PZL I-22 Iryda

what is it?

The PZL I-22 Iryda, otherwise known as the PZL M93 Iryda and PZL M96 Iryda, was a twin-engine, two-seat military jet trainer aircraft developed and produced by Polish aviation company PZL Mielec. Work started on what would become the Iryda in 1976 as a successor to the indigenously-developed TS-11 Iskra jet trainer. First flying on 3 March 1985, the type would have a protracted development, partly due to the initial unavailability of its PZL K-15 turbojet engines.

🔎How to recognise it: 2 jet engines · 9.6 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 940 km/htop speed
• range 1,200 kmwithout refuelling
• size 7,500 kgmax take-off weight
• built 8made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

• 🎂First flew 41 years ago, in 1985.
• 🏎️Top speed is 7.2× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
• 🚗Wingspan of 9.6 m: about 2 cars parked nose to tail.
• 🌍Range of 1,200 km: 7× Amsterdam to Brussels.
• 🏔️Can fly 1.5× higher than Mount Everest (8,849 m).

jet: Gas turbine pushing air out the back (turbofan or turbojet): fast and high-flying.

spec sheet

first flight

1985-03-03

introduced

1992

retired

1996

status

retired

number built

8

role

jet trainer

origin

🇵🇱 Poland

makers

PZL Mielec

engines

2× PZL K-15

crew

2

length

13.2 m

wingspan

9.6 m

height

4.3 m

max take-off weight

7,500 kg

top speed

940 km/h

range

1,200 km

ceiling

13,700 m

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.