The Antonov An-26 'Curl' wass the next major derivative of the successful An-24 short-range transport. While the An-24 had been primarily a civil design, the An-26 was a dedicated cargo transport and as such featured a completely-redesigned rear fuselage which was characterized by a large ramp to facilitate loading. It was also the first Soviet aircraft with a pressurized cargo hold while other features of the cargo hold included an electrically powered winch and conveyer which facilitated air dropping of freight. The An-26 was also used extensively as a paratroop aircraft (for both troops and freight). Export customers were found aplenty among the USSR's customers and was locally-produced in China as the Y-7 (described in a separate entry). Hundreds are still in use today by dozens of countries although the grand majority of these perform civil duties, others have since been replaced by the improved An-32.

As a cargo transport, the first production variant of the An-26 entered service in 1969 and was designated An-26 'Curl-A'. An improved variant, the An-26B, was introduced early in the 1980's and was complemented by the An-26 'Curl-B' Sigint version. Chinese versions were initially dubbed Y-17 but later changed back to Y-7H-500 so as to follow the designation of their own Xian-built An-24s.