Russian aircraft manufacturer Irkut Corporation has announced that it will conduct testing under sub-zero outside temperatures on its MC-21-300 prototype aircraft.
Testing will take place in Yakutsk, Russia. The manufacturer will perform trials of the MC-21-300 prototype passenger aircraft as part of the extension of the type certificate, which currently allows the aircraft to operate at air temperatures near the ground of minus 30 degrees Celsius.
According to a statement made by Irkut Corporation dated January 23, 2022, as Yakutia is one of the world’s coldest regions, it has the right climatic conditions for aviation equipment to be tested at low temperatures.
The MC-21-300 systems have already been tested on stands under a temperature of almost minus 55 degrees Celsius, the manufacturer claimed.
“It will take approximately three weeks to conduct ground and flight tests in Yakutia, depending on the air temperature in the region. Each test phase is preceded by cooling of the aircraft and in the evening and at night it will be in the open parking lot for 12 hours. The Yakutsk Airport and Yakutia Airlines provide organizational and technical support for the tests,” explained Daniil Brenerman, the managing director at Yakovlev Design Bureau.
The prototype aircraft flew from Zhukovsky (ZIA) to Yakutsk (ZIA) with more than 70 specialists on board to begin preparations for the proposed trials. According to the manufacturer, the flight proved the serviceability of all aircraft systems “for a comfortable long flight with many passengers onboard”.
Andrei Boginsky, director general of Irkut Corporation, also revealed that the company will run a series of further trials to expand the existing certificate before the aircraft is finally mass-produced and delivered to its client, Rossiya Airlines, by the end of 2022.
The MC-21-300 aircraft is assigned to a new generation medium-range commercial passenger plane capable of flying between 163 and 211 passengers onboard. In December 2021, the aircraft was granted a type certificate by the Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsia), which confirmed the aircraft’s compliance with the certification requirements for commercial aviation equipment.