Antonov An-26T Curl (52+09) as used by the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) at the Luftwaffenmuseum, Berlin-Gatow (Germany)
This An-26T flew from 1980 to October 1990 in the East German Air Force (Luftstreitkräfte der Nationalen Volksarmee) as 369.
And flew as the last An-26T of the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) in June 1994 directly to the museum at Berlin-Gatow.
The Antonov An-26 (NATO reporting name: Curl) is a twin-engined turboprop civilian and military transport aircraft, designed and produced in the Soviet Union from 1969 to 1986. The Antonov An-26 was the standard short-range Soviet tactical transport during the latter half of the Cold War. Developed from the previous An-24 design, it was first Soviet military transport aircraft to have a fully pressurised cargo hold. Production ended in 1986 after about 1410 An-26s had been built, most of them for military operators. The An-26T is the unofficial East German designation for An-26s operated by Transportfliegerstaffel 24 (24th Transport Squadron) at Dresden-Klotzsche.
The Luftwaffenmuseum, now known as the Militärhistorisches Museum (MHM) der Bundeswehr - Flugplatz Berlin-Gatow
(Bundeswehr Museum of Military History - Berlin-Gatow Airfield), is the Berlin branch of the Bundeswehr Military History Museum. The museum acts as an independent military department. Entrance to the museum is free. The museum is in Berlin at a former Luftwaffe and Royal Air Force (RAF) airfield, RAF Gatow. The focus is on military history, particularly the history of the post-war German Air Force. The museum has a collection of more than 200.000 items, including 155 aeroplanes, 5.000 uniforms and 30.000 books. There are also displays (including aeroplanes) on the history of the airfield when it was used by the RAF. Although there are also several helicopters and MiG fighters used during the Cold War by East German forces.