Part of the Graingy Christmas Special.
Other part: The Christmas (sort of) Saved by Kindness (Whether she intended to or not)

Ho Ho-

Oh?
What’s this?

It’s the SAN-74 “Candygram”!

This classic Graingy airlifter is designed to operate from extreme conditions with minimal servicing, perfect for remote locations and colder climates!
Capable of hauling over 25 tonnes into air, it may not be fast or high-flying, but it sure is reliable!
It’s swing-open nose and large cargo bay permit the transport of even high-volume cargo, including vehicles such as snowmobiles and sleighs.

Originally put into production all the way back in 1974, it’s once again ready to take to the skies 49 years later!

The SAN-74 was designed to respond to the need for large-scale airlift for increasingly complex arctic expeditions. As such, it primary users have been:
The United States of America
The Dominion of Canada
The former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
The Russian Federation
The Republic of Finland
And more, mostly far-north countries.

Each of these countries painted their aircraft differently*, so it’s easy to tell who used it by the paintjob.

Features:

A fully functional cockpit**.

Swing-open nose door.

Flight recommendations:
When unladen increase speed to approximately 250 KPH, then activate flaps and pull up. Once nose is off ground set flaps back to zero to avoid excessive climb angles.
Fly calmy and gently. The SAN-74 “Candygram” is a very stable and respectably maneuverable aircraft, but it isn’t very fast or powerful. It has a low service ceiling, top speed, and climb rate, so trying to gain altitude too quickly may result in poor flight profiles.
Do not “check your six” by opening the nose door in flight. You probably won’t crash, but your warranty will be soooo voided.

Merry Christmas, from all of us at Graingy!*

*Russian paint scheme reverted to Soviet style in 2022 in support of Russian invasion of Ukraine. Graingy has not supplied Russia with SAN-74 parts since 1993, however the ruggedness of the airframe and engines has allowed the Russian government to keep them in service regardless.

**Note that I do not own SimplePlanes VR, and now that I type this I forgot about the reach indicator. I am screaming inside right now. Anyways, I cannot guarantee that the cockpit is, in fact, VR compatible.

*Except the token Jewish hire from the 1970s. But he’s such a damn good employee that we put up one of those fancy candle holders this time of year anyways.