On December 17, the State Enterprise “ANTONOV”, which is a part of the SC “UkrOboronProm”, signed a contract for the supply of an AN-32P fire aircraft for the State Emergency Service of Ukraine. On the same day, a memorandum of cooperation and cooperation was signed between the State Concern and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine aimed at creating a European aviation fire safety hub.
According to the memorandum, the State Concern and the Ministry of Internal Affairs intend to support the modernization by the ANTONOV Company of AN-32 aircraft to the an-32P fire-fire version using components and components of purely Ukrainian production, as well as technical support for their further operation, etc.
“Last December, with the support of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy ANTONOV COMPANY signed a contract for three AN-178 aircraft for the Ministry of Defense of our country, recently the Ministry of Infrastructure expressed interest in using the AN-158 for the needs of the National Air Carrier, and today we are launching large-scale cooperation with the Ministry of Internal Affairs,” said Yuriy Husiev, UOP Director General. “These are concrete steps to develop aviation, to develop an industry that Ukraine is proud of.”
“This year, several countries appealed to Ukraine for help. Turkey, Italy and Greece have asked our specialists to help extinguish the fires. As a result of such cooperation, the Ministry of Internal Affairs decided to buy another aircraft that will allow to effectively fight fires. Therefore, we want to order the production of another AN-32P aircraft,” said The Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Denys Monastyrskyi. – ANTONOV is Ukraine, the hands of domestic aircraft manufacturers produce the best products in the world. Therefore, we chose ANTONOV. This is the position of the President of Ukraine, the Prime Minister and mine personally.”
The AN-32P aircraft is designed to extinguish forest fires, transport and landing firefighters and special equipment, equipment and cargo necessary for their work. Thanks to this technique, it is possible to actively influence clouds to artificially cause precipitation over the fire zone.
“Today, aviation capabilities of the security component, in particular, the capabilities of the State Emergency Service have multiplied. We are ready to continue to take such aircraft into our armament in order to upgrade our air fleet and make the lives of people who need our assistance safer,” said Serhii Kruk, interim Acting Head of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, “I wish the active work of the team and the management of the enterprise.”
The machine is capable of carrying approximately 8,000 liters of fire extinguishing liquid in four external replacement tanks. Liquid can be discharged both from all containers and from each individually with a specified period of time. The AN-32P has a cruising speed of 450 km/h and a range of 150 km.
“Today’s event is extremely important not only for us, but also for the entire aviation of Ukraine. The increase in the an-32P fleet will provide aviation units of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine with a new level of mobility and rapid response. We as developers are confident in the reliability and high efficiency of these aircraft. Now we have signed a contract for the supply of one AN-32P, but we hope that over time we will conclude an agreement on a larger number of such machines, which our company is ready to fulfill,” said the CEO ANTONOV COMPANY Sergei Bychkov.
The contract for the supply of the aircraft will help to increase the operational capabilities of the State Emergency Service during the tasks. Financing will be carried out with the help of loans (loans) under state guarantees. For its part, Ukroboronprom will do everything to fulfill the order on time and support domestic rescuers.