It may seem to a passenger that operating an airport is not a tricky business. I docked the board to the “gut” of the terminal, disembarked (or landed) people, and x-rayed the suitcase.

In fact, to quickly service aircraft, maintain the runway and ensure safety, a whole fleet of various equipment is required. Most of the cars you only see on the airfield - they are made specifically for airports. Over all the years of operation, this special transport may never go into the city.

At the same time, near the terminal - only from the side of the runway - the traffic is the same as during rush hour in the city. Everyone is going somewhere, carrying something, pushing or pulling. There are no traffic lights, but the drivers manage not to collide - they say that only very experienced drivers are hired here.

On the occasion of Air Fleet Day, Domodedovo agreed to show their unusual machines in action.

ICE FIGHTERS

Ice is not just a problem for pedestrians and motorists. Crust on the wings and fuselage of an airplane is more dangerous than ice on a car. For those who fly in winter, the sight of a fancy machine treating the wings of an airliner with a special liquid has become familiar.

This technique is correctly called "deacer"(from English de-icer). A mobile crane is attached to the reagent truck. The operator in the cab can climb to the height of a 5-story building. From above he processes the liner.

First, a specialist washes off the ice with hot water and a special liquid under pressure. Then the aircraft body is sprayed with another agent that creates a protective layer. The technician's task is to prevent the plane from becoming icy until takeoff.

One processing of the board takes about 200 liters of liquid. The composition is not cheap - it costs as much as good vodka.

In snowfall you have to work quickly. To make life easier for the operator, he can steer the truck on the ground directly from his cab above. This is the remote control.

FOLLOW ME

Deicer technique. For those who fly in winter, the sight of a fancy machine treating the wings of an airliner with a special liquid has become familiar.

Every airport has a park aircraft escort vehicles. For professionals - Follow Me Car. They are usually painted in bright colors to make it easier for pilots to spot them from afar. An LED display is mounted on the roof of such cars. A hint is illuminated on it for the pilot to follow the vehicle.

If you look at the airfield from above, it looks like an interlacing of paths leading in different directions. A pilot who lands at an airport for the first time may simply get lost. This is why they call escort cars.

They are also used when visibility is less than 400 meters, often at night, when the visibility of markings is poor.

The driver of the special vehicle has two radios. According to one, he communicates with the pilots, and according to the other, with the airport dispatcher. The escort transport travels several hundred kilometers per day.

LADDER ON WHEELS

Blowing machine. The equipment travels along the runway and blows away any debris with a powerful air stream.

Self-propelled ladder moves almost silently. In order to protect the environment, they now use electric motors.

The car is controlled by a small steering wheel mounted at the top, right on the passenger platform. This makes it easier for the driver to navigate and drive exactly to the door.

The staircase is designed for different aircraft - it rises to a height of 2.2 to 5.9 meters. To speed up boarding and disembarking, the ramp can support up to 70 people (or 6 tons) at a time. In fact, half the passengers on the plane can stand on the steps and the equipment will hold up.

PERON BUS

Passenger transport at the airport bears little resemblance to that on city streets. Its task is to transport people over short distances and ensure quick boarding and disembarking of passengers. Therefore, buses have large wide doors on both sides, low floors and non-standard widths.

Perched bus surrounded on all sides by cameras - so the driver can see that he has not forgotten anyone. The doors can be opened independently from the outside; there are touch buttons near the entrance. The system will not allow you to close the door while something is blocking the door. It also blocks the movement of the bus if at least one door is open or not completely closed.

Bus width: 3 meters, length: 14. This is about one and a half times more than conventional passenger transport. The floor is also close to the ground - the vehicle does not need a high suspension, since there are guaranteed to be no holes or uneven spots on the airfield.

TRACTORS

A real heavyweight works at Domodedovo - tractor can tow aircraft weighing up to 600 tons. The airport bought this “monster” specifically to move the world’s largest airliner, the A380.

A distinctive feature of all tractors is their low height. This was done specifically so that they could safely pass under the wings of airliners.

The cars themselves weigh quite a bit. The weight of the airfield tractor is 55 tons. But when towing large airliners, it is additionally weighed down with special loads of up to 70 tons. The engine power of this strongman is 408 horsepower.

To make the driver's work easier, the cabin is equipped with air conditioning and parking sensors with a rear view camera. To improve visibility, the tractor cab can be raised or lowered. There is a sensor on the roof that will prevent the raised cabin from hitting the plane.

CATERING AUTOLIFT

Airfield tractor. A real heavyweight works at Domodedovo - the tractor can tow an aircraft weighing up to 600 tons

It is clear that food and other things are not brought onto the plane via stairs. Special lifts are made for this.

By using autolifts food and various consumables (paper, napkins, air fresheners) are brought on board. The container with things can rise to a height of 3 to 8.4 meters.

With the help of such equipment, supplies are unloaded directly onto the second deck of the Airbus A380 airliner.

SUITCASE CARRIERS

Passengers' belongings checked in as luggage reach the plane using two cars. First - luggage delivery tractor. He transports suitcases from the terminal on small trailers connected to a road train. The machine can move up to 25 tons of cargo at a time.

Further - already into the cargo compartment of the liner - things rise along self-propelled belt conveyor. This is a long moving track on wheels that carries suitcases to the movers. The tape holds a ton of personal items.

While the equipment is handling passengers' bags, they remain safe. But it still cannot be done without manual labor. There are people taking suitcases in the cargo hold of the plane. It is at this stage that the handles usually come off and the zippers break.

The loader can carefully place the suitcase, or he can throw it further away so that it hits the wall. Here, the airline, not the airport, is responsible for the people's work.

AERODROME UTILITIES

In any weather - be it a snowstorm or a hurricane - the runway must be clean. And it needs to be cleaned up quickly - you can’t ban takeoffs and landings for a long time, because the airfield is covered in snow.

Airfields maintain very special utility vehicles. Ordinary city sweepers would not work for them.

So, trailed plow-brush machine capable of clearing two lanes of a car at a time (this is for comparison). A long brush sweeps away everything in its path. A team of 16 such cleaners clears a runway 70 meters wide and 3.5 kilometers long in 15 minutes. Eh, the same pace would apply to city streets.

There is also a special one in Domodedovo blowing machine. It's basically a giant hairdryer on wheels. The equipment travels along the runway and blows away any debris with a powerful air stream. The equipment guarantees cleanliness if the brushes miss something.

In winter, the airfield is treated with special reagents. They quickly melt the ice and at the same time have almost no effect on the metal - it was not enough for the fuselage to be corroded by chemicals.

Such compounds could also be used on ordinary roads. But they are too expensive.

After processing the strip with reagents, it goes friction coefficient measuring machine. It shows how well the wheels will grip the concrete when braking.

There is a measuring wheel on a small trailer that rolls behind the car. It simulates the braking mode of the chassis. If it turns out that the runway is too slippery, the controller may prohibit landing at the airport altogether.

Airport structure: all equipment

28/02/2015

When a passenger arrives at the airport, he usually sees check-in counters, a waiting room and a Duty-Free store. Everyone, of course, realizes that this is a very complex organism from an engineering and technical point of view, but they rarely pay attention to the various ingenious machines. And some of them simply remain invisible to the average passenger. And there are very, very many of them, and today we will show you them using the example of the airport (Kaliningrad).

All photos can be clicked to enlarge. Under each photo there is a description. Well, let's fly!

In front of us is an airport tractor with a carrier attached to it. Not a carrier, but a carrier: this is the name given to an object that looks like a long yellow pipe. A tractor is needed to tow aircraft, and most often the aircraft is not pulled, but pushed: after all, it can move forward under its own power due to the thrust of the engines, but not backwards. Reverse mode is used for braking after landing.

Apron buses are used to transport passengers to aircraft located in so-called “remote stands”. And back. No matter how many jet bridges there are, there are usually more aircraft at the airport at the same time. And many types of aircraft cannot be serviced at the airstairs at all - for example, small aircraft with an airstairs built directly into the door.

However, the telescopic ladder itself is widely adjustable in both height and reach, and also moves left and right along the apron. Freedom in three dimensions allows you to service most types of aircraft, while the soft “accordion” (corrugation) at the very end fits tightly to the fuselage to protect passengers from wind, rain and cold.

Driving a ladder is no more difficult than driving a tractor (and it is registered with the traffic police as a tractor). There is even a “downshift” that is used when docking with an airplane to carefully approach it close to touching down.

These van trucks also drive up to the plane before touching down. They are used to load in-flight catering carts and unload them back. The truck drives up to the plane, the body rises to the required height, and the carts roll across the “bridge.”

The trolley is used to transport luggage. Now we see how sandbags are loaded into the bomb bay: they are dropped as they gain altitude to reduce the weight of the aircraft. (In fact, this, of course, is simply cargo accepted for transportation in addition to passengers’ luggage. Yes, yes, cargo flies not only on cargo planes).
A tanker can be seen behind the plane.

A tractor at the airport is provided in case of cancellation of international flights 😉

And the rest of the time he just transports carts and other equipment.

Mirrored disco balls are hung throughout the airfield as bait for DJs. In this case, world stars of the dance scene are more willing to fly on tour. Some even have the rider indicating the required number of disco balls at the arrival airport.
It also turned out that the disco ball is also a good fumigator for scaring away birds. To enhance the effect, dubstep plays from loudspeakers located near the runway. It is believed that it imitates the calls of birds of prey, gunshots, etc. That's why scarecrows are not installed at airports. There are also no rattles to repel moles. Therefore, the entire space between the taxiways is dotted with cozy holes ^_^

Ilya Shatilin

No other word came to my mind to call this place other than a cemetery, although
official name of the location - "Training airfield of the Samara State Aerospace University named after Academician S.P. Korolev" Before perestroika - KuAI training airfield. There are decommissioned aircraft of various types here. Students and university staff use them for educational purposes.

This place is located on the territory of the Smyshlyaevsky airfield.


The SSAU airfield originally belonged to the Department of Operation of Military Equipment and was built for practical training in 1942. Until 1962, the airfield trained Air Force specialists - aircraft technicians and navigators. They brought there mostly old, decommissioned aircraft.

Currently, the airfield is used mainly by the Department of Aviation Equipment Operations. The most popular types of aircraft in the training process are An-2(classes with first year students), Mi-8T(second year), Yak-42 And Tu-154B-2(third year). The rest of the equipment is in storage, much of it is in poor condition, rusting and falling into disrepair. Practical classes for students are held in the summer.


Almost all the equipment arrived under its own power at the Bezymyanka airfield and was towed to this site. Some cars arrived at Smyshlyaevka airport. But due to the lack of proper technical control and care, they lost the ability to take off independently and fell into disrepair. Although many systems are still operational and used for educational purposes. The area is fenced and guarded, but for a small fee you can negotiate and go in to have a look.

In total, at the time of the visit (September 2015), there were about 20 vehicles at the airfield.

L-410UVP


Released in January 1980 in the Czech Republic. Intended to transport passengers, mail and cargo. The first foreign-made aircraft approved for flights in the USSR. In 1994 it was transported to the SSAU airfield.

Yak-42

Produced in 1976. In storage since 1982. Used by SSAU staff for student internships. The plane is partially operational. According to some information, this board was landed on the ground in Smyshlyaevka by Hero of the Soviet Union Savitskaya S.E.

An-12B

Released in 1962, decommissioned in December 1976. The reason for decommissioning was the completion of the assigned flight life. Now it serves as a teaching aid; fifth-year students of the Faculty of Air Transport Engineers of SSAU conduct laboratory work on it.

Tu-104E

The first prototype of the Tu-104E, manufactured in 1959, decommissioned in 1966. In 1960, the crew of pilot Kovalev set the last world record for this type of vehicle on the Tu-104E, flying a distance of 2000 km with a load of 15 tons at an average speed of 959.94 km/ h.

Tu-154B-2

One of the most efficient aircraft at the test site. Released in 1969, in storage since 1975. It was the first aircraft of its class to take off (the first two sides were destroyed during the testing stage). After the destruction of the aircraft exhibited at the All-Russian Exhibition Center, it remains the only surviving prototype. Used for internship of 3rd year students of the Faculty of Air Transport Engineers.

Tu-154M

Released in 1990. In 2013, Utair airline transferred this aircraft, which was reaching the end of its service life, to SSAU for training purposes. The aircraft arrived at Bezymyanka airfield on April 29, 2013. On March 28, 2014, the crew of test pilot Ruben Yesayan performed a unique flight on this aircraft from the Bezymyanka airfield to the Smyshlyaevka landing site located directly next to it. The difficulty of the flight was that the Smyshlyaevka airfield was closed in 2012, and the length of its runway (1200 m) is almost half the minimum required runway length for normal operation of the Tu-154M (2200 m).

Photo of the last landing - from here

Tu-144S


Made its first flight in 1975, in storage since 1987. Participated in state tests, during which it performed 50 flights for 68 hours. Carried mail. It is closed to visitors even for SSAU students, although excursions used to be taken inside.

Il-14M

First flight - 1957, decommissioned in 1988. Teachers, training airfield staff and students maintain the aircraft in good condition. All aircraft systems are operational. In July 2013, the aircraft was hoisted, the landing gear and mechanization race was carried out, and the right engine was started. USSR Defense Minister Grechko flew on this plane.

Li-2T


There was no information about him except for the model years 1939-1953

An-14 "Bee"

Model production years: 1965-1972. Has been in storage since the early 2000s.

An-2TP

In operation since the end of 1965, decommissioned in 1988 after completing its assigned life.

Produced in 1966. At the end of 1992 the plane was donated by the Syktyvkar Aviation Enterprise to the Samara Aviation Institute in honor of the 50th anniversary of the university.

The remaining aircraft were produced in the late 60s and decommissioned in the late 80s and early 90s.

Mi-24A

The model was produced in 1971-1973. It became the first Soviet and second in the world specialized combat helicopter. It has many modifications and has been exported to many countries around the world. This device arrived at the airfield from the Federal State Unitary Enterprise KBAS, where it worked on testing aircraft landing systems.

Mi-2


Soviet multi-purpose helicopter. Produced in 1965-1992. The model has been successfully used for both civilian and military purposes. In storage, some systems are working.

Mi-8T(TV)

Manufactured in 1973, decommissioned in 1970 due to exhaustion.

Mi-8T(TV)


Manufactured in 1974, decommissioned in 1991. The reason is the exhaustion of the resource.

Mi-8T(TV)


The first flight took place in 1972. The service life ended in 1988.

Mi-8T(TV)


Manufactured in 1974, decommissioned in 1989 after completing its intended service life.

Mi-8T(TV)


Year of manufacture 1974, decommissioned in 1979.

Mi-6

In service from 1964 to 1995. At the time of decommissioning, it had the longest total flight time among the Mi-6, about 21,000 hours. Suffered an accident in the taiga in February 1982. During takeoff, I got caught in a snow storm. The crew collided with trees around the site. The helicopter was seriously damaged. During restoration, it was supplemented by decommissioned and damaged aircraft.

There are also several units of special equipment at the airfield.

fuel tanker

Fire department

In general, this airfield could turn out to be a wonderful civil aviation museum. Not far from the city (from the OT stop about one kilometer on foot), there are many interesting exhibits, some of which are unique. The same 100-150 rubles that security charges for entry is an acceptable price for a ticket.

As we already wrote, on April 12, 13 and 14, another spotting was carried out at Domodedovo airport. We bring to your attention a short photo report, not about airplanes, although they, of course, will be in the frame, but about ground workers - the equipment that makes it possible for airplanes and you and me to fly safely.

Welcome to Domodedovo Airport!

Passengers get to the plane either through a boarding bridge or by riding an airport bus. You won't find such buses in cities; they work at airports.

The buses have a very low seating position and are very roomy. There are not many seats in them, since the journey is very short - from the airport to the plane. There are flashing lights on the roofs, like most special vehicles.

Buses take passengers directly to the plane. In order to board the plane or go down from there to the bus, a ladder is used.

A ladder is also a machine. Ladder on wheels.

But, of course, it’s not just buses and ramps that approach the planes. The plane needs to be filled with fuel, water, and oxygen.

Passengers' luggage must be brought and loaded to the plane.

The small tractor-trailer looks unusual, but there is something attractive and memorable about it.

Of course, it is more convenient to transport luggage in containers. This speeds up the loading and unloading process and ensures better luggage safety. Most often they do this.

Baggage is lifted into the cargo compartment using conveyors.

Sometimes cargo is lifted on board small aircraft using a lift, which is a cabin that can rise up several meters:

If the plane is loaded and all passengers are seated, then anti-icing preparations need to be carried out. There are special machines for this.

The plane is ready to fly. Now you can go to the runway. Sometimes the assistance of a tractor is required, especially if the aircraft needs to be reversed a little.

The tractors are squat and very powerful.

Such a tractor can tow huge aircraft. I would like to compare tractors with hard-working ants, who drag a load several dozen times heavier than themselves.

The cargo modification of the “humpbacked” Boeing 747-400F weighs 180 tons, the maximum take-off weight is almost 400 tons.

The runways and the entire airfield are regularly cleaned and washed. In any weather and at any time of the year, the coating must be kept in perfect condition.

From the side, each of these cars looks like this:

The plane is escorted to the runway and from the runway to the passenger disembarkation area by small, nimble cars. An example can be seen at the beginning of the report.
At first glance, these are ordinary cars. But look closely, they don’t have the usual license plates. That's right, these cars don't leave the airport.

When the escort vehicles are not occupied, they return to the parking lot, but are ready to leave at any time.

That's it, the plane can take off and fly along its route.

And nearby, there is a car on standby number one, ready to take off in response to an emergency call. This is a fire truck, but not the kind they drive in the city.

The main difference is the very powerful water cannons, from which water flies out in a targeted jet over several tens of meters.

Of course, not all types of transport serving the airport are presented in the report. But it’s time for us to go home, so we say goodbye to the airport and go to the parking lot. From there we will be taken by the usual minibuses.

See you soon, Domodedovo!

It seems like not so long ago our lives changed dramatically. We flew in domestic cars, plowing the endless expanses of the CIS on TUs, Yaks and ILs. But, gradually, first as rare guests, and then more and more confidently, other cars began to appear on airlines. At first we were happy when we had the chance to fly on Boeing or Airbus. But only a few years passed, and guests from abroad became almost absolute masters. And the winged cars familiar from childhood suddenly found themselves “lay up” on the outskirts of airports, meekly awaiting their fate

I don’t want to be misunderstood, I don’t feel any negativity towards the products of European and American aircraft manufacturers. I just want to remember what life was like as a frequent flyer just a few years ago. In this post I posted several photographs of airliners that, until recently, worked hard, but are now abandoned and forgotten. Let's start, perhaps, with Ulyanovsk

5 years ago I flew on an IL-86 plane to Kazantip. And now one of the most beautiful and amazing domestic airliners stands on the outskirts of airports, awaiting its fate

Samara

I flew on these airliners 4 times a week, buying tickets with a 50% discount (using a student card from Samara State Aerospace University). I discovered another world for myself, and the now defunct Samara airline helped me in this. For the sake of this photo I flew to Samara for official spotting

Volgograd

There was also an air carrier here. Volga-AviaExpress airlines stopped flying just over 2 years ago. Quite recently, I was lucky enough to photograph a lonely TU-134, previously operated in the fleet of this airline. There was also a tragic page in the history of Volga-AviaExpress. On August 24, 2004, a Tu-134 aircraft (registration number RA-65080) was blown up in the air by a suicide bomber 26 minutes after takeoff...

Here on the airfield you can find a huge number of timeless classics. :) Whether it flies or not, I don’t know

Saratov

Will these machines ever take to the skies? Very beautiful exterior design of the aircraft

Ekaterinburg, Koltsovo

Scrolling through my friend’s feed a few weeks ago, I came across photographs of a large accumulation of carcasses and sludge waiting to be “cut” at the fence of Koltsovo airport. I really want to fly to Yekaterinburg and film what’s left. If one of my friends living in Yekaterinburg or surrounding cities joins me, I’ll get together much faster

Moscow, Sheremetyevo

This shot was taken from a bus delivering Aeroexpress passengers along the “inner perimeter” to terminal “B”. IL-62. A car of incredible beauty and grace.

Kazan

If you fly to this city, ask for seat A at check-in. When landing, you will be able to photograph through the window a huge number of domestic airliners standing on the grass along the runway