The first Russian-produced, import-substituted MC-21-310 airliner has completed a test flight from Irkutsk to Zhukovsky.

The first import-substituted MC-21-310 aircraft, manufactured by the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), has successfully completed a flight from Irkutsk to Zhukovsky. The aircraft traveled from the Yakovlev Irkutsk Aviation Plant to the Gromov Flight Research Institute airfield. The flight, which covered over 4,000 kilometers nonstop, lasted 5 hours and 50 minutes.

Flight Details and Testing

The aircraft was operated by a crew including test pilots and Heroes of Russia Roman Taskaev and Oleg Kononenko, as well as lead flight test engineer Alexander Popov. During the journey, the plane reached altitudes of up to 12,100 meters and speeds of up to 850 km/h. According to Rostec, the flight proceeded routinely with all systems functioning as expected. Upon arrival in Zhukovsky, UAC specialists began inspecting the aircraft's systems to prepare it for painting in the customer's design scheme. The MC-21 is a short-to-medium-range passenger airliner intended to replace the Tu-154 and Tu-204 families and serve as an alternative to foreign-made aircraft.

Production and Certification

Rostec stated that the flight confirmed the reliability of the aircraft's design and its integrated domestic components. Certification flights for the MC-21 type are currently ongoing. The corporation noted that production chains have been established to support serial manufacturing, and the Irkutsk Aviation Plant is prepared to begin fulfilling new orders.