RuAviation

One of the significant outcomes of the SSJ-New programme in 2024 was the commencement of certification trials for the first prototype SJ-100 aircraft, registration number 97021. This aircraft is fitted with Franco-Russian SaM146 engines and is partially equipped with Russian systems and equipment. The SJ-100 project is comparable to the MC-21-310rus programme. These are essentially new aircraft where foreign systems have been replaced with domestically-produced ones.

In total, approximately 97% of foreign components, or about 40 different systems and units, including the SaM146 engines, have been replaced on the updated SJ-100 aircraft. Testing with a partially import-substituted configuration is being conducted to expedite certification.

Key SJ-100 programme events in 2024

January

At the Zhukovsky Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute (TsAGI), another stage of studying the behaviour of the SJ-100 short-haul aircraft during take-off and landing with PD-8 engines was completed on a model. The experiments were carried out in the ADT-101 low-speed wind tunnel, where a screen was installed to simulate the influence of the ground surface on the aircraft’s movement.

Specialists investigated the characteristics of the unsteady flow in the wake of the wing in the landing configuration, with the deflection of the mechanisation elements, air brakes and spoiler sections with the landing gear extended. The analysis of the flow patterns was carried out both by means of weight tests and by visualising the airflow.

As a result of the wind tunnel tests, data was obtained which was used to formulate recommendations for the optimal deflection angles of the air brakes, which will reduce the intensity of vortices left behind by the wing during the aircraft’s landing.

The final stage involved tests in the T-106 transonic wind tunnel. The SJ-100 model was tested in take-off and landing modes and across a wide range of cruising speeds. Data was obtained that refined the bank of aerodynamic characteristics for take-off and landing with PD-8 engine nacelles.

The aerodynamic characteristics of the aircraft model with modified mechanisation elements – flaps and slats – were also determined. Their effectiveness was compared with the basic configuration.

TsAGI specialists studied the phenomenon of interference in the area where the wing, pylon, and nacelle join – their mutual adverse effect on the aircraft’s aerodynamic parameters. The experiments were carried out using a mini-tuft method to visualise the airflow. The results showed that such undesirable aerodynamic effects are absent in the area where the PD-8 nacelle is installed.

February

The Steering Committee for External Cooperation of PJSC Yakovlev, led by Andrey Boginsky, Deputy General Director of UAC for Civil Aviation, held an on-site meeting in Samara at the Aviagregat plant of the Technodinamika holding, where issues of external cooperation on the SJ-100 programme were considered. Participants discussed the issues of equipping the prototype and production SJ-100s with units and aircraft systems. Domestic component manufacturers presented plans to ensure certification of the aircraft in its Russian configuration and the start of its series production.

Andrey Boginsky drew the attention of company managers to the critical importance of organising work on the qualification and certification of component parts. By the end of March, PJSC Yakovlev specialists planned to conduct additional on-site audits of the cooperating companies. The purpose of the audits is to conduct a detailed analysis of the organisation of work processes for interaction with second and third tier suppliers.

March

The Obninsk Research and Production Enterprise Tekhnologiya named after A.G. Romashin announced its readiness for the serial production of glazing elements for the SJ-100 aircraft and polymer composite components for the PD-8 engine.

For the import-substituted Superjet, the company has established production of ten glazing elements for the flight deck and external lighting protection, as well as 38 polymer composite components for the PD-8 engine. Two new sections have been organised at the plant and technical modernisation has been carried out for the production of its components.

April

The prototype SJ-100 aircraft (97021) completed its factory refinement tests in Komsomolsk-on-Amur and performed a flight to the Gromov Flight Research Institute airfield in Zhukovsky, where flight tests will be conducted as part of the certification programme. The aircraft is equipped with Franco-Russian SaM146 engines. Key aircraft systems, including avionics, landing gear, auxiliary power unit, integrated control system, and electrical power system, are Russian.

The aircraft, accompanied by another Superjet (registration number 97005), took off from the Dzemgi factory airfield on the afternoon of April 26. The aircraft made an intermediate landing at Tolmachevo Airport and, after refuelling and crew rest, arrived in Zhukovsky on April 27. The total flight distance was approximately 6,000 km. Aircraft 97021 was piloted by commander Leonid Chikunov, Honoured Test Pilot of Russia, and co-pilot Dmitry Demenev, Deputy Head of the Flight Test Complex for Flight Operations, Head of the Flight Service, and 1st Class Test Pilot.

May

Ground tests began in Zhukovsky on the prototype SJ-100 aircraft (97021) in preparation for certification flight tests. On May 20, Andrey Boginsky, Director General of PJSC Yakovlev, reviewed the progress of ground testing of the aircraft’s landing gear and held a meeting on the plan for upcoming flights. Yakovlev engineers checked the operation of individual elements of the landing gear struts, as well as their extension and retraction.

Before the start of certification, it is also necessary to test the aircraft’s doors and hatches, ensuring reliable cabin pressurisation, and the availability of rapid evacuation if necessary. In addition, specialists must ensure the correct operation of the instruments, displays and controls in the flight deck, as well as the mobility of the aircraft’s control surfaces: ailerons, rudders, elevators, flaps, and slats.

June

On June 10, the first prototype SJ-100 aircraft, with tail number 97021, took to the air for the first time following its flight from Komsomolsk-on-Amur and completion of ground checks and tests. The flights will be conducted as part of flight certification tests under the import substitution programme. The first flight included testing of the aircraft’s new domestic fuel system.

The duration was 2.5 hours, during which the functioning of the equipment in 15 different flight modes was evaluated. According to Andrey Boginsky, Deputy General Director of UAC for Civil Aviation and Director General of PJSC Yakovlev, approximately 200 flights are to be completed by the end of 2025.

July

Aircraft 97021 is carrying out flights for certification of the fuel system developed by OKB Kristall, replacing the system from Zodiac. On July 10, the fourth flight was carried out, during which the automatic pressure regulation system was also tested. The flight went smoothly, without failures, and the systems operated normally.

SJ-100 flights are taking place at altitudes of 1,000, 6,000, and 12,200 metres. The crew includes test pilots Vadim Shirokikh, Leonid Chikunov, Mikhail Trubnikov, and lead flight test engineers Denis Velizhanin and Gevorg Matsakyan. Flight test data will be submitted for processing to the certification centre specialists.

August

During the first month of flights in the Moscow region, aircraft 97021 completed four flights. In total, as of 1 August 2024, approximately 30 flights out of the 200 planned have been completed as part of the SJ-100 factory and certification test programme.

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At the Yakovlev Production Centre in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, frequency tests of the prototype SJ-100 (serial number 97003) were completed. This stage of certification ensures the reliability of the aircraft and makes possible the next stage of testing, which are the flight tests.

The third prototype Superjet with serial number 97003 is completely domestic; it is the first aircraft that does not have any foreign components in its design. Frequency tests, which complete preparations for the first flight, guarantee the protection of the aircraft from aeroelasticity phenomena.

“This type of test is called a modal test. Here, we determine the natural vibrations of the engine. In real time, we see the readings from the sensors and determine the vibrations of the engines. The test programme includes three types of checks. First, we investigated the vibrations of the aircraft, simulating free flight conditions. We checked the quality of assembly, the connection of units, and the operation of the controls. Then we tested the control system, the response of the sensors, and the autopilot. The third stage was for the landing gear,” said Anton Dolgopolov, a research fellow at TsAGI.

September

At the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF-2024) in Vladivostok, UAC and GTLK signed a memorandum of understanding for the supply of 238 domestic aircraft of various types from 2027, including 132 short-haul SJ-100s, 65 Il-114-300 regional turboprop aircraft, and 41 Tu-214 medium-haul aircraft.

Ground tests of the PD-8 engine are nearing completion, with some of them already finished. The Ministry of Industry and Trade expects permission to conduct flight tests. Two aircraft will fly with the PD-8. This was announced by the head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Anton Alikhanov, in an interview with the Rossiya-24 television channel.

October

During the plenary session of the Federation Council, Sergey Chemezov, General Director of the state corporation Rostec, shared plans to change the name of the Superjet 100 aircraft, which was originally created within the framework of international cooperation, and the name Russian Regional Jet (RRJ) was proposed during certification by former partners from the Boeing corporation. The aircraft received the name SSJ100 at the insistence of French and Italian participants in the project in July 2007 before the Farnborough Airshow.

Chemezov emphasised that the aircraft will receive completely domestic engines, avionics, and units. And most likely, a new name. According to him, the Superjet New model is being developed and will be assembled exclusively by domestic specialists, which is why it has been proposed to “russify” the name of the aircraft. The name could be linked to the name of A.S. Yakovlev, since it is now being developed by this design bureau. “Perhaps we will suggest choosing the name to the general public – this option is also being discussed now,” added the head of Rostec.

November

The operation of the SJ-100 aircraft from the point of view of the integrated control system (ICS) has not undergone any fundamental changes. However, during testing, abnormal situations are identified that are promptly resolved through the interaction of test pilots, design bureau engineers, and the developers of the replacement systems. During one of the flights as part of the factory refinement tests back in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, the influence of the radio altimeter on the control laws of the ICS was detected. The problem turned out to be very serious.

“Test pilots prevented the situation from developing according to a bad scenario, landing the aircraft safely. On the ground, the engineers dealt with this phenomenon, and the ICS developer, on the recommendation of our design bureau, promptly made corrections to the software. This is just one example of the smooth interaction in the loop of the flight test complex – design bureau – systems developer,” said Vadim Shirokikh, Head of the Flight Test Complex of the PJSC Yakovlev branch – Regional Aircraft. He added that such interaction is continuous.

Vadim Shirokikh also spoke about the completion of one of the most difficult modes – a flight with full fuel depletion from the right and centre group of tanks. “There was a little of everything: both flying in a holding pattern, and manoeuvring with extreme angles of bank and pitch, and the automatic shutdown of one engine due to full fuel depletion. The result was pleasing. Flight tests have shown that the non-expendable fuel residue in the tanks is noticeably less than in the basic model. This was achieved thanks to the new design of the fuel tanks,” the test pilot shared.

December

By the end of 2024, there were more than 20 SJ-100 aircraft in varying degrees of completion at the PJSC Yakovlev production centre in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, an unnamed UAC representative told Vedomosti newspaper.

In the face of tight deadlines, the assembly of airframes, the development and production of components and onboard systems, as well as certification flights of prototype aircraft are being carried out in parallel. This approach will allow for the fastest possible introduction of import-substituted aircraft to the market, he added.

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PJSC Yakovlev, together with the Moscow Institute of Electromechanics and Automation, has completed the development of algorithms for the automatic control system as part of the SJ-100 aircraft’s ICS for automatic and director flight control, as well as engine thrust control.

The algorithms created make it possible to perform tasks such as director control on take-off and fully automatic control at all other stages of flight. A feature of the new development lies in the automatic landing algorithms according to ICAO Category IIIB. It involves automatic control during the flare and touchdown phases, as well as maintaining the aircraft’s direction of travel along the centreline of the runway.

As part of the SJ-100 certification, statistical modelling of automatic landings is being carried out using mathematical models for ICAO categories IIIA and IIIB. In the course of the studies, it is necessary to complete over 2 million landings with a random distribution of initial conditions.

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Currently, the Russian civil aviation fleet has 154 Superjets included in the registers of airline operators. In 2024, the serviceability rate of the SSJ100 fleet in individual airlines reached 100%, and the overall serviceability rate of this type of aircraft for the year did not fall below 75%.

In 2023, 9.4 million passengers, or about 9% of the total passenger traffic of air transport in the Russian Federation, were carried on SSJ100 aircraft. In January-November 2024, the number of SSJ100 flights increased by 19.5% – approximately 134,400. The number of incidents caused by aircraft equipment failure decreased by 2.5% compared to the same period in 2023.

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PJSC Yakovlev will carry out modifications to the landing gear design, taking into account the recommendations of Rosaviatsia. The developer has been recommended to modify the existing landing gear design, taking into account the predictive assessment of the risks of operating machines of this type beyond operational limits and assumptions.

According to Rosaviatsia, the recommendations have been worked out by the developer, and after the necessary tests have been completed, the design solutions will be implemented on new SJ-100 aircraft. Then, a service bulletin will be issued for the modification of aircraft that are in operation.

2025

Currently, preparations are underway in Komsomolsk-on-Amur for the start of testing of two more prototype SJ-100 aircraft, these being aircraft 97012 (serial number 95157) with PD-8 engines and partial replacement of imported components, as well as aircraft with serial number 97003 – PD-8 engines and full replacement of imported components.

The start of flights of these aircraft is forecast for the first half of 2025. Upon completion of factory refinement tests, the aircraft will be relocated to Zhukovsky, where they will be included in the certification flights. The type certificate for the import-substituted aircraft under the SSJ-New programme is planned to be obtained in December 2025.