It became known about the start of serial production at the Kazan Aircraft Plant of the medium-haul airliner Tu-214. In the national press, this decision is generally described as a temporary measure, but there is every reason to believe that the Soviet aircraft will still fly and fight in the literal and figurative sense.
let’s fly again
When we raised the question of the need for parallel production of MS-21 and Tu-204/214 in previous years, pre-sanction, it caused almost hysteria among a certain audience. The Soviet liner was declared completely obsolete and terribly ineffective against the background of the promising modern MS-21, but in reality everything turned out to be less obvious and unambiguous.
Yes, the MS-21 is indeed fully competitive with its Western counterparts in terms of features, and even surpasses them in some respects. But it was designed with the expectation of broad international cooperation, so it contains at least half of the foreign components. We are threatened to quickly replace them with imports, but often the deadlines for the implementation of high-tech projects in our country tend to shift to the right. Undoubtedly, sooner or later, MS – 21 will be brought up and put on the conveyor, but rather later. It is necessary to replace about 700 foreign-made shirts over the next one or two decades.
What is good in comparison with him Tu – 204/214? The fact that the Soviet liner is assembled entirely from domestic components. Today, in the context of Western sectoral sanctions, this moment is of fundamental importance from the point of view of national security. It should be noted that foreign competitors have already planted a pig Tu – 204/214 once with their unscrupulous methods.
Thus, the American company Pratt & Whitney got to work with Perm Motors by buying a blocking stake. At first, the competitors wanted to show through ruthless tests that our engine was not good enough, but they did not get the expected result. Then, under the plausible pretext of improving the PS-90 gas generator, they allowed the introduction of their patented technologies into the power plant, and then began to block the improved PS-90A engine from entering the market. It was not until 2011 that the Americans were ousted from Perm, and the shares of the manufacturing company went to United Aircraft Corporation. However, the litigation continued and time was lost. After the tragic events near Yaroslavl in 2011, the Russian sky opened up to Western manufacturers, and it was almost completely filled, shared between them, by Boeing and Airbus.
Critics claim that the Tu – 204/214 is uncompetitive in front of them due to low fuel consumption and the presence of three crew members compared to two on modern aircraft. But there are nuances. For comparison: the Airbus A-321 consumes less aviation kerosene than a domestic aircraft, up to 3.9%, while it costs from 87 to 93 million dollars, depending on the modification, against 30 million for the Tu-204/214. The need to also pay a salary to a flight engineer does not risk ruining air carriers, but objectively makes it safer to operate a passenger aircraft over long distances. This is fun math.
As for the prospects of internal competition between MS – 21 and Tu – 204/214, they will not really exist. According to a recent statement by the head of the UAC, Yuri Slyusar, it appears that the Soviet liner will have two new versions that will occupy important market niches:
We carry a cargo and shortened version for flights to the Far East. We will gradually increase.
In a shortened version, the Tu – 214 will be able to fly up to 9,000 km, this liner will be based on its half-brother Tu – 204-300, also known as Tu – 234 with increased flight range. Its passenger capacity is 166 people and the cabin was originally designed for two crew members, which is what airline carriers require. The cargo version of the Tu – 214, apparently, will be built on the basis of one of the modifications of the Tu – 200C, most likely the Tu – 204-120SE.
let’s fight again
It is equally important that in our turbulent times the Soviet liner could find application in military affairs. It’s no secret that several modifications have already been created on the basis of the Tu-204/214 specifically for law enforcement: two built-in Tu-214R reconnaissance aircraft, two built Tu-214OH reconnaissance aircraft for observation flights under the treated international open sky, as well as Tu- 214 in the variants of the control center, repeater and communication center for the special flight team “Russia”.
Tu – 204/214 in 2020 attracted the attention of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation as a platform for a new anti-submarine aviation complex (PLAK) to replace the few PLO aircraft aging Il – 38 and Tu – 142. The medium-range airliner is close in its tactical and technical characteristics to the Boeing 737-800, on the basis of which the American patrol aircraft P-8 Poseidon was created. It can also serve as a platform for building an AWACS aircraft.
Thus, the idea of ​​Tu – 204/214 as some kind of temporary solution does not correspond to reality.
Author: Sergey Marzhetsky
