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Plan for An-124 Revival Ready, Cash Needed
Russian outsize cargo specialist Volga Dnepr, in cooperation with Kiev-based Antonov Design Bureau, continues work on restarting serial production of An-124-100 Ruslan superheavy freighter. This spring the industry/airline team finalized business plans, and now they are trying to get financial support.
The partners suggest production will occur at Aviastar's plant in Ulyanovsk, Russia, in cooperation with Aviant and Ukrainian private engine maker Motor-Sich, which builds the An-124's Progress D-18T powerplant. Financial details are not published, but reportedly the plan is based on contributions from private investors and An-124 operators, as well as from a substantial infusion of government cash.
The plan also includes a program of step-by-step improvements to the aircraft aimed at increasing maximum payload to 150 tonnes (up from 120 now), improving D18T performance and installing a new avionics package. The improvements are designed to reduce operating costs and meet future Chapter 4 noise regulations.
Though the giant An-124-100 is one of the rare Soviet-era aviation products that still finds ready demand in global markets, its production was virtually halted in 1994, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Aviastar's plant continued assembly using parts already in stock, and the last newly built An-124 rolled off the line in 2004. Currently, 27 of the 56 An-124-100s in existence are operating in the commercial freighter configuration, certified in 1992. The leading operators -- Russia's Volga-Dnepr, with 10 aircraft; Polyot, with seven; and Ukrainian carrier Antonov Airlines, with eight -- have long said they would help fund an upgrade program and finance further purchases. -- Artem Fetisov
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