Russian civil aviation has begun training specialists for a new generation of domestic aircraft, but the pace of training is still lagging behind plans to produce hundreds of airliners by 2030. The MC-21, SJ-100, and Tu-214 require separate training programs for pilots, engineers, and technical specialists, and some of the necessary infrastructure is still being created.
One of the key training centers for crews and technical personnel for the MC-21 has become the RATA aviation training center. Its capabilities allow for simultaneous training of up to 200 specialists under the MC-21-310 program. In 2023, 706 people underwent training through the center, including 40 pilots and over 650 engineering and technical staff.
For the new Russian regional aircraft SJ-100, training is conducted using a specialized simulator at the Ulyanovsk Institute of Civil Aviation. For the Tu-214, Rosaviatsiya has already approved training programs for engineering personnel, and further expansion of specialist training for this aircraft type is planned separately.
The main training grounds remain the Ulyanovsk Institute of Civil Aviation and the St. Petersburg State University of Civil Aviation. They train pilots and aviation engineers under state programs, but face the problem of a shortage of modern simulators. A significant part of the training base is designed for previous generation aircraft and does not fully comply with new domestic airliners.
A particularly difficult situation is developing with the training of crews for the Tu-214. Unlike most modern passenger aircraft, this airliner uses a three-person crew scheme and requires a flight engineer. In recent decades, this specialty has practically disappeared from civil aviation, so restoring this direction has become a separate task.