RuAviation

Yakovlev has transferred the second production MC-21-310, aircraft MC.0015, from final assembly to its flight-test unit at the Irkutsk Aviation Plant (IAZ). The aircraft is being built for Aeroflot Group and incorporates Russian-made systems and components as part of the programme’s import-substitution configuration.

MC.0015 will now undergo ground preparation, including system and equipment checks and engine runs, before beginning factory flight testing.

The aircraft is the second production MC-21-310 to enter the flight-test campaign. The first, MC.0014, was transferred to the flight-test unit in June and made its maiden flight on 3 August, completing a 1-hour 23-minute sortie. The flight assessed handling qualities and the operation of Russian avionics and other onboard systems, together with serial PD-14 engines.

MC.0014, MC.0015 and MC.0016 were already at an advanced stage of assembly in October 2022, when Irkut executives said the aircraft were being prepared for deliveries originally expected in 2024. Their construction therefore predates the programme’s full transition to Russian-sourced equipment. The three aircraft retain Saint-Gobain cockpit glazing supplied before international restrictions were introduced.

The transfer of MC.0015 to flight testing also releases the F20 position on IAZ’s assembly flow, allowing the next aircraft to move forward from the F10 position. Yakovlev currently has 18 MC-21-310 aircraft at different stages of production at Irkutsk. Six are undergoing airframe assembly and systems installation, another six are at fuselage-section assembly and joining, and two are at component assembly.

The aircraft are being produced for Aeroflot Group under an existing contract. Eight are due for delivery in 2027 and a further 10 in 2028. Yakovlev is targeting an annual production rate of 36 MC-21 aircraft by 2030–32.

The MC-21 flight-test programme is expected to conclude in the first quarter of 2027, after which the certification evidence will be submitted to the Russian Aviation Register for type certification. Customer deliveries of production aircraft are expected to begin in the second half of 2027.