Two questions: one on Antonov An 24/26, one on Ilyushin Il-76
Dear all,
I have recently moved to Khartoum (HSSS) where I see a lot of interesting aircraft. Unfortunately, it is very difficult or impossible to get near them.
There are two observations that puzzle my mind:
1) The An-24 (or An-26, I cannot tell which one is which from afar) seem to retract the gear very, very late. Is is thie because you need all energy for the propulsion and must have gained sufficient altitude before you activate the hydraulics?
2) On final approach, the Il-76 comes in with a negative pitch attitude that is changed to positive only very late during the flare. I suspect this is due to the geometry of the wings which (I am guessing here) might be producing massive lift and massive drag at the same time so that you need increased thrust.
I would appreciate very much if someone knowledgeable could find the time to answer these questions which might interest others as well.
P.S.: An Il-76 coming in during the setting sun in the desert dust with all flaps down and all lights on is a marvellous sight .
I just saw that the An-32 is doing exactly the same. They actually disappear out of sight before I can see them retracting the gear.