Tu-324 on track for prototype flights in 2001 according to Tupolev

Published: 9/17/1999

Deputy General Designer of ANTK Tupolev, Valentin Dmitriyev, has claimed that there are no problems in progressing the production of the 50 seat Tu-324 at KAPO, located in Kazan, so supporting claims made by KAPO early in August (www.concise.org 24thAugust 1999). According to Dmitriyev, 80% of the documentation for the airframe has been handed over to the producing plant and the balance will be available in October, with the system documentation following in December for all systems, except the control and navigation systems. According to reports, prototypes are due to fly in 2001. Dmitriyev said that the Tu-324 would be equipped with avionics designed by the NII (Scientific Research Institute) of Aviation Equipment, in cooperation with AlliedSignal, although the latter is considered by most observers to be the main contractor. The avionics, which Dmitriyev considers to be the most advanced ever fitted to a Russian civilian aircraft, are also undergoing testing on the Be-200 amphibian. Powered primarily by GE CF-34-3B1 engines - although a Progress AI-22 option may be available - the aircraft, with one class of 50 passengers, has a range of 2,500 km and 3000 km in a two-class modification of 44 seats. The company also believes that a business variant designed for 8-19 people will have a range of 7,000 km. For Tupolev, the market for the aircraft is in the level above regional turboprops: a market served by the Il-114 and the An-140. The programme to date has been funded by Tatarstan, where the KAPO plant is situated, and, according to Dmitriyev, has kept up with its promised funding of the project. Originally a 50:50 venture between Russia and Tatarstan, it seems that Russian involvement may have dwindled to nothing! The aircraft was built as a full-scale mockup in 1997 and, at the time, was considered to be potentially a winner in the Russian Aviation Consortium (RAC) that led the tender for regional aircraft (www.concise.org 24th April 1998). The failure of the tender, however, has left the project floundering, with RAC weakening considerably over the last two years, as regional operators were hit by the financial crisis. The other potentially large buyer, Aeroflot, is reserving judgment until certification, which, in current Russian conditions, may mean never.

Article ID: 873