The implementation of the second version of the Comprehensive Program for the Development of Civil Aviation (KPSA), approved in May 2024, has encountered systemic delays. Despite ambitious plans to deliver nine MC-21s and four Tu-214s in 2025, none of the new or updated domestic airliners will enter commercial operation on schedule.
The certification of the MC-21, a key new development by the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), has been officially postponed to 2026. Previously, the head of Rostec, Sergey Chemezov, expressed hope for the completion of all certification flights by the end of 2025, but noted the high complexity and volume of testing.
A similar fate awaits the SJ-100 in the modification with the domestic PD-8 engine. The Ministry of Transport of Russia admitted the possibility of delays back in April, citing risks associated with engine certification. As a result, the date has been moved to March 2026.
The Il-114-300, designed for regional transportation, will also not be ready in 2025. While in September the developer still expected certification by the end of the year, in October, the head of Rosaviatsiya, Dmitry Yadrov, outlined a new target - the first quarter of 2026.
The Tu-214 became the only aircraft delivered under the KPSA in 2025, but not to an airline, but for departmental operation. In May, the first unit was delivered to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and on December 17, the second - fully import-substituted - went for painting in Minsk in a business jet configuration.
UAC emphasizes that the deadlines set in the KPSA are indicative. At the same time, active work is underway at the enterprises: a pair of MC-21s and a pair of SJ-100s regularly perform certification flights, three Il-114-300s are undergoing flight tests, and 24 SJ-100s and more than 20 MC-21 airframes are being assembled at the factories in Komsomolsk-on-Amur.
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