Russia's Il-96-400M passenger jet has successfully made its maiden flight, Industry and Trade Minister Denis Manturov stated on Thursday.
He emphasized that "the maiden flight of the modernized Il-96-400M" demonstrated "the highest level of competence of Russian design bureaus and aircraft factories".
According to Manturov, the Il-96-400M retained the effective characteristics of the Il-96-300 and was also equipped with "new operational and transport capabilities," such as a longer fuselage and more powerful engines.
"In the future, this new passenger aircraft will allow us to develop and improve our capabilities in the production of long-haul wide-body aircraft," the minister emphasized, referring to the Il-96-400M.
Head of the Russian State Corporation Sergey Chemezov, for his part, stated that the Il-96-400M’s maiden flight indicated that the Russian industry has all the necessary technologies for the construction of wide-body long-haul airliners.
"I would like to emphasize that the creation of such an aircraft is a unique competence that will help ensure the technological sovereignty of our country," Chemezov stressed.
The Ilyushin Il-96-400M is a “deeply modernized” modification of the long-haul wide-fuselage passenger airliner Il-96-300. It can carry up to 370 people and has a maximum flight range of 8,100 km (5,000 miles).
The Il-96 is widely known as one of the most reliable aircraft of its class in the world. Throughout the history of this aircraft there has not been a single major air accident. The Il-96 is used as the main Russian presidential aircraft.