The French Senate report also said that "The An-70 and An-124 aircraft cannot be considered for political and technical reasons (certification)"
The An-124 is a strategic Transport (like the C-17) but still, around 1999, Air Foyle of the UK determined that they could produce within a couple years a "westernized" version of the An-124 called the An-124-210 with RR engines and western avionics. The UK MOD concurred, except they claimed it would take longer than Air Foyle claimed (4 years vs 2)
(
House of Commons - Public Accounts - Appendices to the Minutes of Evidence)
About the An-70 now. Back in 1999, Germany thought well about the An-70 and mandated DASA to go to to Ukraine to study the AN-70 and determine if that aircraft met the specifications for the FLA and could meet Western Europe's certification. DASA which, as a Western European company preferred the A-400M project in which it would be involved and have more to gain. That DASA report was never published as far as I know, but leaks revealed that the report stated the An-70 would meet the FLA specs after some modifications and was certifiable to Western Europe's Standards. Of course DASA has since been integrated in EADS and is involved in the A-400M proper so they will not publish that report. If only it had been leaked in its entirety.
1999 | 2067 | Flight Archive
res2.1
Antonov AN-70
As far as ramped airlifters, L-M made the C-130 and the C-141 and the C-5. Douglas made the C-17. Airbus made none (or the C-160, sort of). CASA made the CN-212, the 235 and the 295.
Antonov made the An-8, the An-10, the An-12, the An-22, the An-24, the An-26, the An-28, the An-30, the An-32, the An-38, the An-72, the An-74, the An-124 the An-225 all of which are turbine military-type ramped airlifters of different sizes. These aircraft are all over the World. This company produced more ramped airlifters than any other company in the world. The An-22 was the biggest aircraft in the world and remains to this day the largest turboprop ever made with four 15,000 SHP engines. The An-124 was the largest production aircraft of its time and the An-225 remains today the largest aircraft ever built. It carries 250 tonnes, twice as much as the C-5 Galaxy (which is the largest US aircraft). NATO makes extensive use of An-124s with the SALIS contract.
Here is an interesting document on Aviation related Industries and Ressource located in the Ukraine. Its 44 pages long. Worth every page.
EADS has money and software. Antonov has the experience, know how, and the people.
http://www.dglr.de/veranstaltungen/e...ons/G3/G34.pdf
Antonov is Ukrainian and many the engines that power these machines are also Ukrainian. Developing close commercial and industrial ties with Ukraine would do more to help this country and draw it to western Europe than integrating it in NATO and the EU, and also more than putting Missile shields on their territory. Instead we do our best to isolate them from Russia while at the same time we treat their great and advanced aeronautical industrial know-how as that of an ENEMY nation.
The US, through its control of NATO and with stupid unilateral measures such as the Missile Shield in the Czech Republic and Poland, and by putting constant needless military and political pressure on Russia, is entertaining this climate of fear against Russia that Ukraine keeps getting confused with. The result: extra sales of C-130s, C-17s, F-16s, Apaches, Patriot Missiles, Radars etc from the US. Every time anyone mentions Antonov in North America, they call it RUSSIAN or even SOVIET, to scare people. And Europe eats right out of their hands.
Europe will pay a price for that stupidity. You will all buy C-130s and C-17s.