Russia’s MC-21 program is entering a new phase with the Irkutsk Aviation Plant expected to sharply ramp up production. The manufacturer expects to reach a rhythm of production of about one MC-21 every 40 calendar days in 2027, with the interval projected to shrink further as the production system matures.
At the same time, at the Irkutsk Aviation Plant, construction of the first prototype of the shorter MC-21-210 has already begun. The development is an extension of the MC-21 family beyond the current MC-21-310 and will target a distinct slice of the domestic and international narrow-body market.
Andrey Soinov, general director of the Irkutsk Aviation Factory, disclosed the output objective during a media tour organized by Yakovlev and the aviation factory. The journalists saw the assembly and testing of the MC-21 as well as other Yakovlev aircraft.
From aircraft assembly to a 40-day production cycle
The difficulty Irkutsk is now facing is not just how to get more planes out of the plant. First, the plant has to handle quite a lot of work-in-progress already scattered on the production system.
The facility has to push a large amount of unfinished aircraft through the assembly line, and at the same time bringing previously assembled aircraft, now at varying stages of completion, back into the manufacturing cycle, Soinov added.
Once this backlog is absorbed, the factory expects to establish a much more predictable serial-production rhythm.
The target is approximately one aircraft every 40 days during 2027. That comes out to about nine airplanes per year at that specific manufacturing rate, but the 40-day figure is a production rate, not a final yearly rate goal.
The goal for the longer term is much more grandiose. As production processes, logistics, manpower, and industrial cooperation stabilize, the gap between aircraft is expected to be steadily minimized.
The plant is eventually targeting a production pace of 36 MC-21 aircraft a year, a big step up from where the program is now.
Aeroflot contract drives production expansion
The main reason for the growth in production is the deal with Aeroflot for 90 MC-21-310 aircraft.
The Irkutsk Aviation Plant is getting ready to hand over four serial MC-21-310 aircraft for flight tests, with deliveries to airlines expected to start in 2027.
The contract gives the program a considerable production backlog which will carry it through to the early 2030s. This provides the manufacturer with a basis for planning staff growth, supplier logistics and factory use across several years, rather than treating each aircraft as an independent production project.
The task now is to transform that order book into a robust industrial manufacturing system.
The factory is taking on more workers. As the information given during the media briefing in September shows, about 500 more staff will be recruited by the end of the first quarter of 2027.
The MC-21-210 is now in production
The MC-21-310 is heading into serial production, while another variant of the aircraft is already undergoing the development phase.
The Irkutsk Aviation Plant has commenced production of the prototype MC-21-210, a shorter variant of the airliner. The initiative is part of a research and development contract signed between Russia’s Ministry of Industry and Trade and Yakovlev in May 2026.
The shorter aircraft is being designed for trips of about 4,000-4,500km. Industry and Trade Minister Anton Alikhanov said such a range might enable the aircraft to compete in a section of the market that includes the Airbus A320 and Boeing 737.
The first flight of the MC-21-210 is now scheduled for August 2028.
The initiation of the prototype construction is consequently a key milestone. So the short version is no longer just an idea but is an actual aircraft being constructed.
The MC-21-210 could potentially provide the Russian program with a second major variant, enabling the family of aircraft to serve varied passenger and route needs.
More production is being brought inside Irkutsk
The ramp-up in production is also being accompanied by growing localization of manufacturing operations.
From the beginning of 2027, the painting of serial MC-21-310 aircraft will be carried out by Irkutsk Aviation Plant independently. The factory is actively establishing the painting capabilities required.
The move is part of broader efforts to lessen dependence on foreign supply and gain greater control over the plane’s production chain.
The firm has also developed logistics and specialized manufacturing facilities enabling serial MC-21 assembly, including a logistics center and anodizing and painting capabilities.
The vertical expansion is significant since boosting aircraft output needs more than just expanding the final assembly line. Components must be at the right time throughout the production chain, manufacturing processes must be synchronized, and bottlenecks must be removed.
The real test comes in 2027
So the MC-21 program is entering an important industrial phase.
Passenger aircraft certification is a big set of checks and flights, and the certification testing of the aircraft is going on, Yakovlev test pilot Andrey Voropaev said. Meanwhile, the factory is gearing up to make the shift from a limited production setting to regular serial manufacturing.
The 40-day production objective for 2027 is an important intermediary goal. If the Irkutsk facility can get into that rhythm and then shorten the interval, the MC-21 will move closer to becoming a truly high-volume Russian commercial aircraft program.
At the same time, the launch of the MC-21-210 prototype building means that the program is no longer only focused on completing the MC-21-310. Russia is trying to expand the aircraft family and is also raising production of the current version.
The next few years will therefore be decisive in establishing whether Irkutsk can transition the MC-21 from a long-running development program into a repeatable industrial production system and whether the new MC-21-210 can successfully extend the aircraft family’s reach into another part of the narrowbody market.