An airline is judged by several indicators, in particular by how large its fleet is. Aeroflot today does not occupy the first place in the international ranking, but for many decades it has held the lead in the number of aircraft.
The Dobrolet Society, established in 1923, was engaged in air transportation, operating German-made Fokker airplanes. Meanwhile, the aircraft industry of the young Soviet Republic was developing rapidly, despite numerous difficulties and a lack of personnel.
In just a decade and a half, starting in 1932, the Soviet air fleet became the largest air carrier in the world. This is not surprising, under socialism there was no competition, the monopoly in the field of air transportation, as in other spheres of economic activity, was the state that owned the fleet. Aeroflot was distinguished by such technical diversity that no other airline could afford.
Since 1932, domestic aircraft were used to transport passengers inside the USSR. In the same year, the new official name of the Soviet airline was established.
The fleet of Aeroflot aircraft in the post-war decade was mainly made up of Li-2 airliners, which, under an American license, began to be mass-produced since 1939.
Each generation of aircraft in the Soviet Union was built in large, by world standards, circulations. The “workhorse" carrying the lion's share of passengers on medium highways was also the Il-14, which then replaced the An-24. Between the big cities, jet liners Tu-104, Tu-134 and Tu-154 cruised, replacing Ily-18. All these aircraft were produced not only for the Soviet airline. The civil aviation of the German Democratic Republic (Interflug), Poland (Lot), Hungary (Malev), Cuba (Aero Carribian) and many other countries, and not only socialist ones, were equipped with well-proven equipment produced in the USSR and making up a huge fleet of aircraft. Aeroflot, however, was the main customer of our aviation industry.
In addition to celestial workaholics, unique record-breaking aircraft plowed the sky on international airlines. Intercontinental communications for a long time provided the Tu-114 and IL-62, originally created to transport government delegations. Tu-144 became one of two passenger mass-produced supersonic aircraft. Cargo transportation was provided by super-heavy transporters, created for military needs, but useful in civilian affairs (An-22, An-124, An-225, Il-76, VM-T). On the sides of the fuselage they carried with restrained dignity the same winged emblem "hammer and sickle" and the inscription "Aeroflot". Fleet was as unique as the machines themselves, its components.
Today, Russian Airlines, retaining its former abbreviated name, operates a variety of equipment, some of which are purchased abroad, including Boeing and Airbus. However, the flagship of the domestic air fleet is considered Il-96. Aeroflot, which values passenger reviews today as highly as ever in the Soviet past, can be proud of this machine. No wonder it was she who became the presidential board.