First MC-21 with Russian PD-14 engines rolls out

Irkut Corporation is starting ground tests on the MC-21-310 prototype aircraft. It features Russia-manufactured engines which have already been tested in one of the pods of an Ilyushin Il-76.

Irkut Corporation, part of the UAC of Rostec State Corporation, has completed the construction of an MC-21-310 prototype aircraft that will undergo flight tests with Russian PD-14 engines.

On November 6, the aircraft was transferred from the final assembly shop to the flight test division of the Irkutsk Aviation Plant - a branch of Irkut Corporation PJSC.

In preparation for the first flight, specialists will check the aircraft systems, test the ground launch of the power plant, test the aircraft and engines while moving around the airfield at various speeds.

"Only a few countries in the world are capable of creating aviation equipment of this level. The upcoming tests of the MS-21 with domestic engines are a landmark event for the industry, a clear confirmation that the domestic civil aircraft industry has a future," says Anatoly Serdyukov, industrial director of the Rostec aviation cluster.