07278 PZL-104 WILGA-35 POLISH AIRCRAFT WITH FLOTATION GEARS

The PZL-104 Wilga is a modern, single-engine, multipurpose and sports aircraft of Polish production, in the high-wing system with a fixed undercarriage. The drive was provided by various engines, depending on the version - in the Wilga 35A model it was a single Ivchenko AI-14RA engine with a capacity of 260 HP. The prototype flight took place in 1962. Serial production was carried out in the years 1962-2008. In its course, 998 aircraft of this type were built in Poland. The unit cost of such a machine is estimated at 235 thousand. dollars by 2006 prices. The Wilga was constructed at the WSK Okęcie Aviation Design Center in a team led by Eng. Ryszard Orłowski. Originally, the main task of the PZL-104 was to tow gliders and take out parachute jumpers. However, the plane turned out to be so successful, and its design so susceptible to modernization that many development versions were created, among them it is worth mentioning, among others the following models: Wilga 35H (seaplane), Wilga 35P (version of the liaison aircraft used in the Polish armed forces), Wilga 35R (agricultural aircraft) or Wilga 35S (sanitary version). Aircraft of this type were also widely exported to, for example, Austria, Belgium, Egypt, Spain and the USSR. Wilga planes were also produced under license in Indonesia.