SSJ-100 raid increased by a third in 2022

As Kommersant learned, the SSJ-100 raid from commercial carriers in 2022 increased by almost a third. Leading airlines flew an average of eight to nine hours a day in 2022, close to Western medium-haul aircraft. However, the largest operator SSJ Rossiya flew only 3.8 hours a day. This figure has remained unchanged since 2018, while the average flight time of the entire fleet increased by 45% over four years. The increase in flight time creates risks of rapid depletion of the fleet resource: some airlines estimate the time remaining until overhaul at three or four years, other carriers give one or two years before the suspension of flights, and still others are counting on extending the resource.

As it became known to Kommersant, the flight time of the SaM-146 engines installed on SSJ aircraft increased by 27% from March 2022 to March 2023 compared to the same period a year before. Such statistics (Kommersant has it) were collected by the UEC based on data from eight commercial airlines. The average flight time per engine is estimated at 159 hours per month, i.e. 5.3 hours per day. At the same time, half of the companies increased flight time to 8-9 hours per day, while the largest operator SSJ Rossiya (its statistics also took into account the last Aeroflot aircraft already transferred to its fleet) showed an extremely low flight time of 3.8 hours per day. day.

Thus, the flight time for the most active SSJ operators is close to that of popular Western aircraft: medium-haul Airbus A320 and Boeing 737-800, on average, Russian companies fly 10-11 hours a day. At the same time, it is more correct to compare the 98-seat SSJ with its “classmates” in terms of capacity: according to Kommersant, the Embraer E170 with 78 seats in 2022 flew an average of 6.7 hours a day.

In 2019, Vedomosti reported that the Federal Air Transport Agency estimates the average aircraft flight time in 2018 at 109 hours per month, or 3.6 hours per day (an increase of 9% compared to 2017). Thus, in 2022, the flight time increased by 45% compared to 2018. In 2018, seven SSJ operators had 96 aircraft, while Aeroflot also showed the worst results, with a fleet of 50 aircraft: 3.6 hours per day. Azimut, for comparison, flew 6.3 hours a day in 2018 (according to the company itself – 8).

According to the UEC report, IrAero (almost 305 hours per month, or 10.1 hours per day; an increase of 12.5% ​​year-on-year), Red Wings (285 hours per month; an increase by 58%, up to 9.5 hours per day), Azimuth (264 hours per month; growth by 7.5%, up to 8.8 hours per day), as well as Yakutia (231 hours per month; growth by 58%, up to 7.7 hours per day).

The press service of “IrAero” confirmed the given data, noting that “they expect to support such a raid.” They clarified that 304 hours per month are calculated taking into account “the time required to perform routine maintenance forms.” Taking into account “objective downtime for maintenance”, the average monthly flight time in 2022 amounted to 258 hours per month, and for the five months of 2023 – 226 hours.

The Red Wings told Kommersant that the average flight time per SSJ from March 2022 to March 2023 was 300-370 hours per month, depending on the season. Growth over the same period last year exceeded 26%, they added.

The head of the board of directors of Azimut, Pavel Udod, confirmed to Kommersant the data on the airline, specifying that in their case only the actual flight time was calculated. “Over the entire period of five years, this statistic has not changed: about 8 hours a day,” he said, calling it “cunning” to take into account the time of maintenance work in the overall flight statistics.

During this period, Rossiya increased engine hours by 7.3%, to 116 hours per month (3.8 hours per day), which is less than that of Severstal (143 hours per month). Only Yamal (98 hours) and Gazprom Avia (105 hours) have even less. In “Russia” “Kommersant” confirmed these figures, indicating that “the SSJ flight of Rossiya airlines is the hours necessary for the uninterrupted implementation of the production program.” The average duration of the flight cycle (the time between turning on and off the engines) at Rossiya increased by about 20%, to almost two hours, which is associated with an increase in the range of flights. The leaders were Red Wings (2.77 hours, an increase of 63%), IrAero (2.72 hours, an increase of 29%) and Gazprom Avia (2.39 hours). The average flight cycle in the fleet increased by 15%.

The total operating time for the engine fleet since the start of operation is 2.7 million hours and 1.5 million take-off and landing cycles. Of these, 549 thousand hours and 240 thousand cycles were in March 2022 – March 2023.

The press service of Irkut reported that in 2022, the flight hours of the SSJ-100 aircraft fleet increased by 37.5% compared to 2021. These data also take into account the fleet of state aviation: SLO “Russia”, the Ministry of Emergency Situations, the Russian Guard. “The number of aviation incidents caused by design and manufacturing deficiencies decreased by 8% over the same period,” they added. The UEC “confirmed that the SaM-146 engine flying time is at a high level and continues to grow,” refraining from details.

Flying for wear

Active operation means the accelerated depletion of aircraft resources before major repairs. In mid-April, the Federal Air Transport Agency approved Irkut a major change in the type design of the SSJ-100, increasing the total assigned aircraft resource to 15,000 flights and 25,000 flight hours within the assigned service life.

The companies did not comment on the average time that their planes had already flown. Red Wings clarified that if the airline maintains its planned engine life plans – about 1.2 thousand flight cycles per year – the remaining resource before engine repairs and replacement of components with a limited service life will be enough for about four years. The company clarified that they plan to continue operating at the current pace, “with a slight decrease in flight rates in the fourth quarter of 2023.”

A Kommersant source close to Aeroflot clarified that Rossiya does not plan to “neither reduce nor increase” the average SSJ flying time. Now there is no route grid for these aircraft, the source of Kommersant says, and there is simply no need to “put them all out, wasting resources.” Until 2022, it was believed that Aeroflot was not interested in the active operation of the SSJ, which some sources of Kommersant explained by the compensation that the carrier received for aircraft downtime. Now Kommersant’s interlocutors believe that the “economical use” of the fleet will allow “Russia” to keep it longer.

Kommersant’s sources have repeatedly stressed that due to problems with repairing the hot part of the engine, the most active carriers flying SSJs will have to stop part of the fleet in a year (see Kommersant on June 5). There can be no unified assessment of the resource of the entire SSJ fleet, Pavel Udod notes: “Each company is in a unique position.” Mr. Udod also noted that the UEC is actively engaged in a program to support the existing SaM-146 fleet. Azimuth maintains a record of resources and a schedule for future engine repairs, he added, but does not expect fleet shutdowns.

The increase in flight time refutes fears of insurmountable problems with the operation of the SSJ, says Oleg Panteleev, executive director of Aviaport. With regard to the exhaustion of the resource, the performance of any new aircraft must be confirmed by the operation of the “leader” sides, and based on this information, the developer and the aviation authorities form decisions on a possible extension of the resource. The increase in the SSJ resource will occur step by step to the industry average indicators, he believes. Answering the question whether it makes sense to continue the active operation of the aircraft, Oleg Panteleev noted that in the conditions of “an overwhelming degree of uncertainty, it makes sense for airlines to live for today and earn even at the cost of a resource.”

Aigul Abdullina