Yakovlev is preparing to start production of an upgraded Yak-42 model at the Saratov production plant, but has decided to shelve its planned all-new twin-engined airliner, the Yak-242.
The new Yak-42A, a development of the current Yak-42D, will enter production at Saratov in early 1998, following Russian approval, which is expected later this year. The new model features cabin improvements such as drop-down oxygen masks, additional galley equipment, better seats and enclosed luggage racks, and a larger passenger door, as well as acoustic lining on the engine nacelles to reduce noise. The aircraft also has increased wing fuel-tank capacity, and new Russian avionics to permit Category 2 automatic landings.
Yakovlev has also introduced intermediate positions on the trailing-edge flaps, to achieve better field performance in hot-and-high conditions. At the maximum take-off weight (MTOW) of 57.5t, the Yak-42A can carry a typical all-economy load of 120 passengers over 2,790km (1,500nm).
According to Vladimir Dmitriev, first deputy general designer at Yakovlev, the Yak-42's wing is actually oversized for cruising flight, but its capabilities would be fully exploited on the planned stretched Yak-42-200. "Extended by 6.03m, the aircraft would accommodate 150 passengers in all-economy layout," he says. Yakovlev continues to work on a Yak-42D-100 with Western avionics coupled to a Russian autopilot.
Meanwhile, Dmitriev says that a decision was taken recently to halt work on the proposed 130- to 180-seat Yak-242 twinjet.
The all-new aircraft would have featured a supercritical wing and would have been powered by the Perm PS-90A. Some 30% of the design work has been completed, and Dmitriev says that the project may be re-activated if financing can be secured.
Source: Flight International
