ernational, 28 November (968

901

The Galebdistinctive with its tip tanks and lack of dihedral. Note the. airbrake under the centre fuselage

Soko Galeb and Jastreb

Training and strike twins from Jugoslavia
the city of Mostar in
the district of Hercegovina and Bosnia sports the prettiest
girls in the country. In keeping with this happy tradition,
it is also the home of the elegant Galeb trainer and its equally
attractive but more warlike development the Jastreb; the Soko
factory, where the two aircraft are built, is located on the
southern side of the ancient city. Soko has been established
in Mostar since 1951, following the setting up some five years
previously of a national aircraft industry based on the incorporation of the old Rogojarsky, Ikarus and Zmaj organisations.
The Galeb was first seen outside Jugoslavia at the 1963 Paris
Air Show. It appeared again, together with the Jastreb, at
the Farnborough Show last September. The two aircraft were
qualified to do so by virtue of the large proportion of British
equipment which each contains.
To the United Kingdom, the Galeb and Jastreb projects
represent both a considerable contribution to the export trade
the current Rolls-Royce Bristol Viper order alone is valued
at around 6 millionand also a fruitful exercise in AngloJugoslav collaboration in the aviation field. As already
mentioned, much of the ancillary equipment has been supplied
by Britain, including ejector seats and radio and navigational
equipment.
Design of the Galeb was initiated in 1957; two prototypes
were built and the first flight took place in May 1961. Like
its Viper-powered counterpart across the Adriatic, the Macchi
MB.326, the philosophy behind the Galeb has been the
production of a refined aircraft capable of meeting the requirements of ab initio, intermediate and advanced instruction.
Both prototypes, and subsequent production aircraft, were
powered by a Bristol Engines Division Viper II Mark 22/6
engine of 2,5001b thrust. This choice was dictated by an overall
need for simplicity and robustness, modest turbine entry
temperatures, ease of airframe installation and, above all, the
"act that the inevitable rough handling encountered in flying
training was unlikely to cause malfunctioning or serviceability
headaches. No details are available of how the Galeb is,
ntegrated into the existing flying training pattern of the
CCORDING TO A JUGOSLAV BALLAD

Jugoslav Air Force, although the majority of pilots under

training are using the aircraft.
It is logical to restrict to a minimum the number of aircraft
types needed for training purposes. And for this reason it is
essential to have a trainer capable of covering the broad range
Continued on page 904, after cutaway drawing of Galeb

The Galeb (nearest camera) and Jastreb made their first visit
Britain last September to participate in the Farnborough Show

to

"Flight" phocograph