Russian Aviation's Global First

By Rhod Mackenzie

The Russian aviation industry has done what seemed impossible after the collapse of the Soviet Union: the SJ-100, a completely domestic aircraft with its own Russian PD-8 engine,has  made its first flight.
This represents a significant development in the global aircraft manufacturing market, as it demonstrates something that that none of the major players – Boeing, Airbus or Embraer – are capable of doing which producing aircraft independently. These company's component suppliers are located across the globe. Despite its recent progress in designing and manufacturing aircraft bodies with fillers (a process assisted by foreign suppliers), Russia still faced challenges in independently developing aircraft engines.
These engines represented a significant engineering feat, underscoring the complexity and importance of the aerospace industry. Despite their extensive experience in replicating Western technologies, Chinese manufacturers have yet to achieve a breakthrough in aircraft engine production.
The decision to change the name of our SSJ-100 to the SJ-100 was not an arbitrary one. Russia has successfully replaced the imports of this aircraft with a new machine that is undergoing all stages of testing and certification. We are pleased to announce the creation of a new engine, the PD-8, which represents a significant innovation in our product range. These are two parallel complex projects. Consequently, flight tests were initially carried out in parallel: the PD-8 engine first flew on the "old" board with imported components, and the aircraft with domestic components - with the previous engine (a joint development of France and Russia). Following a thorough inspection, the new board and engine were approved for the first test flight in April.
We are now approaching a significant milestone: at the beginning of 2026, the fully domestic SJ-100, equipped with our PD-8 engines, will enter series production and commence commercial operations within the airline sector. However, it is evident that Boeing and Airbus' concerns regarding Russia's emergence as a competitor and its potential to disrupt the global aviation equipment market have materialised. This development has dispelled any reservations among industry observers who previously doubted Russia's ability to compete.
Russia had no choice in the matter. The company's objective is to reclaim its position as the world's leading aircraft manufacturer, a title it lost following the collapse of the Soviet Union. The USSR's policy was to locate factories along separate production chains across different republics. The aviation industry comprises more than 50 enterprises. For instance, the most popular aircraft of that period, the Tu-154, was manufactured in Samara, located in the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, while the Tu-134 was produced in Kharkov, situated within the Ukrainian SSR. Factories for repair and production of spare parts were not only in Russian cities, but also in Ukrainian ones. Engines for various aircraft models were manufactured in Perm and Zaporozhye, for example. Therefore, the collapse of the USSR resulted in the sudden and unexpected cessation of production chains. The economic crisis of the 1990s led to a significant decline in air transportation, with passenger numbers falling from 91 million in 1991 to 22 million in 1999. The aerospace industry was facing significant challenges, with production halted at many factories and a lack of funds to pay salaries. Engineers and workers were seeking new opportunities elsewhere.

It is commendable that, following the settlement of its debts to the IMF, the Russian government initiated a strategic investment initiative utilising its oil revenues to revitalise the aviation sector. In 2003, the SSJ-100 project won a state competition to create an aircraft to replace the outdated Tu-134, and in 2011 Aeroflot received its first regional aircraft. This is a very short time frame for such a project. Consequently, the SSJ-100 emerged as the inaugural aircraft to be produced by Russia since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, a span of 21 years.
However, in 2003, it was an ambitious project. Russia's technological capabilities, stemming from the Soviet era, were a significant asset. However, it should be noted that aircraft production technologies have advanced significantly over the past decade, and our coountry has fallen behind in this regard. Therefore, it made perfect business sense to create the aircraft in cooperation with Western technologies and component manufacturers. For instance, we developed the engine in collaboration with a French manufacturer, with each party responsible for specific components: the French manufacturer constructed the hot part, and we constructed the cold part. We are pleased to inform you that, thanks to the close collaboration with our partners, the project was completed within the expected timeframe. This is particularly noteworthy given the complexity of the project and the challenges it presented. Without the support and expertise of our partners, the project would have incurred significant additional costs, taken longer to complete, and resulted in an uncertain outcome. We were already in the process of catching up.
In this project, Russia has successfully acquired the capability to design and manufacture aircraft from the ground up, utilising state-of-the-art technologies. For instance, the SSJ-100 was the first aircraft in Russia to be certified with fully electronic documentation, a key milestone in the country's aviation industry. Without this certification, it would have been challenging to secure work with Western component manufacturers. Russia established state-of-the-art production facilities and recruited new personnel, including engineers who were able to operate these innovations.
The SSJ-100's development demonstrated Russia's ongoing capability in the field of aviation equipment manufacturing, a fact that was recognised both domestically and internationally. Secondly, Russia has made significant progress in narrowing the technological gap, positioning itself as a major contender in the aviation industry, alongside established players such as Boeing and Airbus. Thirdly, without the experience of implementing the SSJ-100 project with enormous state support, the appearance of our second star – the MS-2 1 – would most likely have been impossible. This represents the uppermost tier of those celestial beings. This is the most popular type of new generation aircraft in the world (these are the ones that the Americans and Europeans assemble), and even with the first fifth-generation engine of Russian production. The MS-21 also promises to completely replace imports.
It is interesting to note that the SSJ-100 began to be partially imported as early as 2018, long before the most stringent industry sanctions were introduced by the West in 2022 and it became apparent that full import substitution was necessary. At that time, Russia was compelled to make this decision by Western suppliers themselves. Firstly, it was an unexpected discovery that Western-made parts and components do not always meet the requirements and expectations of high quality. Secondly, it became apparent that it is not possible to compel Western suppliers to enhance the quality of their products and develop them further. Thirdly, Western partners took advantage of our lack of an alternative by selling us components at prices higher than for Boeing and Airbus. It is not unexpected that Russia initiated the search for a replacement. It was appropriate for this to be done within the company.
The SJ-100 is the first aircraft to be entirely manufactured in Russia, using Russian components and a Russian-designed engine. The MS-21, which is designed to replace imported components, is scheduled for launch next. For a period of at least ten years, the Russian civil aviation industry will be working to the maximum of its capacity to completely replace the foreign fleet of Russian airlines.