MiG’s new maintenance base to service the Sukhoi Superjet 100
Its Lukhovitsy centre is hopeful of gaining the necessary FAP-285 approval before the end of this year
Russian aircraft corporation MiG, the famous producer of fighter jets, is proceeding with the creation of a specialist maintenance centre for Russian-made commercial aircraft, including the Superjet 100 regional jet and the MC-21 advanced mid-haul airliner, at its Lukhovitsy Aviation Plant base, some 135 km south east of Moscow.
Aviation authority Rosaviatsiya’s approval for work on the Superjet 100 – a product of Irkut’s regional aircraft division (until recently, Sukhoi Civil Aircraft) –the first type on the new centre’s potential capability list, is expected before the end of this year.
The synergy is expected to reduce the SSJ100’s down time and, since MiG’s Lukhovitsy base has its own airfield, it will facilitate further cooperation with other maintenance facilities.
The project is in line with the 2016 instruction by Russian president Vladimir Putin to increase the share of commercial products in the total production volumes of defence companies to at least 17 per cent in 2020, 30 per cent by 2025 and 50 per cent by 2030.
Lukhovitsy’s previous attempts to launch a commercial aircraft assembly facility have thus far had controversial results. In January 2017, Yury Slyusar, the head of United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), reported to president Putin that the plant would be involved in the final assembly of the upgraded Ilyushin IL-114-300 turboprop, but that project has still not fully materialised. Meanwhile, production of the single piston-engined IL-103 trainer/general aviation aircraft has been discontinued, and the Tupolev Tu-334 regional jet programme never took off. Finally, in July 2019, MiG joined forces with Sukhoi Civil to create a roadmap for the establishment of a commercial aircraft maintenance centre. As of today, at least one of MiG’s three production sites – the Nizhny Novgorod Aircraft Plant – is involved in manufacturing original parts for the Superjet 100.
Evgeny Tarasov, the new centre’s director, revealed at the recent MRO Russia & CIS 2020 convention, that FAP-285 approval is expected before the end of 2020 and that MiG is primarily targeting SSJ100’s heavy maintenance, service bulletins (SBs) and other works. It also plans to gain the necessary certification for the production of aircraft fasteners and other metal-ware and is also looking into the production of special tools and ground handling equipment.
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