There are positive developments in Russian civil aviation, although the situation is contradictory. For example, in the economics of production of the first import-substituted aircraft SJ-100 and MC-21-310, the production cost does not match the price of the aircraft, according to a joint article by employees of the Institute of Economic Forecasting (IEF) of the Russian Academy of Sciences, economists Dmitry Kuvalin and Petr Lavrinenko.
They emphasized that the high complexity of projects, rising costs, and schedule delays are noticeable. As a result, UAC eventually shifted the delivery dates for SJ-100 and MC-21 to 2026.
The production cost of the first SJ-100 and MC-21 has significantly increased, which will require additional budget compensation to cover the gap between the market price of the aircraft and the actual costs of their production.
In July 2025, it became known that the cost of one MC-21-310 increased to 7.6 billion rubles, and the SJ-100 was estimated at around 2.6 billion rubles. However, aviation expert Oleg Panteleev explained to "The First Technical" that for airlines, the decisive factor is not the list price of the aircraft, but the size of the lease payment.
Against this background, the head of UAC, Vadim Badeha, reported that the corporation has already begun to increase economic efficiency and reduce the cost of aircraft. One of the steps will be to attract alternative suppliers, and entering the international market is also being considered.