The NAPO (Novosibirsk Aviation Production Organisation) plant is as old as its Siberian contemporary KnAAPO, dating back to the beginning of he 1930s. Like its Siberian counterpart, NAPO's role has centred upon the production of Russian military aircraft - most recently, the Su-34 - with civil work until the SSJ limited to the construction of a tiny series of Antonov An-38 commuter aircraft.
Early plans for NAPO to undertake final assembly of the smaller SSJ variants - the SSJ 100-75 and the now defunct 60-seat proposal - were dropped as it focused on the construction of subassemblies. It is tasked with supplying the following sections to the KnAAPO line:
- Nose section (F1)
- rear fuselage section (F5)
- tailcone (F6)
- empennage (fin and horizontal stabilser).
In preparation for the SSJ production effort, two years ago NAPO established a "workshop of high-speed machine tools" outfitted to the latest European standards. As NAPO's own resources were limited, in an unprecedented move Sukhoi enlisted strategic partner Finance Leasing (FLC) to purchase the necessary Western equipment and provide it to NAPO under a financial lease.
By late last year this equipment was functioning and being used to drill and mill parts for the first two SSJ airframes.
On average, each major Western machine tool has cost around €1 million ($1.29 million), including installation and operator training, but the provide a quantum leap in efficiency: "Manufacturing a typical airframe part now takes 2h when previously it was 20-30h," says a workshop manager.
NAPO shipped the first SSJ's F1, F5 and F6 sections by road to KnAAPO in late December, with the assemblies arriving at their destination in early January.
With neither KnAAPO nor NAPO having much experience in the production of composites, Sukhoi chose to outsource production to the Russian VASO plant in Voronezh. This US Federal Aviation Administration-approved plant which builds the Ilyushin Il-96 airliner is becoming a "centre of competence for composite materials" within the nationwide United Aircraft (OAK) merger of Russia's civil aircraft industry.
VASO recently refurbished its composites facilities to meet SCAC's requirements and has delivered the first set of composite parts - for the wing/fuselage, landing gear and other fairings, cabin and cargo floor panels, flaps, brakes, ailerons, and empennage panels. Some of the air conditioning system piping is also composite.
Source: Flight International
