A discussion has erupted around the Russian MC-21 liner about an alleged 6-ton overweight after import substitution of the composite wing. Aviation blogger SkyExpert explained why such estimates do not withstand even basic technical calculations.
According to him, the story about a sharp increase in the aircraft's mass appeared due to an incorrect interpretation of the wing production technology and the peculiarities of working with domestic composites.
To gain an extra 6 tons, it would be necessary to add about 150 layers of carbon and fiberglass to each wing surface, which is absolutely meaningless not only from a technological point of view, but also from common sense.
SkyExpert added that the main problem with import substitution was not the strength of the materials, but the adjustment of the robotic complex for automatic composite lay-up.
But even the declared characteristics of the MC-21-310 allow it to carry over 21 tons of commercial payload for almost 4000 km, which covers up to 90% of medium-haul routes.
Andrey Patrakov, founder of the flight safety service RunAvia, explained to "Pervy Tekhnichesky" that the decrease in the flight range of the MC-21-310 is associated with import-substituted composite materials, due to which the project rolled back to the level of the Tu-154.
