A test aircraft of the MC-21 airliner was caught on video performing high-G maneuvers near the Yakovlev facility in Irkutsk, Russia.
The aircraft begins a near-vertical climb and then turns to the left, before descending and leveling off.
The distant images do not allow us to identify which of the prototypes it is, however. There are aircraft with Pratt & Whitney GTF engines and also the Russian PD-14 turbofan, which will be used in the series production variant MC-21-310.
Russian commercial test aircraft Yakovlev MC-21 caught performing high-G maneuvers. #yakovlev #mc21
? rapatakaz pic.twitter.com/M3eySzQtT8— Air Data News (@airwayaviation) August 23, 2024
The MC-21 was launched last decade to compete with the Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737 MAX in the global air travel market.
The initial version has a capacity of 211 seats and was designed with extensive use of Western components.
However, military incursions into Ukraine, first in 2014 when the country annexed Crimea, and in 2022 when there was an attempt to overthrow the government of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, prompted the West to establish trade sanctions that affected the development of the aircraft.
Plan to produce 36 aircraft per year
In recent years, Yakovlev’s parent company, UAC (United Aircraft Corporation), has accelerated projects to “Russify” the MC-21 and the SJ100 regional jet.
Despite this, development is well behind schedule and Yakovlev currently expects the MC-21 to enter service in 2025.
Andrei Boginsky, CEO of Yakovlev, said on August 23 that the plan is to produce up to 36 MC-21s per year at the Irkutsk facility.
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“Its current capacity enables the output of 36 planes per year. The first contract has been signed and an advance payment for 18 MC-21 planes has been received from a leasing company,” Boginsky told Interfax.
The launch customer for the aircraft will be the Aeroflot group, through its subsidiary Rossiya Airlines.
