Why the Il-96 Aircraft Only Carries the President, and Not Regular Passengers

In Russian aviation, there is an aircraft that is familiar to almost everyone, but almost no one has seen it in the role of a regular passenger airliner. The Il-96 was presented as the pride of the Soviet aviation industry for long-haul flights and for competition with the best foreign machines.

However, the Il-96 never became widespread, and today its name is most often heard in the news about the flights of the first persons of the state. Why did its fate turn out this way - a magnificent representative aircraft, but a rare guest in civil aviation fleets?

Rethinking Aviation

In the late 1970s, airlines needed a long-range airliner capable of flying across the ocean without intermediate landings. Wide-body Airbuses and Boeing 747s were already flying abroad, so in the USSR, the Ilyushin Design Bureau was instructed to develop a fundamentally new machine.

The future Il-96 was designed with an eye on world competitors, but it was made according to the canons of the Soviet school - systems are duplicated, the safety margin is higher, the design is designed for harsh operation.

Instead of two engines, which had already managed to conquer part of the market, they chose a proven four-engine scheme - the most reliable for flights over deserted spaces and long routes. The Il-96 first took to the air in 1988, at that time it looked impressive: a wide-body airliner with a cabin for more than 250 passengers, capable of crossing the Atlantic without refueling.

Outside, it was a modern airliner, and inside it promised comfort by the standards of that time. But the main thing is that the plane demonstrated ambitions: the USSR wanted to show that it could create a vessel competitive with Boeing and Airbus.

Why the Il-96 Only Carries the President

The engineers in the Il-96 focused not on economy, but on endurance and reliability. As a result, the engineers got an aircraft that is often compared to a "flying tank". Its design is designed for serious loads, and the safety margin was made with an excessive margin.

These qualities are valued today by those who are responsible for the safety of the first persons. The aircraft received four PS-90A turbofan engines, each of which pulls almost 16 tons, and in the event of a failure of one of the engines, the aircraft will calmly continue the flight. On long flights across the ocean, this is vital and directly affects the choice of aircraft for the president or prime minister.

The flight range is also impressive: depending on the modification, the Il-96 is capable of covering up to 11 thousand kilometers without landing. This means that it can fly from Moscow to Los Angeles or Buenos Aires without refueling.

An Aircraft Not of Its Time

However, reality showed that the time for the Il-96 was not suitable. By the time it was ready for full operation, the country was experiencing an economic crisis, and airlines began to count money much more strictly than before.

The four-engine scheme, which was considered a guarantee of reliability, turned into a serious disadvantage in market conditions. Modern twin-engine aircraft from Boeing and Airbus were noticeably more economical, their maintenance cost less, and the range was not inferior. For the airline, the operation of the Il-96 turned out to be too expensive.