Russia didn’t build a large number of civilian use planes during the Soviet Union days. However, Russia now needs to build more planes for the future. This needs a lot of infrastructure and of course engines.
In May 2024, the head of Rostec, Sergey Chemezov, on the sidelines of the Federal Assembly, said, the MC-21 may tentatively begin production in 2025 or 2026.
Notwithstanding the delay, according to the comprehensive program for the development of the Russian air transport industry until 2030, Perm Motors, which comes under the United Engine Corporation (UEC) needs to reach an annual output of 160 PD-14 engines per year for 72 MC-21-310 aircraft, which is an entirely Russian production.
In addition to PD-14 engines, by 2030, UEC also needs to reach an annual production of 120 engines from the PS-90A family. UEC’s Ulyanovsk plant “Aviastar” (a branch of Illusion), produces Il-76MD-90A aircraft with four PS-90A-76 engines. It plans to produce 70 Tu-214 aircraft in Kazan, each requiring two PS-90A engines. In Voronezh, Il-96-300 aircraft are still being built, each equipped with four of PS-90A engines.
Additionally, in cooperation with Rybinsk’s Saturn, Perm is participating in the creation of the PD-8 engine for the import-substituted “Superjet New.” The project will need to produce 44 engines per year.
To achieve this grand goal, UEC is investing in development and exploring new forms of work. High-tech small enterprises have emerged. Twenty years ago, I didn’t believe that small businesses could provide high-tech services for us, but they have developed, becoming very mobile and requiring fewer investments. Today, we actively cooperate in this direction, said Chemezov.
The increased production volumes cannot be met without expanding manufacturing capabilities. Therefore, UEC is planning to build a new production site, which will be located in a special economic zone in the suburban village of Osentsy near Perm. This construction is crucial as its current production space is insufficient for the upcoming engine output.
UEC estimates a need for around 8,000 additional personnel, including technologists, workers, and controllers, across all programs. In previous years, both planes and engines were produced in small numbers, but now production must ramp up dramatically.
To meet the demand for specialists, UEC-Aviadvigatel has supported the Polytechnic University of Perm for over 20 years, investing approximately 1.5 billion rubles in equipment, laboratory creation, and building repairs. With modern facilities, we no longer have issues with engineering and design personnel, said Chemezov.
The current demand is for technologists, workers, and controllers, which is why UEC is supporting the “Professionalitet” project to build a new campus for the aviation technical school in Perm.
For the first time in Russian engine manufacturing history, the PD-14 engine nacelle was developed by engine manufacturers and is now produced by them, not the aircraft manufacturers. Perm Motors works closely with other industrial enterprises, such as the Perm plant “Mashinostroitel,” which helps in the production of nacelles.
Overall, about 500 enterprises are involved in cooperation with UEC, from raw materials to the finished engine. Today, the specialists from Energomash of the Russian space agency Roscosmos are mastering the production of the combustion chamber for the PD-8 engine, which will be a great asset to Perm.
In the coming years, UEC will create a PD-35 technology demonstrator engine and conduct tests to evaluate the complexity of further development. Testing of the PD-35 demonstrator is planned for 2024. This engine is expected to be competitive in the long-range aviation market.
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