PJSC United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) has announced postponing the start of serial deliveries of MC-21 passenger aircraft to 2022, UAC press service said on Thursday.
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According to UAC's press service, MC-21-300 is scheduled to obtain its Russian certificate by the end of 2021. First deliveries to airlines are planned for 2022.
American sanctions are the main reason behind this delay. Due to these "trade restrictions"-as UAC put it- the supply of materials for the production of a composite wing was influenced. Santions mainly target CJSC AeroKomposit, the center of competencies of the United Aircraft Corporation in the sphere of innovative development and production of aircraft parts made of polymer composite materials.
The project was also influenced by new rules for obtaining export licenses for foreign partners of the program, the corporation stated.
“It cannot be hidden that one of the reasons for the slowdown in the launch of the MC-21 to the market is sanctions. We have already overcome them in a number of areas, in particular, composites,” Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov said, speaking on Wednesday at the Krasnoyarsk Economic Forum.
Borisov added that although Russia reached a solution in regards to the composite material, the country's aviation industry still needs to import around 40% of the MC-21 onboard equipment.
The MC-21 is a next-generation family of passenger airplanes geared towards the most massive segment of the global airline market. MC-21-300 (160-211 seats) and MC-21-200 (130-176 seats) airplanes are currently being developed under the design and production programme. The use of advanced engineering concepts in the fields of aerodynamics and engine production, installation of the latest aircraft systems, and implementation of new solutions to achieve a higher level of passenger comfort give these airplanes an edge over their rivals – both current and future.
The aircraft is developed by Irkut Corporation, Design Bureau named after A. Yakovlev
