The An-2 was designed as a utility aircraft for use in forestry and agriculture. The Antonov An-2 was designed to meet a 1947 Soviet Ministry of Forestry requirement for a replacement for the much lighter, largely wooden-airframed Polikarpov Po-2, which was used in large numbers in both agricultural and utility roles. Antonov designed a large single bay biplane of all-metal construction, with an enclosed cockpit and a cabin with seats for twelve passengers. Initial Soviet production was at Russian single engine biplane Factory 473 in Kiev, Ukrainian SSR, where the bulk of up to 5,000 units had been produced by 1960.

State Factory 464 at Dolgoprudniy, Russian SFSR. The An-2 is commonly used as a light utility transport, parachute drop aircraft, agricultural work and other tasks suited to a large slow biplane. Its slow flight and good short field performance make it suited for short, unimproved fields, and some specialized variants have also been built for cold weather and other extreme environments. During the early 1980s, Antonov experimented with a development of the An-2 powered by a modern turboprop engine. Aircraft fitted with this engine had a longer, more streamlined nose to accommodate it.

It received the designation of Antonov An-3. Motor Sich MS-14 turboprop running on kerosene rather than Avgas, which is no longer produced in CIS countries. Antonov An-2 with carbon fibre winglet-like braces and carbon fibre wing structures. It was equipped with a five-bladed turboprop engine, most probably the Honeywell TPE331 already installed on a modernized version of the An-2 that entered service in 2014.