Russia completes first stage of engine testing for future heavy transport aircraft

Last week, a Russian military transport aircraft An-124 Ruslan was spotted at South Africa's Waterkloof air base. This giant aircraft, with a payload capacity of up to 120 tons, is capable of transporting large military machinery – from helicopters to armored vehicles, which attracts attention to its missions. Recently, a similar aircraft was in Tehran, which also attracted interest in the cargo they transport from our geopolitical opponents.

It is worth noting that at the moment Russian An-124s are operating under high load. At the same time, there is a serious shortage of Ruslans in our country. According to some data, the Ministry of Defense operates at least ten such aircraft, and about ten more are owned by the Volga-Dnepr company.



The shortage of these powerful transporters is felt due to the age of the vehicles and the unavailability of new production. The latter ceased after the collapse of the USSR, and key components, including the D-18T engine, were manufactured in Ukraine.

However, Russia still has some stock of power plants. In this regard, some aircraft that were previously sent to storage have begun to be restored to continue their service. They can serve for another 25 years. However, this will not solve the issue of creating a new modern transport aircraft, the development of which in our country began back in 2016.

What is characteristic is that domestic designers started not with the airframe, but with the engine.

At the same time, progress in its development has recently become known. We are talking about the PD-35 engine, which significantly exceeds the D-18T in power. It is reported that the unit, capable of boasting an unimaginable thrust of 35 tons, has successfully completed the first stage of testing.

It is worth emphasizing that it took eight years to develop this engine, which is significantly faster than the average for similar projects.
Now about the main thing. The appearance of the PD-35 in Russia could open the way to the creation of a new generation of transport aircraft, which will be designed taking into account modern technologies and materials, including composites, which reduce weight and improve the strength of the structure.

While there has been no information about specific projects for a heavier replacement for the Ruslan, the successful testing of the PD-35 confirms that the Russian Federation is confidently moving towards creating a new transport aircraft capable of replacing the legendary An-124 and strengthening domestic transport capabilities.