The Yak-12 was designed by Alexander Yakovlev's team to meet a requirement of the Soviet Air Force of 1944 for a new liaison and utility plane, to replace the obsolete Po-2 biplane.

It was also meant to be used in civil aviation as a successor to Yakovlev's AIR-6 of 1934, built in a relatively small series.

It won the competition with a low-wing Yak-13, based on the same fuselage, and a series of 40 Yak-10s were produced,[1] powered with a 108 kW (145 hp) Shvetsov M-11M radial engine.

This was fitted with a more powerful 119 kW (160 hp) M-11FR, a new wing and undercarriage, and a fuselage with a revised shape (lower tail).

[2] 788 of the basic variant were produced, including military observation planes, some Yak-12S air ambulances, Yak-12SKh agricultural aircraft and Yak-12GR floatplanes.

It took a pilot and 3 passengers and could be fitted with dual controls for training, a stretcher for an ambulance role or an agricultural spraying device.

Yak-12s first entered service in the Soviet Air Force as a liaison and artillery observation plane.

On July 12, 2012, a Yak-12 chartered by Canada's Kinross Gold Corporation, crashed shortly after takeoff from an airport in Nouakchott, Mauritania.

There was a four-seat cabin (in early variants of Yak-12 – 2 or 3 seats), and a conventional fixed landing gear with tail wheel.

Data from OKB Yakovlev,[5] Soviet Transport Aircraft since 1945[6]General characteristics Performance