Aeroprakt & Avantage designations

[Stargazer]

The AEROPRAKT Design Bureau was established in 1974 as a public organization. Over the years, AEROPRAKT designed, constructed and flight-tested various light and ultralight aircraft, gliders, floatplanes, motor gliders, seaplanes and amphibians. The design bureau, led by Yuri Yakovlev, has developed more than 20 types of aircraft for various purposes, with good performance characteristics. These were primary trainers, sports planes and experimental aircraft, but general aviation aircraft were also developed later on.

Over the years AEROPRAKT's ultralights, gliders and airplanes participated in competitions, contests and exhibitions. During the 1980s they became renowned and celebrated in many reviews for their unique quality design and high quality construction. In the first national junior glider competition held at Tushino in 1980, no less than eleven AEROPRAKT gliders performed. From 1976 to 1986, junior glider schools operated A-2 Bukvar, A-4 Trener and A-7 BRO-Aeroprakt training gliders.

In November, 1981 the AEROPRAKT Design Bureau began a creative collaboration with the Kuibyshev Aviation Institute (KuAI) let by V. Miroshnik, which resulted, among other works, in a redesign of the initial training glider A-7 BRO-Aeroprakt in 1982.

During the SLA-83, SLA-84, SLA-85, SLA-87, SLA-89 and SLA-91 ultralight aircraft contests organized by the Soviet Ministry of Aviation Industry, AEROPRAKT presented several of their aircraft, many of which received appraisal from the Jury and Technical Commissions. The A-11M Hamlet participated in the first two contests and was praised by both the Technical Commission and test pilot Vladimir Zabolotskikh, taking first place at SLA-84 in the sport aircraft class, while the A-6 Belei finished first in the trainer class and the A-5-2 hydro also finished first in the seaplane class. At SLA-85, the first place in the experimental class was awarded to the A-8 Quickie, AEROPRAKT's own take on the Rutan design.

In 1990, AEROPRAKT was officially registered in the Industrial District of Samara. From that point onwards, the company started to demonstrate its aircraft abroad, introducing the A-21 Solo in Germany, France and England. AEROPRAKT aircraft such as the A-20, A-21 or A-23 series have now also been marketed in several other countries.

In 1998, the AEROPRAKT Design Bureau was registered as a Limited Liability Company as OOO AEROPRAKT. The following year, AEROPRAKT developed, flight-tested and introduced at MAKS two new light aircraft types, the A-23M and A-27.

In 2000, AEROPRAKT launched the AVANTAGE sister brand as a production unit while AEROPRAKT continued to design new aircraft types. AVANTAGE is registered in Gorno-Altaisk, in the Russian Republic of Altai. Under the SK AVANTAGE brand, AEROPRAKT has developed and implemented projects such as the A-27M, A-27M-1, A-27MS, A-29, A-31 and A-35, and continues to work on more modern aircraft such as the A-31M, A-35M and A-39 for agriculture and other economic sectors.

AEROPRAKT has always worked and is working at developing of different types of aircraft with research institutes and organizations across the aircraft industry, such as TsAGI, SibNIA, SKB-1 KuAI, the Kuibyshev Aviation Plant (now known as Aviacor), Kuibyshev plant airfield equipment (now Start), the Rybinsk Engine Plant (now Rybinsk Motors), RPD VAZ, Togliatti, Myasishchev's EMZ and the Volga Aviation Technology Center.

The SK AVANTAGE design bureau is a young group of enthusiasts that came out of the AEROPRAKT public youth organization and was augmented by experts from other organizations and institutions. SK AVANTAGE also performs finishing work on airliners such as the Il-62, IL-76, Yak-42, Tu-134 and Tu-154, operated by major airlines in Russia and the CIS. For this purpose, the company was trained and certified to perform certain types of maintenance work on aircraft.




LIST OF DESIGNATIONS

A-1 Aeroprakt
A-2 Bukvar (Primer)
A-3 Hydra
A-4 Trener (Trainer)
A-5 Hydra-2
A-6 Belei (White)
A-7 Zheltei (Yellow) (also known as the BRO-Aeroprakt or the BRO-A-7)
A-8 Kviki (Quickie)
A-10 Hamlet (redesignated A-11)
A-10 Berkut (A-10B only)
A-11 Hamlet
A-12 —
A-13 —
A-15 —
A-16 —
A-17 —
A-18 —
A-19 —
A-20 Chervonets / Sky Cruiser, Vista, Vista Cruiser, Super Cruiser, Varlet
A-21 Solo / Acro, Viper
A-22 Sharik / Foxbat, Vision, Valor, Simba, Talon
A-23 Trener (Trainer), Drakon (Dragon)
A-24 Viking
A-25 Gloria / Breeze
A-26 Vulcan / Twin Vista
A-27 Aist (A-27M only)
A-28 Victor
A-29 —
A-30 —
A-31 Spektr (Spectrum)
A-32 —
A-33 —
A-35 Skaner (Scanner)
A-36 Vulcan
A-37 —
A-39 —

T-8 Slavutich
? A-T
Ya-7 Barsuk (Badger)
Ya-10 Kondor
Ya-25 Taiga
Ya-30 Filin (Owl)

 

[Stargazer]

A few photos:

 

[Stargazer]

More photos:

 

[Stargazer]

Found out about two more Aeroprakt types after investigating some more... The A-8 (a Rutan Quickie lookalike) and the A-18 amphibian:

 

[igor-mich]

Stargazher2006. I want to correct you a bit, here's a link to the history of the emergence KB AEROPRAKT. In 1991, in Kiev was established branch of the joint Soviet-Finnish venture 'Lada Mononor-Aeroprakt ", the administration of which was placed in Tolyatti. Fall of 1993, this company was divided into two separate companies with the same name "Aeroprakt", which, however, have differences in their writing on the trade mark.
Izvenyayus for bad English.
http://www.skavantage.ru/design_office.htm

 

[hesham]

Stargazher2006. I want to correct you a bit, here's a link to the history of the emergence KB AEROPRAKT. In 1991, in Kiev was established branch of the joint Soviet-Finnish venture 'Lada Mononor-Aeroprakt ", the administration of which was placed in Tolyatti. Fall of 1993, this company was divided into two separate companies with the same name "Aeroprakt", which, however, have differences in their writing on the trade mark.
Izvenyayus for bad English.
http://www.skavantage.ru/design_office.htm

And in that site,they spoke about A-4 & A-7 as a gliders and A-31,A-35 and A-39 as
agricultural aircraft,also A-5 seaplane.

 

[Stargazer]

Stargazher2006. I want to correct you a bit, here's a link to the history of the emergence KB AEROPRAKT.

Thanks a lot for this link, igor-mich. This has enabled me to add quite a bit to the list and to get the chronology right.
I had completely rewritten the history bit but accidentally lost it, so I'll call it a day for now and redo it tomorrow...

Meanwhile, a few more AEROPRAKT/AVANTAGE types attached below...

 

[Stargazer]

And a few AVANTAGE projects by Yuri Yakovlev:

• Ya-7 Barsuk
• Ya-30 Filin
• Ya-25 Taiga
• Ya-10 Kondor
  

 

[Stargazer]

I have completely rewritten the company's history, also taking into account the AVANTAGE brand. More designations were also added to the list.

 

[Stargazer]

Here are some pictures of types not previously illustrated in this topic:

• A-2 Bukvar
• A-17
• A-19
• A-05 Hydro-N (also found as the A-5 and A-5-2)

 

[walter]

Hi Stéphane, Hi igor--mitch
Very good initiative on the Aeroprakt designs. Love it.
Please correct me (especially igor-mitch) if I am wrong, but can we say that there are/were two organisations named Aeroprakt? I understand that the original Aeroprakt (spelled with k) was formed in 1974 as OKB Samara by chief designer Igor Vakhrusjev. At the short-lived 1991 merger with the Finnish interest (as explained by Stargazer2006) the name Aeropract (with c) came into being to avoid confusion with Aeroprakt Kiev which had been founded in 1986 by Mr. Yuri Yakovlev, who had worked with the original Aeroprakt before he joined the Antonov company.
So at a given moment we had an Aeropract in Russia and Aeroprakt in Ukraine. I further understand that up to the split the A-design numbers just followed each other, but after the split the Russian Aeropract used ODD design numbers and the Ukraine Aerorakt the EVEN numbers, possibly starting the the A-18 project.
If the above is true, the EVEN A-numbers are Ukrainian aircraft and the ODD A-numbers Russian.
Will appreciate your comments !
Regards, Walter

 

[Stargazer]

Will appreciate your comments !

What you've just written about is what I'm also trying to determine, but I think this is all basically right.

One thing for sure: the odd/even number thing is true, since SK Avantage uses numbers 27, 29, 31, 35 and 39. However, the 21, 33 and 37 are Samara-Aeroprakt.

The first history of the company that I posted was the one found on the Aeroprakt website. The new one is largely inspired by the one found on the Avantage site. And several other sites give other elements that complicate the matter further, because it seems each company or branch tell the story as they would like it to be told...

Also, I've found out even more names given to certain types for export, and still a couple more designations...


I'm attaching more previously unposted types:

• A-10B Berkut and A-10A motorglider version.
• A-7 BRO-Aeroprakt (collaboration with Oshkinis).

 

[Cy-27]

Here are a trio of Aeropract designs to supplement the earlier images and schematics:

Aeropract A-21M (02135) at the PFA Rally Cranfield on 03 July 1994

Aeropract A-22 Foxbat (appropriately registered G-FBAT) at PFA Rally Cranfield 24 June 2000

Aeropract A-25 Gloria (02495) at MAKS 95 at Zhukovsky photographed on 25 August 1995

 

[Stargazer]

Additional pictures:

• A-1 Aeroprakt
• A-5 Hydra-2
• A-10A in flight

 

[igor-mich]

Aeroprakt aircraft in 1974 and 2005

 

[Stargazer]

Thanks a lot, igor-mich, this is a fabulous document that contributes greatly to this thread!

Interesting how some designs are completely left out of the story, notably the gliders...

 

[Stargazer]

I have added a few designations and made a few corrections.

I also added a photo of the Ya-10 Kondor project in the previous page.

Here is an attempt at reworking the AEROPRAKT chronology to take into account more types.:

• Soviet Union era types (AEROPRAKT Design Bureau) are written in purple.
  
• Ukraine types (AEROPRAKT-Kiev) are written in dark blue.
  
• Russian types (AEROPRAKT-Samara / AVANTAGE) are written in olive green.

Feel free to comment or criticize, this is still a work in progress!

 

[hesham]

From Kryl'ya Rodine 12/1985,


anther picture and drawing to A-11M.

 

[hesham]

Hi,

as I know the series reach to A-41,but no details are known ?.

 

[Stargazer]

as I know the series reach to A-41,but no details are known ?.

https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Аэропракт_А-41

 

[hesham]

Thank you my dear Skyblazer,

and here is a new design,Aeroprakt A-55,also the CP-55 is developed from Yak-55;

https://pikabu.ru/story/ayeroprakt_a55_4356532

 

[Stargazer]

My 2019 version of the chronological diagram. Of course, this does not include more recent designs...