Aircraft & UAVs

An-2 unmanned decoy / converted UCAV

The An-2 unmanned decoy / converted UCAV was an improvised Azerbaijani adaptation of the Soviet Antonov An-2 utility biplane. In the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, Azerbaijani forces used converted An-2s as expendable unmanned aircraft to enter Armenian air-defense engagement zones, draw fire, and help reveal targets for other UAVs and loitering munitions, with some reporting that crashed examples carried explosive payloads.

Conflict side
Azerbaijan
Built by
Antonov Design Bureau (base airframe); Azerbaijani conversion authority not publicly identified
Built in
Soviet UnionUkraine (base airframe); Azerbaijan (conversion)
An-2 unmanned decoy / converted UCAV, Converted unmanned decoy aircraft / improvised UCAV, Aircraft & UAVs

Profile

Type
Converted unmanned decoy aircraft / improvised UCAV
Conflict side
Azerbaijan
Origin
Soviet Union; converted and operated by Azerbaijan
Service note
Base An-2 introduced in the late 1940s; Azerbaijani unmanned conversion documented in the 2020 war

Service History

In service
Converted examples documented in Azerbaijani use during the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war
Used by
Azerbaijani Armed Forces
Wars
Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict

Production History

Designer
Oleg Antonov / OKB-153
Designed
1947 first flight for the base An-2
Built by
Antonov Design Bureau (base airframe); Azerbaijani conversion authority not publicly identified
Built in
Soviet UnionUkraine (base airframe); Azerbaijan (conversion)
Unit cost
Not publicly reported for the conversion
Produced
Base An-2 production from the late 1940s through later Soviet, Polish, and Chinese production runs
Number built
An-2 family produced in very large numbers; converted Azerbaijani decoy total not confirmed
Variants
Converted unmanned decoy aircraft, Reported explosive/one-way attack conversion, Antonov An-2 base utility biplane

Specifications

Base airframe
Antonov An-2 single-engine biplane utility aircraft
Conversion
Field conversion from crewed aircraft into an unmanned decoy or improvised attack UAS; exact control package not publicly identified
Engine
1,000 hp class Shvetsov ASh-62 radial engine on the base aircraft
Wingspan
About 59.7 ft / 18.2 m
Length
About 46 ft / 14 m
Maximum speed
About 157 mph / 253 km/h for the base An-2
Range
About 562 miles / 904 km for the base An-2
Payload or armament
Not standardized; Armenian reporting and wreck imagery cited explosive payloads on some converted aircraft

Conflict Usage

Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict
Side: AzerbaijanRole: Unmanned decoy and air-defense exposure aircraftUAVreconnaissancestrike

Azerbaijan fielded converted Soviet-era An-2 biplanes during the 2020 war as unmanned decoys to draw Armenian air-defense fire and expose radar or launcher positions; Armenian and Artsakh sources also reported some downed aircraft carried explosive payloads.

An-2 unmanned decoy / converted UCAV Images

Related Weapon Systems

Sources