AN-12 identity

[SpringHeeledJack]

At least once a week, sometimes more, a loud, droning aircraft transits the London TMA usually WNW towards ESE, perhaps no more than 20,00ft. It's not the ex-wife, or a C-160 Transall or a Hercules. It has 4 engines and from what i have been able to see it has a white body and blue/navy engine cowlings. This has led me to think it is the Bulgarian registered AN-12 of Bright Aviation Services doing military uplifts from the UK to the sandy climes. Anyone know if i'm correct in my assumptions ?



SHJ

[Jamie-Southend]

what like this one?

Photos: Antonov An-12BP Aircraft Pictures | Airliners.net (http://www.airliners.net/photo/Bright-Aviation-Services/Antonov-An-12BP/1276577/M/)

[Eagle402]

It will be Casey Stoner.

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

Possibly... but there are not infrequent AN-12 movements over the UK. Some originate at East Midlands and from my location south of WOD I see them heading towards France. I'd be surprised if the MoD employed such machines to transport our troops.... but you never know!

[WHBM]

Comes overhead Central London as well from time to time, and I'm sure I don't hear them all. Never quite able to get the binoculars on it though.

Regarding whether the MoD would use it, I'm sure that after passing through 27 procurement departments and specifying in triplicate everything down to wheelchair access for the flight crew toilets, and using up 75% of the budget on their own admin, they end up being forced to buy the cheapest.

[Sonorguy]

I'd be surprised if the MoD employed such machines to transport our troops.... but you never know!


They don't. Unless you're very sneaky-beaky all troop movements are done on DAS fitted aircraft, normally Tristars and sometimes C17s. Even if you were going somewhere different it's highly unlikely they'd use a contracted An12.

[spanish no fly]

Not a major consideration, of course, HD, but the cargo compartment on An12 is...unpressurised. The pressurised crew compartment (capsule) at the front end gets a bit crowded with more than 5 crew and 6 extras. Have been to Belize and the Falklands with MoD cargo.
SNF.

[SpringHeeledJack]

Thanks for the replies chaps. Regarding the MoD, i meant cargo/logistics rather than a back-end full of soldiers, and as it appears to be unpressurised that would be a good idea ;) The tone of the engines is always what piques my interest as it permeates the surrounding atmosphere and overrides all other normal sounds for a few minutes. It's not as deep/downright strange as the AN-22 or TU-95, but nevertheless, a world apart from any other prop aircraft that can be heard these days.

The routing and height suggested that it had departed one of the west-country bases (that still exist!) and maybe heading to Ostend before onwards to points east.



SHJ

[AircraftOperations]

Can't see it being a regular AN-12 if it's departing from UK shores.

AN-12s in the UK tend to do ad-hoc flying - rather than regular schedules. Things like AOG, horses, humanitarian, oil etc etc.

Plus, there really aren't many An-12s serving Western Europe anymore. Maybe 4 operators with 6-10 machines? Bright Aviation are long gone... but it could be one of their old machines.

I'm thinking it must be something else though. Electra, Herc or a military machine.

[SpringHeeledJack]

Right! Another of the droning buggers was back earlier this evening, and with broken cloud I managed to get a few looks and it was a 4 engined prop aircraft, but.....this time the body was longer and slender-er :8 than the AN-12. The engine tone was 'almost' the same yet different....It looked like an IL-18/Brittania/CL-44 more than anything else. I thought that realistically it was an Electra or a P-3 Orion or possibly a French Breguet Atlantique ? I'm stumped, but if any friendly ATC'er who was on the watch today might answer, it went over central London heading NNE at 19.50 local at no more than 20,000ft or so.

Another droner, apart from myself ;) today was a rare Piaggio Avanti at 15.00hrs, looking like it was headed for Northolt.



SHJ

[GLENO]

SpringheeledJack, an AN12 of Aerovis went into Manchester this evening around 5.30pm, came in from Ostend so probabaly flew over the south on the way up, Departed over me this evening around 9ish, Lovely sound of the props!!:O

[treadigraph]

I head something turn and drone over the south Croydon area around that time but it was pretty cloudy and I couldn't see it - I thought it was heading more north easterly. Sounded rather like a Transall, but I guess Orions/Electras may sound similar, though I would have expected them to sound more like a Hercules.

By the way, Atlantics are twins!

Talking of Transalls, hadn't seen one of those for a long time but last summer while working in the garden I heard a familar drone, nipped inside and grabbed the bins - yep!

[Double Hydco]

an AN12 of Aerovis went into Manchester this evening around 5.30pm, came in from Ostend so probabaly flew over the south on the way up

It flew over Andrewsfield at 5pm.

[sewushr]

A Meridian AN12 arrived at Stansted at around eightish last night (came up from the South).

[treadigraph]

Ah, that may have been what I heard then.

[SpringHeeledJack]

A Meridian AN12 arrived at Stansted at around eightish last night (came up from the South).

That would be the one then, it came from the SSW, and my first thought was that it had come out of Bournemouth and was heading for perhaps Denmark/Sweden/Finland. From underneath and as it went away from my viewpoint it looked more stretched, I'm assuming that the tail section from that perspective looks different (more elongated) than the side on view.

Thanks Mr Treaders, you are of course correct, it's been a few years since i saw one of the Atlantiques and in my mind it had 4 engines. :)



SHJ

[treadigraph]

And in the interests of "entente cordiale", perhaps I should correct my spelling to "Atlantique"... :p

[SpringHeeledJack]

"Mange tout, mange tout Rodney!" :p


SHJ