«AS»: Andrei Fedorovich, before discussing the work of the industry in a difficult period, please tell us briefly about the March meeting of the Council for Aircraft Building.

А.Е .: The off-site meeting of the Council, held at GosNIIAS, was devoted to the consideration of the issues "On the state of the regulatory legal framework of the Russian Federation in the field of preventing collisions in the air of manned and unmanned aerial vehicles" and "On the development and development of airborne warning systems in the Russian Federation. collision of manned and unmanned aerial vehicles in the air ”.

The relevance of these issues is determined by the fact that, according to experts' forecasts, in the medium term, Russia is expected to have more than 2 million unmanned aerial systems (UAS) in operation, and by 2035 - up to 100 thousand unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the air at the same time.

Taking into account the intensive development and implementation of UAS in the world and in Russia, the agenda of the meeting is extremely relevant and directly affects the flight safety of manned and unmanned aerial vehicles. The speakers on this topic were the Deputy Director of the Department of State Policy in the Field of Civil Aviation of the Ministry of Transport of Russia D.A. Stepanko and General Director of JSC "Airborne Navigation Systems" (JSC "BANS") M.G. Kizilov. The discussion was attended by representatives of the Russian Ministry of Defence, Federal Air Transport Agency, industry research institutes, aircraft manufacturing enterprises, etc.

In the reports and speeches, the importance of the issues under consideration was noted as one of the main factors in ensuring flight safety when integrating UAS into the unified airspace of the Russian Federation. An insufficient degree of harmonisation of existing domestic regulatory legal and regulatory frameworks in the field of airborne airborne collision avoidance systems (ACAS) and related systems, taking into account the recommended international requirements, is noted.

In advanced aviation countries, special attention is paid to the development of UAS for various purposes and the formation of a regulatory legal framework for their development, testing and ensuring their safe use in the same airspace with manned aircraft.

Russia also attaches great importance to this issue. So, in pursuance of the order of the Government of the Russian Federation of December 14, 2017 No. AD-P9-8357, the Ministry of Transport of Russia, based on the proposals of the leading scientific organisations of the industry, has developed a draft Concept for the integration of unmanned aircraft into the unified airspace of the Russian Federation (Concept), as well as a phased Action Plan for implementation Concepts, providing for the subsequent inclusion of agreed measures in the Strategy for the Development of the Air Navigation System of the Russian Federation until 2030 and the Air Navigation Plan of the Russian Federation. The concept is being approved by the federal executive authorities and must be approved by September 1, 2020.

The meeting emphasised the need for certification of the domestic onboard airborne collision avoidance system BSPS-2015 in accordance with Russian and international requirements.

Following the meeting, recommendations of the Council were prepared and sent to authorised bodies and interested organisations.

AS: How did aircraft building enterprises work during the period of isolation?

А.Е .: The work of the enterprises of the industry was organised in accordance with the orders of the Government of the Russian Federation, the general principles and recommendations of the World Health Organization and Rospotrebnadzor. Thanks to the measures taken, the production activities of enterprises did not stop and continued quite actively with the observance and implementation of anti-epidemiological measures in design, production and other organisations. In difficult times, aircraft manufacturing enterprises almost fully coped with the fulfilment of the tasks of the State Defence Order, ensuring the required combat readiness of the aviation of the Armed Forces, and implementing civil aircraft engineering programs.

I would like to note that under the program for the implementation of the State Defence Order for Aviastar-SP, in Ulyanovsk, the serial production of heavy military transport aircraft Il-76MD-90A, an upgraded version of the well-proven Il-76, is under way. At the end of May, tightness tests of the next Il-76MD-90A were completed.

As for the promising Il-112V light military transport aircraft, after the completion of the runway repair at the Voronezh aircraft plant, its prototype will be transferred to Zhukovsky for continuation of flight tests. Now the Il-112V glider is undergoing static tests at Central Institute of Aerohydrodynamics named after Zhukovsky, and the third and fourth aircraft are in production.

In accordance with the production plans of PJSC UAC, within the framework of cooperation for the creation and preparation for serial production of a new IL-114-300 passenger aircraft, the manufacture and assembly of a prototype aircraft, created using serial technologies, is being completed. The first three fuselage compartments for the prototype were manufactured at the Sokol aircraft building plant in Nizhny Novgorod, which were sent to the production site of JSC RAC MiG in Lukhovitsy near Moscow, where the final assembly of the Il-114-300 will be carried out. Also, within the framework of production cooperation at Aviastar-SP for the Il-114-300, the manufacture of fuselage panels, doors and hatches continues, and at PJSC VASO in Voronezh - wings, tail assembly and engine nacelles. The first flight of the prototype is expected in the summer of 2020.

In the final assembly shop at PJSC VASO, work continues on the production of a new long-haul wide-body passenger aircraft Il-96-400M in accordance with the approved schedule: docking of the main airframe units is being performed, docking of the fuselage to the wing is completed, and installation of the main aircraft systems has begun.

On April 22, 2020, after a short break due to the implementation of anti-epidemiological measures, flight tests of the MC-21-300 passenger aircraft resumed. At present, the Irkutsk branch of PJSC Irkut Corporation is producing another aircraft, which will be equipped with Russian PD-14 engines. The enterprise JSC "UEC-Perm Motors" is preparing for the production of several more engines for the MC-21-300, which will be supplied to the aircraft plant in Irkutsk in 2020. The first flight of the MC-21-300 aircraft with Russian engines is planned for the second half of 2020 g.

The enterprises of JSC Russian Helicopters continue to produce new helicopters. Kazan Helicopter Plant PJSC delivered the first Mi-38 and Ansat helicopters, as well as Mi-8MTV-1 for government agencies and commercial operators. Serial production of Mi-28, Mi-35, Mi-26 helicopters of various modifications is carried out at the Rostvertol enterprise in the normal mode.

AS: Please tell us about the measures already taken and planned for the development of the industry, taking into account the instructions of the President of the Russian Federation.

А.Е .: On May 13, 2020, the President of the Russian Federation held a targeted meeting on the development of the aviation industry. The President of the Russian Federation was informed about the decision taken by the Government of the Russian Federation on the implementation of the Financial Recovery Program of PJSC UAC, which would facilitate the restructuring of problem debt in the amount of more than 300 billion rubles. The Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Rostec State Corporation have been instructed to form a product line (line) of aircraft and helicopters, which in the near future should be used, first of all, on domestic airlines. At the same time, the emphasis was placed on the priority development of domestic flights and support for domestic demand. In order to ensure the workload of aircraft manufacturing enterprises during the isolation period, it was instructed to launch new programs to support the leasing, operation of Russian aircraft, and to postpone the state purchases of aircraft to an earlier date.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade of Russia, together with PJSC UAC and JSC Russian Helicopters, has been developed for implementation in 2019 and is currently refining the product line of civil aircraft and helicopters, taking into account new orders from the President of the Russian Federation, and adjusting the timing of projects. The deadlines for the implementation of measures for import substitution have already been shifted to the left. For example, for the Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft, the implementation of the import substitution program indicators has been postponed from 2024 to 2023.

In order to fulfil the instructions of the President of the Russian Federation on the formation of an airline in the Far East region that operates mainly domestic aircraft, the issue is being worked out taking into account alternative options and proposals.

To coordinate work on the implementation of the instructions of the President of the Russian Federation, the necessary changes will be made to the previously approved Plan of Work of the Council for Aircraft Building of the Collegium of the Military-Industrial Commission of the Russian Federation for 2020.

AS: Andrey Fedorovich, thank you for the interesting interview.

Published in the «AviaSoyuz» journal