PM reveals deadline for development of first Belarus-Russia aircraft

According to Roman Golovchenko, Belarus has never produced its own aircraft, though it has long had large aircraft repair enterprises, for example, Minsk Civil Aviation Plant and Baranovichi Aircraft Repair Plant No. 558, which means that the country has a wealth of experience in the aircraft industry.

The prime minister added that the aircraft industry is an important economic sector for the two countries, therefore import substitution is critically important in this industry. Roman Golovchenko informed that a cooperation program in the aircraft industry will be signed by Belarus and Russia on the sidelines of the Innoprom expo. The program is expected to give an even greater impetus to this work.

According to the Belarusian head of government, at the time when Russia decided to develop its own aircraft industry, it faced the need for reliable partners. And Belarus offered its services and these services were of high quality. “This is a serious task, so Belarusian enterprises are actively involved in the production of component parts for the Russian aircraft industry,” said Roman Golovchenko.

“Delegations from Belarus visited various Russian aircraft factories more than once, which helped us get a decent portfolio of orders from Russia. And we thought: why not expand our horizons? We discussed this issue with colleagues from Russia and expressed our readiness to provide the necessary technical assistance to the Russian aircraft industry. At the same time, we would like to fulfill our own ambitions of becoming an aircraft-making country,” the Belarusian head of government said.

According to Roman Golovchenko, a decision was taken to implement a joint project to manufacture a light multi-purpose twin-engine aircraft in the Republic of Belarus.

The prime minister informed that he had already visited the Ural Works of Civil Aviation that will develop the aircraft together with the Belarusian side. “We have set the task of completing the design work in three years, this includes prototype development. The aircraft will be based on Russian technologies, so many component parts are interchangeable. We will also report to the president on the progress on this project, and we will also allocate funds for the construction of a mass production enterprise,” Roman Golovchenko said.

The Belarusian head of government is sure that the first Belarus-Russia aircraft will fly into the airspace of the Union State in some 4-5 years.