Tag: USSR

Air Koryo: Inside North Korea’s Most Secretive Airline…

9Dec

By Alya KulikovaNo Comments

Airlines

Air Koryo: Inside North Korea’s Most Secretive Airline…

North Korea is one of the most secretive countries on the planet, with only a handful of airlines flying to the Hermit Kingdom. One of these airlines is Air Koryo, North Korea's national airline. As with the rest of North Korea, their national carrier is extremely secretive. Photographing their staff and aircraft is extremely difficult, not only because their staff are notoriously camera-shy but also because they don't fly to many destinations! (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Pre-Air Koryo Following WWII, former Allied and Axis fighter pilots returned to their home countries. Many of these former fighter pilots became airline pilots, with those wealthier pilots founding their own airlines when they returned home. Beginning in the late 1940'...

Sukhoi Su-47 Berkut: The USSR’s Strangest Aircraft

23Sep

By Alya KulikovaNo Comments

Aircraft Digest

Sukhoi Su-47 Berkut: The USSR’s Strangest Aircraft

Throughout the Cold War, the concept of swept wings became widespread. However, nearing the end of the Cold War, the USSR developed the Sukhoi Su-47 Berkut to look at the potential of forward-swept wing designs. Sukhoi designed the Berkut to match the US's Grumman X-29 program. The design of both aircraft are eerily similar as well! However, just like the X-29, the Su-47 was a complete failure. But why was this? And what exactly did the USSR, and later the Russian Air Forces' get out of the Berkut program? (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Pre-Berkut Prior to the X-29 and the Berkut, the concept of forward-swept wings was not a new one. Indeed, the earliest designs date back to the late 1800's and early 1900's, with early aviators trying to cr...