Russia, China to develop long-haul passenger plane
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Russia and China are expected to sign an agreement for the joint development of a new wide-body passenger aircraft before the end of the year, it has been revealed.
Xinhua reported the president of Russia’s United Aircraft Corp as saying that the two countries are currently working out the details of the new project, which would allow Russia and China to compete with US-based Boeing and Europe’s Airbus in the long-haul aviation sector.
“So far, the project has proceeded well, and we plan to determine the technical requirements, specifications and outsourcing methods in March,” Yury Slyusar was quoted saying.
The new plane will be able to carry between 210 and 350 passengers, depending on the seating configuration. This would put it in competition with the Boeing’s 777 and 787 and Airbus’ A330 and A350 models. It will be developed from scratch, according to Slyusar, quelling speculation that the aircraft could be an upgraded version of the Russian-made Ilyushin Il-96 aircraft.
Slyusar was speaking on the sidelines of Aviation Expo China 2015 in Beijing, which concluded on Saturday. United Aircraft Corp used the event to display its new single-aisle passenger aircraft, the Sukhoi Superjet 100.
Earlier this year, Slyusar told Russia’s Sputnik News Agency that Russia and China would invest US$13 billion in developing the new long-haul aircraft, with China responsible for the main fuselage and Russia developing the wings and tail sections.
China is currently in the process of developing its own domestic passenger aircraft, including the ARJ 21, a regional jet which is due to launch later this year, and the C919, a single-aisle jet which is scheduled to enter service in 2018.
United Aircraft Corp, which is the holding company for most of Russia’s major aviation brands, including Sukhoi, Ilyushin and Tupolev, launched the Sukhoi Superjet 100 in 2011.
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