At the Irkutsk Aviation Plant, engineers have developed a domestic automatic feed drilling machine (SMAP) for drilling high-precision holes in aircraft parts made of aluminum, titanium, and composites.
It took two years to create and test the device. According to the unofficial Telegram channel of PJSC "Yakovlev", "Notes of Aircraft Builders", the SMAP received a rotary engine and is equipped with a pulse feed unit for breaking chips. A lubricating and cooling fluid is supplied to the cutting zone through internal channels of the drill and spindle of the machine, and its concentration is regulated by the feed unit. The rotation and feed unit of the spindle is designed so that it returns back when the required drilling depth is reached. If the drill jams, a safety clutch will be triggered. If the SMAP fails for any other reason, an emergency stop is provided.
So far, only two units of SMAP have been prepared and tested, but at least eleven of their modifications will be needed to work on the production of the MC-21.
Presumably, the new devices will replace the French SMAPs from Desoutter, which are currently used at the plant. After another package of sanctions in 2022, both drills and new SMAP units have stopped arriving in Irkutsk.
Read more on the topic:
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Russia to Produce Up to 36 MC-21 Aircraft Annually
Yakovlev Aviation Plant Receives Over 85 Billion Rubles for MC-21 Production
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