PZL-106 Kruk

The PZL-106 Kruk is a single-seat agricultural aircraft, a braced low-wing monoplane, designed by a team led by M.Sc. Eng. Andrzej Frydrychewicz as the successor to the PZL-101 Gawron. The aircraft, whose design began in the second half of the 1960s, is intended for both agricultural aviation work and ensuring the safety of its crew. For this reason, it was equipped with a cable cutter for severing power lines and a steel deflector cable, which is an interesting technical solution. The Kruk's structure features wings with duralumin skin, a forward fuselage reinforced with sheet metal, and a rear section with a steel truss framework. It has interchangeable modules, allowing it to be adapted for various tasks such as spraying, dusting, or fertilizer spreading. The first prototype took to the air in 1973, and the aircraft underwent a series of modifications, including several versions with different engines, which affected its performance and handling characteristics. During production, which lasted until the end of the 1980s and resumed in 1995, 266 units of the Kruk were built, including firefighting versions. Its flight characteristics, particularly after the introduction of engines with reducers, were positively evaluated by pilots, and the Kruk gained a reputation as a good agricultural aircraft, also appreciated by users in Germany. The aircraft is notable for its variety of versions and applications, making it an interesting subject in the history of Polish aviation.