The first serial, fully import-substituting aircraft MS-21 completed its first flight, the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade announced.
“The first flight of the serially produced, fully import-substituting MS-21 is an important milestone in the program to create a domestically produced long-haul passenger aircraft. It confirms that the Russian aviation industry has the necessary competencies to address the most complex technological challenges using domestic systems and components. "To date, approximately half of the flight test certification program has been completed, and after certification is completed, deliveries of serial aircraft to operators will begin," Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Gennady Abramenkov was quoted as saying in the statement.
The flight lasted one hour and 23 minutes, at an altitude of up to 6,000 meters. During the flight, the aircraft's stability and controllability in various configurations, as well as the operation of its internally developed systems, were tested. As Taskaev reported after the flight, the first serial aircraft performed well and the flight mission was fully accomplished.
“The Irkutsk Aviation Plant team confirmed its readiness to produce the first batch of eighteen MS-21 aircraft and to begin work on subsequent orders, decisions on which were made last week by the Russian government on the instructions of Russian President Vladimir Putin“, noted Vadim Badekha, CEO of the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC, part of Rostec).
MS-21 Chief Designer Vitaly Naryshkin noted that in parallel with the flight test schedule for the aircraft's certification, key procedures for the final stages of production and testing at the flight test station have already been developed, which will ultimately minimize the time between certification and the start of serial deliveries of the MS-21.
About the aircraft
The MS-21 is an in-house developed passenger a short- and medium-haul aircraft that will replace the Tu-154 and the Tu-204 family on the Russian market. It will also serve as an alternative to foreign-made aircraft.