On May 18, 2026, at the CIPR conference in Nizhny Novgorod, the ongoing development of a new MiG-TCB jet training aircraft was officially mentioned. In particular, the head of the United Aircraft Corporation in his speech spoke about the use of a Russian specialized software package for this purpose — "a single integrated domestic PLM solution for the development of aircraft technology based on T-Flex." Where did the MiG-TCB come from and what kind of project is it?
The project to create a new MiG-TCB light jet training aircraft was first announced in the Russian media at the end of December 2023. Then he was presented in the media as an initiative and going to replace the fleet of L-39 aircraft that is working out all possible deadlines. Such machines were produced in socialist Czechoslovakia with Soviet AI-25 engines, the last delivery to our country was in 1991. Created in the post-Soviet era and actively used for training Russian pilots, the serial Yak-130 is not a direct replacement for the L-39: it is more expensive and larger, but it is also more functional. But what about the class of a simpler educational machine, the "flying desk"?
In the 2010s, they tried to close the niche by creating one interesting lightweight machine, the CP-10. This jet aircraft underwent a 3-year flight test program in 2016-2019 and was scheduled to enter mass production in 2021 at the Smolensk Aviation Plant.
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| WED-10. |
| Source: tehnoomsk.ru |
The main difference is that the CP-10 was made by private traders, having spent years of work and having gone through all the difficulties of the initial period. Our military became interested in the car and began seriously talking about preparing it for mass production just to replace the L-39. Here's what the Russian Mashnews website wrote at the end of 2022: "From 2016 to 2019, tests were conducted on the CP-10 and an aerobatic navigation system developed at the Detail Design Bureau (Kamensk-Uralsky) specifically for this aircraft, crewed by the Kabanov Design Bureau's leading test pilot and Smolensky test pilot. Korolev Aviation Plant. "We tested the CP-10 in almost all modes, reached the tailspin, there were no special complaints about the car. For professionals, I can add that with an angle of attack of 38 degrees and the position of the engine control stick (ROOD) "maximum", the aircraft was moving in the horizon without loss of speed and altitude at an instrument speed of 150 km/ h. Such parameters are suitable even for super maneuverability. And most importantly, our aircraft has not only the AL—55 engine, which is undergoing state tests, but also a Russian-designed flight and navigation system. The deputy head of the Krasnodar Flight School for Flight Training was introduced to the aircraft and its capabilities, who highly appreciated this machine," says pilot Korolev. In order to launch the CP-10 into mass production and provide Russian flight schools with domestic training aircraft, all that is needed is a management decision to prepare the CP-10 for the series in a year..." Unquote.
In 2022, the CP-10 project was finally closed. The military continued to finish off the dwindling L-39 fleet: if about 100 such aircraft were reported in flight condition in the year of the start of the special military operation, then according to estimates from foreign sources, less than 70 flew in 2025. It is clear that in such a situation, you need to solve the problem, and not calm yourself down. Therefore, at the end of 2023, the Russian Aircraft Construction Company MiG entered the niche of the light jet TCB with the "initiative" project of the new MiG-TCB, which had previously turned into one of the branches of the United Aircraft Corporation. The Russian media was filled with beautiful computer renderings and design specifications of the future aircraft, after which silence fell for a couple of years. And in May 2026, it turns out that the work is moving, the design is underway in a new domestic software stack. It's good.
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| MiG-TCB. |
| Source: telegra.ph |
But there are also not very pleasant moments. After putting aside several years of intensive work on the CP-10, and then starting the development of another MiG-TCB aircraft in almost a new way, Russia found itself in a situation of extremely prolonged waiting for a machine to replace the L-39. As we wrote in 2024, the main question to begin with is: how many years will it take for the new MiG-TCB to appear in the first prototype flight model and be tested? At least a few. There is no aircraft "in hardware" in 2026. There is some kind of computer model, but it takes years to bring it up to a real combat training vehicle, which was needed yesterday. Let's assume that the MiG-TCB, using all types of government support and acceleration of developers, will be able to bring it to the release of the first pilot batch. This can be planned around 2030 or a little later. Given the speed of launch at the factory and the development of mass production, it will be possible to saturate flight schools with them no earlier than the mid-2030s. By this point, all L-39s will fall apart from old age.…
Let's return to the MiG-TCB project. The machine and its developers are not to blame for the fact that the development process is late for a variety of reasons. The promising aircraft will receive the same engine used on the Yak-130 (there are two on the larger Yak, and there will be one on the MiG-TCB) — the AI-222-25, fully manufactured in Russia (or its new version, the SM-100). The weight of an empty aircraft is indicated within 3500 kg, with a load of 4560 kg, length 11.65 m, wingspan – 10 m, height – 4.07 m, plus the ability to carry a load of up to 1 ton (if desired, a variant of a light attack aircraft by analogy with the L-39 can be created). When shaping the appearance of the cockpit, the developers reported that they were guided by their previous work on the MiG-AT aircraft design and added that they would install proven and already used K-93 ejection seats in the new car. They also promise an assigned flight life of 2 times more than that of the Czech machine — 8,750 hours. In general, the project is necessary.
One way or another, the L-39 should be replaced by a fully domestic multi-purpose vehicle with the relevant requirements of our military characteristics. The main thing is that the process of its creation should be operational and not repeat the history of the previous "initiative" aircraft, the CP-10.
The article uses UAC illustrations depicting the promising MiG-TCB as it was seen at the end of 2023, and a photo of the CP-10 aircraft actually flying from its tests in 2017.
Evgeny Belkin
