight	21 August 1967
Introduction	July 1968
Status	Limited service
Primary users	Romanian Air Force Bulgarian Air Force
Produced	1971–1980
Number built	123
Developed from	Antonov An-24