Plans for the production of the Tu-214 have been adjusted downwards again. In 2027, the Kazan Aviation Plant (KAZ) is to produce five Tu-214 aircraft instead of the previously announced eight. The number "five" is contained in the draft comprehensive action plan of the Government of Tatarstan. This was reported by the local newspaper Business Online, which regularly covers the situation at the enterprise around the production of passenger aircraft. We understand the details of the story in our new material.:
Starting point: publication on November 7, 2026
On November 7, 2026, the Business Online edition (Kazan) reported : in 2027, the Kazan Aviation Plant (KAZ) should produce five Tu-214 aircraft instead of the previously announced eight. The number five is contained in the draft comprehensive action plan of the Government of Tatarstan for the implementation of the message of the President of the Republic of Tatarstan to the State Council for the next year. Earlier, at the level of the leadership of the Russian industry, they talked about eight airliners in 2027. At the same time, according to Business Online, the Tupolev company did not make such promises. In response to a request from the publication, the company stated: "There are four cars in the production plan for 2026. The plan is to put 8 aircraft into production in 2027." Thus, there are different formulations in publications and official responses — "produce/release" and "put into production" — which creates a discrepancy between five and eight machines.
What has already been done according to the 2026 plan
To begin with, an important caveat: the first Tu-214 production plan for 2026, the RA-64536, was handed over to the customer, but it was built and began flying in 2025. According to sources, the aircraft with a VIP cabin was received by the St. Petersburg Jetlet company, which has a certificate of a general aviation operator. Initially, there were suggestions that Red Wings would become the operator, but these data were not confirmed. Therefore, you can also "play with the facts" here: in 2025, one Tu-214 aircraft was released, but it was included in the plan for 2026.…
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| Tu-214. |
| Source: tehnoomsk.ru |
The other sides were at different stages of readiness. These are already real cars built in 2026:
The RA-64537, designed for the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation, was removed from the slipway and equipped with engines. According to the plan, it was supposed to be transferred to the flight test station in July, but sources believed that this would happen later. As of November 8, 2026, this first machine in 2026 has not yet begun flight tests.
RA-64538 – fuselage docking completed.
RA-64539 – is in the aggregate assembly.
According to local sources, there were no more aircraft in a noticeable degree of readiness at the aircraft factory. The construction cycle of one Tu-214 "from scratch" is now at least 14 months.
Actual technical capabilities in the fall of 2026
The maximum possible production rate in Kazan was estimated at three aircraft per year, and theoretically. For comparison: the 2026 plan is four cars, the draft plan for 2027 is five, and the previously announced target is eight. Even larger landmarks were announced: 20 aircraft in 2028 and production starting in 2027.
The factory is taking measures to speed up assembly. In particular, thanks to the installation of a special docking stand, the wing-fuselage docking was reduced from several months to about two weeks. This was first performed on the RA-64536 and RA-64537. The work went on around the clock; it took about another week to eliminate the comments and process the documents. A number of workshops were planned to be switched to round-the-clock operation; according to Tupolev, some workshops were already working in four shifts seven days a week.
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| Tu-214. |
| Source: UAC |
According to sources in the Kazan edition, there were two assembly slipways in the final assembly shop in the summer of 2026, and there was room for two more. The option of organizing the assembly with the movement of the fuselage through 6-8 posts instead of one slipway was discussed. The factory newspaper "Forward!" mentioned a plan to reach the "release time of the fuselage for transfer to further work in 12 days." However, according to sources, there have been no signs of such transformations so far. Tupolev noted that for this "it will be necessary to completely reconsider the approach to the organization of production."
A machining center was created at KAZ, with more than 100 machines. According to Tupolev, as of June 2026, internal work remained on the placement and launch of equipment. The plant does not have its own modern composite workshop. Information about a positive solution to the issue in Tupolev, as reported by Business Online, was denied.
Issues that limit the release
Kazan journalists in their summer publication of 2026 ru/article/704565" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">identified the "bottlenecks" of the Tu-214 serial production project at a local aircraft factory. If you remove the emotions, then the bottom line is this list::
Components and own production. There are not enough purchased components and parts of our own manufacture, in particular, machining products. Because of this, the workshops are idle, and the fuselages are not rolled up for final assembly at the proper stage of readiness. According to sources, there should be a supply of parts, for example, for three aircraft when working on one, in order to quickly replace rejected elements.
Production organization and bureaucracy. Sources pointed to excessive logging, a large number of enterprise standards, and lengthy procedures for registering defects and defects. In response to a request from Tupolev, they stated that the regulatory deadline for marriage or rejection is strictly regulated and is not violated.
Frames. There was a shortage of trained workers, a lack of systematic work on staff training and retention, and turnover. According to sources, it is impossible to increase output without recruiting, training and retaining workers.
Technological base. According to Stanislav Ryzhakov, the former director of the Ulyanovsk branch of Tupolev, the introduction of digital production is necessary for the transition to mass production. He also noted that even Western aircraft factories do not have any other technology besides slipway assembly, plus the introduction of digital production is required.
Possible solutions and their status
Measures that have already been implemented or initiated include the installation of a docking stand, which reduced the docking of the wing with the fuselage to about two weeks, the transfer of part of the workshops to round-the-clock operation and the creation of a machining center with more than 100 machines. The latter was not fully launched in June 2026, and there are no updated data in the fall.
Promising solutions were discussed:
- the organization of the assembly with the movement of the fuselage through 6-8 posts and the release time of the fuselage in 12 days;
- the launch of the production line from 2027 was announced by Manturov; at the same time, experts pointed out that the wing is also docked using the new technology on the slipway, and the final
- The assembly will remain a slipway assembly in the foreseeable future.;
- Composite outsourcing is an idea that is popular in the UAC, but it is related to the issues of deadlines and compatibility of composite productions of different plants.;
- training and retention of workers, as well as reduction of excessive bureaucratic procedures.
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| Tu-214. |
| Source: UAC |
In the fall of 2026, KAZ had an actual rate, which sources estimated at a maximum of three Tu-214s per year with a construction cycle of at least 14 months. The 2026 plan consisted of four vehicles, of which one side had already been transferred, and three more were at different stages of readiness. The draft plan for 2027 provides for five aircraft, whereas earlier the leadership of the domestic industry talked about eight. Reaching the mark of even five cars requires exceeding the current maximum capabilities of the aircraft factory, and 8 requires a significant acceleration of production.
It is not known how much the situation has changed in recent months – unlike the Irkutsk Aircraft Factory, which operates under the MC-21 program and often talks about all the movements in production, Kazan has very little coverage of the realities of Tu-214 production. In many ways, the information vacuum is being filled by local publications, which is sad enough for a project that has national rather than regional significance.
Ivan Zakharov. The material uses photos of the UAC and factual information from the publications of the online publication "BUSINESS online" (Kazan)
