Ukrainian Air Force received overhauled An-26KPA aircraft.

The Ukrainian Air Force received a modernized laboratory aircraft An-26KPA on Friday, the Ukrainian government-run Ukrinform news agency said. The aircraft, which has been upgraded at Kiev Aircraft Repair Plant 410, is designed to inspect the work of radar equipment at airfields, the agency said.

The An-26KPA aircraft recently handed over to Ukrainian Air Force
(Credit: Ukraine President Press Office)

The An-26KPA aircraft was personnaly handed over to the Ukrainian Air Force by the country's President Petro Poroshenko. The aircraft was delivered on the occasion of the Kiev Aircraft Repair Plant 410 70th anniversary. 

"I am convinced that there will be other planes repaired and raised to the skies by professionals from the 410th plant, and, in the course of reforming the Ukrainian defense industry, your enterprise will be strategic for the Ukroboronprom aviation cluster", Poroshenko said. 

The An-26KPA is a modification of the Soviet-developed An-26 twin-engine civilian and military transport aircraft, which has a maximum range of 2,500 km, and a maximum speed of 440 km per hour. It is mainly designed for navigation aids inspection h thanks to comprehensive navigation equipment and calibration equipment.

An estimated 20 planes of the An-26KPA type are operating around the globe.