Russia to produce 72 new MC-21 passenger planes a year by 2025

Official from Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) announced today that the aircraft manufacturer is planning to produce six MC-21 passenger jets in 2021 and twice as many in 2022, bringing the output to 72 aircraft by 2025.

“It is planned to manufacture six MC-21 planes in 2021, twelve in 2022, and 25 in 2023. It is planned to bring the MC-21 output to 72 a year by 2025,” he said.

Apart from that, he said that it was planned to manufacture 155 SSJ 100 aircraft by the end of 2019, 185 such planes in 2020, and 215 – in 2021.

UAC CEO said in mid-November that the corporation planned to increase production of MC-21 medium-haul single-aisle passenger planes to 120 a year. So far, the corporation is capable of manufacturing 70 such aircraft a year.

The MC-21, a Russian medium-haul single-aisle passenger plane, is being developed and manufactured by the Irkut corporation (with UAC being its majority stakeholder). The MC-21-300 (seating from 163 to 211) made its maiden flight in late May 2017. It is also planned to manufacture two more modifications, namely MC-21-200 seating from 132 to 165 passengers and MC-21-400 with up to 250 seats.

Commercial sales of these planes are planned to be kicked off in 2021. The plane is currently undergoing trials and will be certified in Russia in 2020. The Russian certificate will be later validated for the European market.

The corporation’s portfolio includes orders for 175 MC-21 planes, with the biggest client being Russia’s flagship air carrier Aeroflot, which has a contract for 50 such aircraft.