Russian manufacturer Irkut plans to start preliminary design work on a narrowbody jet airliner after winning a tender from the Russian government late last year.
Irkut led the winning consortium, which includes the Yakovlev design bureau and Ilyushin plant, with its planned 100- to 130-passenger SMHA-21 short/medium-haul aircraft. An initial three-year design phase will be funded by $100 million of Russian transport ministry funds and $100 million of public funds will be available to fund further development and prototyping if the project is commercially viable.
Irkut president Alexei Federov says the project is at an early stage, and that the three companies will have completed workshare talks by mid-year and detailed development will start by year-end. Federov says eventual production will depend on identifying a market for the aircraft. Initial estimates of the potential for narrowbody jet sales in Russia are around 130 over 20 years, says Federov, who adds that export orders in countries such as China and India could bolster this. "The question is whether the market is big enough for a rival aircraft to the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 family," he says.
Federov says that the most likely outcome at this stage is that the research will feed into a new aircraft design from either Airbus or Boeing, in which Irkut would be involved as a risk-sharing and development partner.
Irkut is also developing the MTA multipurpose transport aircraft with Indian manufacturer Hindustan Aeronautics.
JUSTIN WASTNAGE / IRKUTSK
Source: Flight International
