Valmet Vinka & Redigo

The domestic Valmet L-70 Vinka entered the Air Force's service in 1980, replacing the Safir as an elementary school aircraft. Vinka's development work in the late 1970s took five years, but the end result was an elementary school machine that proved to be durable and usable after more than 40 years of use. With it, more pilots received basic and basic flight training in the Air Force than with any other type of aircraft in the Air Force.

The L-90 TP Redigo, developed as a school plane by Valmet as its own project, was sold to the Air Force as a liaison plane to support the factory's export efforts in 1989. As a result of initial difficulties and seven years of development work, the Redigo was made airworthy. In the Air Force, it initially complemented and then replaced Piper Arrows as a reliable high-speed liaison aircraft for 22 years between 1992 and 2013.

Engineer lieutenant colonel Jyrki Laukkanen had a rare professional opportunity to work for the Air Force as a project test pilot in the development and type approval of both Vinka and Redigo. Vinka accumulated over 2,000 hours of flight experience and Redigo over 1,000 hours.

NOTE!! The publication of the book has been moved to 2022 as Vinka continues to be used. The book will only be published when the machines have been taken out of use and the information in the book has been updated.

• Hardcover
• 210 x 297 mm
• 224 pages
• 479 photographs