Югославский учебно-штурмовик SOKO Galeb: История и применение

{|Infobox Aircraft Type
|type = Jet trainer and ground attack
|national origin = Yugoslavia
|manufacturer = SOKO
|design group y = Aeronautical Technical Institute
|first flight = 3 July 1961
|introduced =
|retired =
|status = Limited service
|primary user = Yugoslav Air Force
Libyan Air Force
|more users =
|produced = 1965–1985
|number built = 248
|unit cost = $150,000 (1968) It also served as a basis for the single seat ground attack J 21 Jastreb. The RV i PVO took delivery of 128 aircraft that were used by the Air Force Academy for training new pilots. The second largest operator of the Galeb was Libya, which acquired over 100 aircraft during the 1970s. A small number were also acquired by Zaire, Zambia and Indonesia. During the breakup of Yugoslavia, the Galebs were used for ground attack sorties in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. By 1992, RV i PVO G 2s relocated to Serbia and Montenegro, where they operated with the Air Force of the new Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The aircraft remained in service until 1999, when the majority of them were destroyed on ground during the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia. The Libyan Air Force's G 2s were used during the Libyan Civil War by Gaddafi forces, with an unknown number surviving the war and being reported in service as late as 2013. A single aircraft remains in service with the Technical Test Center of the Serbian Armed Forces. A number of aircraft are still flown by civilians as warbirds, including the private aerobatic team "Stars" from Novi Sad.

In 1957, Yugoslavia's VTI (Aeronautical Technical Institute) commenced design work on the aircraft, which would later receive the name Galeb. The principal purpose for the development of the Galeb was to produce a domestic replacement for the American built Lockheed T 33 Shooting Star, which at the time was the most commonly used jet trainer aircraft in use by the Yugoslav Air Force; the Galeb was to be capable of meeting the varied qualities and requirements involved in performing ab initio, intermediate, and advanced instructional training missions. The Galeb was developed as a collaborative effort between Yugoslavia and the United Kingdom, and reportedly contributed significantly to the export value of the latter;. The G 2 Galeb made its first appearance outside of Yugoslavia at the 1963 Paris Air Show. The aircraft is flown by a crew of two, typically a candidate pilot and an instructor, which are seated in a tandem cockpit layout, the candidate being typically placed in the forward position; both crew members are provided with Folland Type 1 B lightweight ejector seats. The Galeb is powered by a single Armstrong Siddeley Viper II Mark 22/6 turbojet engine, capable of providing up to 2,500lb of thrust. In the absence of a pressurized cabin, the aircraft's practical ceiling is between 7,000 (22,800 ft) and 9,000 m (29,000 ft). According to Soko, a pressurised cabin was developed by 1968 for the Galeb and was made available to customers. The Galeb is readily capable of performing ground attack missions in addition to its training role, being fitted with underwing hardpoints that are compatible with a range of munitions, such as bombs and rockets, along with 12.7mm machine guns; to conduct reconnaissance missions, camera equipment could also be installed upon for the aircraft.

The G 2 A Galeb was the standard version operated by the Yugoslav Air Force. They were used primarily for school combat training of VVA (Military Air Force Academy) cadets, thus the largest number of these aircraft was located within the VVA units. By 1968, the Galeb was reportedly being used for the training of the majority of the Yugoslav Air Force's pilots.

The G 2 A Galeb saw extensive combat use by the 105th Fighter Bomber Regiment of the Yugoslav Air Force over Bosnia Herzegovina during the Bosnian War. United Nations personnel stationed in Croatia observed multiple Galebs depart Udbina in Serb controlled territory to conduct strike missions.

According to some reports, France and Yugoslavia supported Mobutu's government during the First Congo War. Namely, Yugoslavia agreed to dispatch three J 21 and one G 2 aircraft, as well as four MiG 21PFMs, while three Mi 24s were purchased from Ukraine and sent to the region as well. All these aircraft were based at Gbadolite Airport in the Nord Ubangi District, and were flown mainly by Serbian mercenaries. With few exceptions, it remains unknown exactly what happened with each of these aircraft and how were they used after their arrival in Zaire in late 1996 1997. In the case of Mi 24s it is known that one hit a power line and crashed on 27 March 1997, killing the three crewmen and four passengers. The fate of at least one J 21 Jastreb was not much better: Ratko Turčinović, one of the Serbian mercenaries, was killed while flying an ultra low level pass over Gbadolite and clipping a lamp post with his wing. The wreckage of his aircraft fell directly onto a column of young soldiers on a parade, causing dozens of deaths amongst them. Turčinović is alleged to have fallen victim to a personal alcohol problem. After this event, the Serbs were expelled and the Jastrebs and Galebs were abandoned along with the MiG 21s and two Mi 24s which were meant to be put together by group of Russian or Ukrainian technicians at Gbadolite but the assembly work was never completed.

The Libyan Air Force was a prolific operator of the type; by 2002, it reportedly possessed a total of 80 G 2 Galeb aircraft remaining in its inventory. The type was used extensively during the 2011 Libyan civil war by government forces fighting against a popular uprising centered in the Eastern region of Libya. Forces loyal to Libyan leader Colonel Gaddafi used the type to routinely perform ground attack missions upon rebel forces. On 24 March 2011, one G 2 Galeb was destroyed after landing by a French Air Force Dassault Rafale after it had violated the declared No Fly Zone over Misrata. The following day, a further five G 2 aircraft together with two Mil Mi 35 helicopters were reportedly destroyed by French combat aircraft operating in the same area; satellite imagery later revealed that these five aircraft had in fact been Mikoyan Gurevich MiG 23 fighters instead. During the current Second Libyan Civil War, Islamist forces from Libya Dawn (led by the unrecognized new General National Congress based in Tripoli) are reported to have two to four Galebs in service. However, their actual operational status is hard to determine.

Before the Yugoslav Wars, at least a dozen Galebs were purchased by American warbird dealers, and several are still on the civil register today. Other operators are located in Indonesia, Serbia, New Zealand, Slovenia and the United States. It's been also used in Air combat scenes of the Aces: Iron Eagle III movie.