The Russian MC-21 aircraft will not begin passenger flights before 2028, according to test pilot Roman Taskaev from the Mikoyan and Yakovlev Design Bureaus and Hero of Russia. He made this statement at a meeting of the Aviation Enthusiasts Club, as cited by the “VPK News” portal.
According to Taskaev, the MC-21 appears attractive to Russian airlines due to its characteristics, but this potential still needs to be realized. Taskaev explained that designing and creating a new aircraft takes about five years, while its refinement can take another 10 years. Thereafter, the aircraft must be certified—not just as a whole but also for its individual components.
The certification of a passenger aircraft is an evaluation by independent authorities confirming that the aircraft is properly designed, manufactured, and safe to operate. Not only the aircraft as a whole but also its individual components—engines, systems, and onboard equipment—must be certified.
When the MC-21-300 type certificate was issued, confirming its compliance with civil aviation standards, the Yakovlev Company (formerly Irkut Corporation) also received a developer certificate from Rosaviatsiya, verifying that the manufacturer meets Russian aviation regulations. However, this certification was based on imported engines and equipment.
The MC-21 is still preparing for the start of operations. “We will be able to assess the first operational results next year when the aircraft enters service with the airline ‘Rossiya,'” the pilot said.
Certification flights for the fully localized MC-21 passenger aircraft, equipped with Russian PD-14 engines, are planned to begin in 2025, according to Russian Minister of Industry and Trade Anton Alikhanov. Taskaev noted that certification could take several years, meaning passenger operations will not begin before 2028.
It is worth noting that Alikhanov announced certification flights for the fully localized MC-21 at the end of March or early April 2025.
However, obtaining a certificate is only half the process. Throughout the aircraft’s entire lifespan, aviation authorities will continuously monitor its designers, operators, and maintenance teams to ensure consistent quality, airworthiness, and operational safety.
By 2030, the Irkutsk Aviation Plant, a branch of PJSC Yakovlev, plans to complete a major technical upgrade. The project has been approved by local authorities and is already included in Irkutsk’s investment project registry.
The main goal of the modernization is to establish mass production of the MC-21 passenger airliner, reaching a production rate of 36 aircraft per year. Additionally, the upgrade will allow for timely overhaul and modernization of military aircraft while maintaining high-quality standards.
The project includes the construction and renovation of production facilities, the expansion of warehouse areas, and comprehensive technical upgrades.
The mass production of the MC-21 is scheduled to begin in 2026. PJSC Yakovlev, part of United Aircraft Corporation under Rostec, is also working on the Yak-152 training aircraft and a localized version of the Superjet 100 to replace imported components.
Meanwhile, South-Russian State Polytechnical University has developed a unique piece of equipment for the production of composite wings of domestic aircraft. As reported on March 19 at the academic council of the university, the university has signed a contract with PJSC Yakovlev in the amount of over 1.8 billion rubles to create a system for the automatic laying of carbon tape, a key element in the production of the MC-21 wing.
The composite fiber stacker robot developed by Novocherkassk engineers completely replaces imported equipment. The device provides automatic laying of the material at different angles, which is necessary for high-strength final products. Polytech’s cooperation with Aerocomposite began back in 2020. Currently, the first prototype of the laying head is undergoing trial operation in the company’s Moscow laboratory, and the second is at the Ulyanovsk plant. To implement the project, Center-Invest Bank provided guarantees to the university in the amount of more than 600 million rubles.
It should be noted that the MC-21 is a competitor to the Tu-214, which is manufactured by the Kazan Aviation Plant named after S.P. Gorbunov. At the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Aeroflot CEO Sergey Alexandrovsky announced that the company plans to abandon the purchase of Tu-214 aircraft and instead intends to acquire 339 MC-21s.
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