Antonov Company is replacing more than half of An-178 aircraft’s components for Ukraine, to avoid Russian-made ones, Ukroboronprom’s top official has revealed.
“Complete elimination of dependence on the supply of components from the Russian Federation is among the main priorities. The contract for the construction of three An-178 aircraft, signed in the presence of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky in late December last year, stipulates that all components will be imported,” Yuriy Husev, Director General of the State Concern Ukroboronprom, was quoted as saying by Ukrinform on Tuesday.
Husev was speaking at the roundtable meeting “Import substitution: the potential for domestic production and strengthening the independence of the state.”
In order to build An-178 aircraft without Russian components, Antonov will have to replace 54% of all parts used for the aircraft, including life support system, transport equipment, supervision system, and special systems.
“We are conducting measures to substitute imports and strengthen cooperation within the concern. As these are new opportunities for the development of high-tech products, which are needed by the defense industry and the economy in general,” Husev added.
The company produced the first An-178 plane without Russian components in September 2020. “This is the first plane without a single Russian part. We have been accused of not producing planes for several years. But with the beginning of the Russian military aggression in 2014, we lost not only the export market, but also the supply market for important components. It took some time to find import substitution and search for new suppliers,” Alexander Moose, President of Antonov, said during in an interview with Ukrinform, back then. Two-thirds of the components are produced by the United States while remaining is manufactured locally, he added.
An-178 Transport Aircraft
An-178 Ukrainian short-haul transport aircraft powered by turbojet engines was developed on the basis of An-158 passenger plane. The jet can carry up to 18 tonnes of cargo, including large-sized 1C containers. It was designed to replace old An-12 planes.
The aircraft is designed to deliver personnel and light equipment, transport material, mail and other cargo. In emergency situations, it can be used to evacuate the population from the disaster area, transport the wounded, land rescue teams and more.
The aircraft can land and take off from any aerodrome. The maximum cruising speed of the machine is 825 kmph, the maximum flight altitude is over 12 km, and its maximum range is about 5,000 km. The aircraft is equipped with two domestic turbojet engines D-436-148FM, created by OJSC “Motor Sich” and SE “Ivchenko Progress,” which is part of “Ukroboronprom.”
The An-178-100R is the first Ukrainian military transport aircraft with turbojet engines, which in the future should replace the An-26, which is mostly equipped with the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The contract for three aircraft under state guarantees is the first state order for the construction of domestic air carriers for the Armed Forces.
