June 2, 2011: The Russian Air Force has ordered seven An-140 twin turboprop transports from Ukraine. Since introduced in 2007, the An-140 has been used as a civilian aircraft (it can carry 52 passengers). The An-140s sold to Russia will be modified for military use. The civilian version sells for about $9 million each, but a militarized version (sturdier landing gear, more electronics, configured to carry cargo) could increase the price to about $12 million. This is about half the price of a similar Western aircraft. That economy comes at a cost, as four of the 28 An-140s delivered so far have crashed. However, two of those were An-140s built under license in Iran. 

The 19 ton An-140 has a range of 1,300 kilometers and a cruise speed of 460 kilometers an hour. The military version will probably be able to carry about five tons of cargo. There are 34 An-140s on order from several countries. Russia is buying them, in part, to improve diplomatic and economic relations with Ukraine.