Russia’s Irkut has completed work on the fifth example of the MC-21-300 narrowbody airliner – which will be the first to be equipped with the Aviadvigatel PD-14 turbofans – amid persisting calls for complete indigenous production and components of the 164-seat twinjet. The announcement of this aircraft follows the rollout last month of the fourth prototype and the last powered by Pratt & Whitney PW1400G engines ahead of flight tests scheduled to begin shortly.
Three deliverable PD-14s were accepted by Irkut more than a year ago from their manufacturer Perm Motor Plant, remain in storage awaiting installation, which Irkut plans for early next year. Irkut has rejected calls to place them on an already assembled airframe, instead, it has issued a press release with an earlier plan targeting the PW1400G-powered version’s type certification by the local authorities in 2020 and validation by EASA in 2021.
Beijing has approached Moscow with a request for PD-14 engines, following the unsatisfactory testing of an indigenous turbofan intended for the C919 airliner. The engine designated the AECC CJ-1000A was China’s attempt to produce a local alternative to the LEAP-1C powerplant.
China’s interest in the PD-14 as the intended engine is regarded as the likely sole option after mounting pressure from the US, which has threatened to reduce high-tech US imports to the People’s Republic as part of the increasing trade war between the two countries. Such action may well stall the development of the C919 and ARJ21 programmes.
In the absence of the LEAP-1C and GE CF34A, authorities have urged COMAC to look at the Russian PD-14 and Ukrainian D-436 as possible contingencies.
China appears to ready to consider PD-14 provided Aviadvigatel wins EASA validation for the engine design and Perm Motor Plant for production, as planned, next year. Earlier this year, Aviadvigatel CEO Alexander Inozemtsev confirmed Chinese interest in the PD-14 but said Russia needs to safeguard its technology secrets.
