Russia’s First Fully Domestic Superjet Completes Maiden Flight

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Russia’s first fully domestically built Superjet airliner completed its maiden test flight on Friday, the state defense and industrial conglomerate Rostec said.

The flight follows earlier test flights of the import-substituted Superjet prototype in April and June, which confirmed stable operation of its domestically made systems. Rostec said the program is now entering the phase of mass production.

The company said the SJ-100, as the aircraft is now branded, replaced “dozens” of foreign components, including the fuselage, flight-control systems and landing gear.

The Yakovlev Production Center in Komsomolsk-on-Amur has 24 SJ-100s at “various stages of completion,” Rostec said. The jets are awaiting certification flights and approval from Russia’s civil aviation

Friday’s test flight lasted around one hour, reaching speeds of roughly 500 kilometers per hour (310 miles per hour) and an altitude of 3,000 meters (9,800 feet), according to Rostec.

Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation, which took over the project last year after production delays and safety concerns, has said the SJ-100 will require 200 test flights

The 100-seat regional jet is central to Russia’s efforts to develop a domestic commercial aviation industry after Western sanctions curtailed its access to foreign technology.

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