United Aircraft Corporation has unveiled the Il-114-300 turboprop in the group’s corporate livery, already applied to jets such as the MC-21, SJ100 and Tu-214.
The test aircraft received the new livery in Ulyanovsk, where it flew from Lukhovitsy, near Moscow.
The concern to “Russify” its aircraft led UAC to apply national paints to the Il-114-300, a 68-passenger tubeprop similar to the ATR 72.
Follow Air Data News: WhatsApp | Google News | Instagram | LinkedIn | Twitter | Facebook
According to the parent company of Russia’s leading aircraft manufacturers, Ilyushin is conducting a factory flight test program and preparing to begin certification flights.
“The test program is intense. The aircraft has already completed more than 30 flights, some of which lasted more than seven hours. The tests confirm the convergence with the calculations, the aircraft demonstrates excellent flight characteristics,” said Daniil Brenerman, managing director of Il PJSC.
The Russian plan is to offer the Il-114-300 as a replacement for the aging fleet of An-24 turboprops from Antonov, now a Ukrainian company.
The turboprop is an upgraded version of the Il-114 and can operate in inhospitable regions.
Like other Russian projects, the turboprop also underwent replacement of foreign components with domestic equivalents.
The development program was halted after a fatal accident involving the only prototype of the Il-112V small airlifter in August 2021. Both models use the TV7 engine, which led to the suspension.
