Russian Jet Battles Boeing

When you think of battles between Russian and American jets, the images called to mind are dogfights between F-Class and MiG series jets above the skies of countless countries and on just about every movie screen in the 1980s. But, while the two countries still have frosty diplomatic relations at times, the Cold War is largely over, and those days are fast becoming history.

New Jet War

That said, there’s a new jet war beginning between the U.S. and Russia. Last week Russia debuted a new medium-range passenger jet, which, according to state media, is better than its American competition. Irkut Corporation, the company unveiling the new plane, said they expect to receive many orders from both Russian carriers and others across the globe.

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev seemed impressed with the new MC-21 passenger plane, which is slated to begin production in 2017. In a report published by Reuters, Medvedev said the plane was “cool” before saying he expected high quality from Russian engineers and manufacturers, traits that must keep them in the “top league” of aircraft builders. “I only want to say that I am absolutely certain that the airliner will be the pride of Russian civil aviation and that our citizens and foreign people will take pleasure in flights on MC-21,” Medvedev said.

New Planes

According to releases, the plane will be built in two styles, the MC-21-300, which will have up to 211 seats, and the MC-21-200, which will carry up to 165. The planes are expected to cut operational costs up to 15 percent as compared to contemporary aircraft. According to Vladimir Volkov, VP of Irkut Corp, the plane is a “great step” in the development of the aviation industry. “It is not made of metal. It is made of composite materials…much lighter and stronger…”

At this point, this is all promotional talk, but if Irkut comes through on all the expectations and promises, they could indeed carve out a personal niche in the increasingly competitive commercial aviation marketplace. Once again, Russian planes will vie with America for supremacy in the skies.

Elie Hirschfeld is a seasoned real estate developer in NYC.