COLDWAR LEGACY

Coming from a line of aerobatic aircraft designed to challenge the West, this aggressive looking Russian is more ballet dancer than bear

- Bob Davy

The first aircraft in this line, the Sukhoi Su-26 first flew in 1984 and was designed to be a world-beating, make that a West-beating aerobatic aircraft during the Cold War. As such, Sukhoi had the might of the Soviet Government behind it−this aeroplane certainly wasn’t built down to a price. Take for instance the undercarriage: it’s made of solid titanium, and each unit was said to cost in excess of $10,000 back in the 1980s.

Hmm, titanium−it’s interesting stuff. It might be incredibly light and strong but, like those incredibly flexible glasses that you can tie a knot in then untie without damage, titanium gear legs can keep on bending and bending under load, until... Let’s come back to that later.

The biggest problem with the Sukhoi Su-26 is of course that your first flight in it is your first solo, and an Su-26 is nothing like the Yak-55M that came before it. I have flown both aircraft and would class the Yak-55 as one of the easiest aerobatic taildraggers to fly whereas the Sukhoi is in the top three hardest, right alongside the Sbach XA-42 (e.g. almost everyone one who flies one has ground-looped it.) When I did my check flight in the Su-26 I finished off with some ‘aeros’ over the airfield, where instructor Paul Bonhomme was watching and waiting. The last manoeuvre was a loop with a surprise avalanche at the top−a positive flick, but inverted. It was perfectly lined up, with exit in line with entry. When I landed Paul walked over and said “well, you seem to be at home in the Sukhoi. I particularly liked the avalanche at the end.” My reply was “thanks, it would have been great if I’d actually meant to do it.”