Il-112V aircraft will become two tons lighter.

A new Il-112V military transport aircraft will become at least two tons lighter, a Russian defense industry source told TASS.

Ilyushin Il-112V prototype (Picture source: Сергей Пугачёв)

"The weight reduction program is being implemented now. We are a little bit ahead of schedule. The weight of the first prototype aircraft has been partially reduced. It is supposed to be up to one ton lighter. The weight of the third modification will be reduced by two tons at least," the source explained.

According to him, some components, units and modules will have to be replaced. "The production of a new ramp and of the half doors of the loading entrance has been launched," he said.

Some "lightweight" equipment, the source said, will be installed on the aircraft after tests. The weight reduction plan also envisages the downsizing of the air navigator’s job place.

Il-112V airlifter is the first military transport aircraft, which Russia has developed from scratch in the post-Soviet period. The work has been underway since 2014. The turbo-prop aircraft is designed to transport soldiers, military hardware and weapons. According to declared tactical and technical characteristics, it will be able to airlift up to 5 tons of cargoes to a distance of 1,200 kilometers and take off from and land on runways with a width of 1,500-1,800 meters. According to the OJSC Ilyushin Aviation Complex, the maximum takeoff weight is 21 tons. The aircraft made its first trial flight and landed at the airfield of the Voronezh Aircraft Manufacturing Company (VASO) on March 30 this year. Alexei Rogozin, the Ilyushin’s director-general at that time, told TASS that there was a problem linked to the aircraft’s excessive weight. He noted that the problem was typical of any pilot product. He assured that serial aircraft prototypes would meet the tactical and technical requirements set by the Russian Defense Ministry in full measure.

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