Western Sanctions have shaken the Russian Civil Aviation industry , wide range of efforts are being made by the Russian government to keep the aircraft flying , even without the support of 'OEMs' of American and European origin.
On 25th February 22 , President von der Leyen of Council of the European Union had announced five pillars of sanctions on Russia including Aviation -
"we ban the sale of all aircrafts, spare parts and equipment to Russian airlines."
"This will degrade the key sector of Russia's economy and the country's connectivity." "Three quarters of Russia's current commercial air fleet were built in the European Union, the US and Canada. And therefore, they are massively depending on that."
Russia has passed a law allowing the country’s airlines to place aircraft leased from foreign companies on Russia’s aircraft register. Under such effort , Russian government has transferred more than 50% of foreign aircraft to Russia’s own registry as it takes measures to start using foreign aircraft located in Russia.
But , the real issue starts with " keep the aircraft flying " ! Which means , maintenance services , components and repair spares of western origin are needed to keep the aircraft under the "Airworthy" condition is a "challenge".
Owing to the sanctions , the Russian aviation industry is not receiving components from abroad even under prepaid orders, they are currently frozen, Industry and Trade Minister Denis Manturov told reporters at a briefing session.
"We are being denied delivery of components as part of our extensive international cooperation, this extends even to prepaid orders, they are currently frozen and not being delivered. And there is no explanation," he said.
PD-14 turbofan engine - from the manufacturer Aviadvigatel.
Russia now plans to expedite it's home grown solutions and aerospace activities, under which the Civil Aviation demands can be met with alternate arrangements , that can include "substitue parts and services" , acceptable to the Civil Aviation Regulator of Russia.
The Minister says, "We have concluded that there is no point in waiting for the grass to grow, and we will intensify work on import substitution, bearing in mind those agreements signed in advance with companies who are interested in this work."
Interestingly , In the month of December 2020 , Russia achieved a long-awaited goal , the first flight of the MC-21-310 aircraft equipped with Russian produced PD-14 turbofans engines.
The flight took place more than three and a half years after the inaugural flight of the first prototype, which uses Pratt & Whitney’s PW1428G engines , these were the efforts ,where Russia wanted to avoid dependence on the West , substituting a crucial component of the Aircraft.
The PD-14 turbofan, from the manufacturer Aviadvigatel, has been developed since 2009 as a replacement for the PS-90 engine, which is used in jets such as the Il-96 and the Tu-204.
Manturov also commented on the possibility of expanding production of Tu-204 and 214 and Il-96 aircraft.
"As for the well-known Tu-204, 214 and Il-96 aircraft, there is the possibility of increasing production volumes, but we proceed from common sense, bearing in mind that the MC-21 is similar in terms of passenger capacity to the Tu-214 and 204," he said.
UAC is studying the possibility of increasing the serial production of the Tu-214. This was reflected in the message of the UAC following the visit of Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Yuri Borisov to the Kazan Aviation Plant.
"The plant has already fully prepared production. Therefore, today we will discuss the issues of how we can step up to at least 10 Tu-214 aircraft," Yu said.Borisov, quoted in the message.
"The urgent issue is to restore the production of domestic models in the right amount, so that we do not experience difficulties with the transportation of Russian citizens both inside the country and abroad."
Tu-214 Aircraft - UAC .
Import Substitution will not only concern Russian companies , but also international cooperation with "friendly countries," Denis Manturov said.
"First of all these are well-known entities that are located in Russia, but we do not exclude international cooperation with friendly countries, we have some of these," Manturov said.
According to Manturov, the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) will deliver two MC-21 planes this year instead of the earlier planned four due to the sanctions against Russia, but there are plans to certify an import-substituted version of the plane next year in order to begin deliveries of it in 2024.
"You know that we have certification work going on. Two MC-21 planes will be placed into test service," he told journalists.
The MC-21-300 wing , manufactured from Russian composite materials, was delivered to the Irkutsk Aviation Plant, (part of UAC, Rostec State Corporation).
Manturov said that he expects deliveries of an import-substituted version of the MC-21 to begin in 2024.
"More than likely, this will be in 2024 when import substitution work is completed and all certification procedures are finished, because any component that is changed out in the plane requires corresponding test procedures," Manturov said.
He also said that Russia would be able to supply 19 SSJ-100 aircraft in 2022, not counting those that were not previously sold to customers. Deliveries of a totally import-free version of the aircraft will be possible from 2024.
"We have 19 aircraft fitted entirely with foreign components and we'll honor contracts for the 19 by the end of the year," Manturov said.
Manturov said that given that Russia began import substitution for the SSJ back in 2018, serial deliveries of this version of the aircraft could begin in 2024.
"We expect to achieve full import-substitution next year, carrying out all the necessary certification flights, tests, and already starting to supply the Sukhoi to Russian companies," he said.
