Where and how the “heart” of the domestic MC-21 airliner is assembled

The UEC Perm Motors enterprise is a key manufacturer of serial gas turbine engines for the aviation industry and the fuel and energy complex of Russia.

In particular, it is at this plant that the PS-90A engine is assembled, as well as its modifications, which began to be produced in series in the early 90s and is a “workhorse” that has been operating on our mainline passenger and transport aircraft for three decades.



However, a much more remarkable product of the activities of UEC Perm Motors is undoubtedly the newest fully domestic engine PD-14, which is designed for medium-range aircraft MS-21-310. This unit went on its first flight as part of a flying laboratory in 2015, entered serial production in 2020, and began to be used in 2022.

Each engine assembled at the plant undergoes thorough testing to confirm its reliability. After the assembly shop, the unit goes to the test shop, where it is prepared for testing, and then directly tested on the test bench.

More than 200 parameters are confirmed here. The tests themselves take five days. Only after successfully passing all the necessary tests is the unit transferred to the customer for installation on the aircraft.

It is typical that there are no educational institutions in Russia that train aircraft engine test mechanics. Therefore, UEC Perm Motors recruits specialists from technical schools and universities in Perm and the Perm region, and then "further trains" them at the plant.

In addition to aircraft engines, as mentioned above, gas turbine units are also assembled for the fuel and energy complex of Russia. 359 people work in the GTU assembly shop, and the entire process is performed manually, which requires high qualifications and attention.

In total, the plant employs more than 11 thousand people, among whom young people occupy a significant place - about 45% of the team.

The work of UEC Perm Motors plays an important role in the development of the aviation and energy industries of the country. Here, completely domestic engines are assembled from scratch, which is extremely important in the conditions of unprecedented sanctions pressure on our country from the West.