News outlets report a delay in the arrival of the SJ-100 airliner, with deliveries now pushed to 2026 after considering additional testing and evaluation. The information comes from a briefing provided to Rostec and the United Aircraft Corporation, which oversee the program and its strategic milestones for domestically produced aviation hardware.
According to the briefing, the certification process for the SJ-100, when equipped with the Russian PD-8 engine, has been extended. The revised timetable moves the final approval and readiness for service into 2025, followed by the start of customer deliveries in 2026. This adjustment reflects a careful approach to ensuring safety, performance, and reliability in a competitive regional market that increasingly values homegrown propulsion and airframe integration.
In December 2023, Yuri Slyusar, the General Director of the United Aircraft Corporation, outlined expectations for a first flight of the SJ-100 powered by the PD-8 engine to occur in early 2024. The plan highlighted a push to demonstrate mission readiness, verify handling characteristics, and validate systems compatibility in a timely manner. Such milestones are often accompanied by extended flight testing, ground verification, and iterative design refinements as part of a rigorous certification path.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade has indicated a production plan for 2024 that envisions manufacturing around twenty SJ-100 aircraft and six MS-21 aircraft of medium range within Russia. This near-term production slate signals sustained investment in domestically developed aviation platforms and a broader strategy to bolster national capacity in civil and military aviation sectors alike. The program is positioned within a broader modernization effort aimed at expanding manufacturing capabilities and supplying both civil operators and potential export customers.
Earlier updates noted a broader revival of Russia’s aerospace manufacturing initiatives, including renewed activity around the A-50 airborne warning and control system. These developments form part of a wider policy to reconstitute key air platform capabilities and maintain strategic balance across the country’s aviation portfolio while integrating new engines and avionics to meet evolving requirements.