Russia halts ambitious Baikal aircraft project
Development of the Russian aircraft Baikal, intended to replace the Soviet-era An-2 (Kukuruznik), has ground to a halt, with mass production no longer planned.
Source: Yuri Trutnev, Russian Presidential Envoy to the Far Eastern Federal District, cited by The Moscow Times
Quote: "We were working on the development of a small Baikal aircraft. It has come to a standstill. The Baikal plane is not expected here," Trutnev said at an expanded meeting of the State Duma Committee on the Far East and the Arctic. [State Duma is the lower chamber of the Russian parliament – ed.]
Details: Trutnev highlighted the near absence of small aviation in Russia, noting that remotorising An-2 aircraft is now the fallback solution. Since 2019, Baikal has been developed by Baikal Engineering, a subsidiary of the Ural Civil Aviation Plant. Officials had anticipated mass production would begin in 2024, but this was deferred to 2025. A source close to the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade told Kommersant that Baikal's designers made "dramatic mistakes", requiring the aircraft to be "almost entirely redesigned".
According to Russia's Comprehensive Programme for the Development of the Aviation Industry, 139 Baikal aircraft were planned for production by 2030, designed to carry up to nine passengers or two tonnes of cargo.
The An-2, known as the Kukuruznik, was developed in the late 1940s by Ukraine's Antonov Design Bureau, with production ceasing in the 1980s.
Background: Since the onset of the war in Ukraine, the Russian aviation industry has been able to produce only seven SuperJet100 aircraft suitable for civil aviation, despite plans to manufacture 108 airliners.
Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
31 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Russia's Wagner mercenaries leaving Mali, Africa Corps to remain
Russia's Wagner mercenary group says it will withdraw from Mali after more than three and a half years on the ground. The paramilitary force announced the move on Friday, claiming it had successfully completed its mission against armed groups in the West African nation. In a post on its Telegram channel, the group said that it had brought all of the country's regional centres back under the control of the Malian military government, pushing out rebel forces and killing their commanders. But Wagner's withdrawal from Mali does not mean the country will be without Russian fighters. Russian mercenaries will remain under the banner of the Africa Corps, a separate Kremlin-backed paramilitary group created after Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin led a failed mutiny against the Russian military in June 2023. 'Russia does not lose ground, but on the contrary, continues to support Bamako now at a more fundamental level,' said a statement by Africa Corps, referring to Mali's capital city. In addition to Africa Corps, 'Russian security advisers are stepping in where the mercenaries are stepping out,' said Al Jazeera's Nicolas Haque, reporting from neighbouring Senegal. Ulf Laessing, head of the Sahel programme at Germany's Konrad Adenauer Foundation, told Reuters that while 'the Russian military engagement in Mali will continue … the focus might change more to training and providing equipment and less actual fighting jihadists.' The shift in the Russian presence in Mali follows a spate of attacks in recent weeks that rebel fighters say killed more than 100 Malian soldiers, as well as some mercenaries. Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), an armed group in the Sahel, claimed responsibility for the violence, including one attack on Sunday that killed at least 30 soldiers at central Mali's Boulkessi army base. Local officials told Reuters the military has since abandoned the base. Ukrainian-backed Tuareg rebels have also been behind some of the attacks on Russian mercenaries in the country, reported Haque. 'Away from the theatre of the Russia-Ukraine war, in the heart of Africa, the Ukrainians are supporting Tuareg rebels that are fighting Russian mercenaries,' said Haque. Meanwhile, Malian forces and their Russian allies have been accused of abuses against civilians, including a February attack on a convoy that killed more than 20 people believed to be Tuareg, among them children and elderly people.
Yahoo
31 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump seeks to weaken Senator Lindsey Graham's devastating Russia sanctions bill
The administration of US President Donald Trump has urged Republican Senator Lindsey Graham to soften sanctions against Russia in the Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025, which has strong bipartisan support in the Senate. Source: The Wall Street Journal, as reported by European Pravda Details: The Wall Street Journal reports that White House officials recently contacted Graham's office pressing for changes to the bill's sanctions provisions. Aides to the senator, who asked to remain anonymous, said that among other things, the Trump administration proposed adding provisions to the draft that would allow the US president to decide whom or what to sanction. The White House also suggested replacing the word "shall" with "may" throughout the bill, removing the mandatory nature of the sanctions, the WSJ reported. Graham's team expressed frustration, arguing that diluting the mandatory sanctions would render the bill ineffective and noting that Trump already has discretionary powers to impose sanctions. Previously: Senators Lindsey Graham (Republican) and Richard Blumenthal (Democrat), supported by 82 co-sponsors, introduced the bill to impose economic sanctions on Russia for obstructing ceasefire efforts in its war of aggression against Ukraine, particularly by imposing a 500% tariff on goods imported from countries that purchase Russian oil. The bill also has bipartisan support in the House of Representatives, where a companion bill has 33 co-sponsors. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump would make the final decision on any potential tightening of sanctions against Russia. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
Business Upturn
44 minutes ago
- Business Upturn
Gold slips over 1% as US jobs data beats expectations, labor market shows signs of cooling
By Aditya Bhagchandani Published on June 7, 2025, 00:15 IST Gold prices fell more than 1% on Friday after the release of stronger-than-expected U.S. nonfarm payroll data for May, prompting investors to reassess the Federal Reserve's potential rate trajectory. The U.S. economy added 139,000 jobs in May, surpassing analyst expectations of around 120,000, although the figure marked a slight decline from the revised 147,000 jobs reported in April. At 2:29 am ET, spot gold was down 1.10% at $3,315.94 per ounce. In contrast, other precious metals gained: silver rose 0.85% to $35.96, platinum advanced 2.13% to $1,164.23, and palladium surged 4.09% to $1,033.34 per ounce. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.2%, remaining near historic lows, but the broader labor data suggested signs of a gradual economic slowdown. The employment-population ratio slipped to 59.7%, the lowest level since the pandemic, while the alternative U-6 unemployment measure rose to 4.5%, its highest since COVID-era lows. Notably, the federal government lost 22,000 jobs in May, contributing to a total decline of 59,000 federal roles since January. The cuts are linked to Trump administration reforms and Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency initiative. Despite these mixed signals, President Donald Trump took to Truth Social, writing: 'AMERICA IS HOT! SIX MONTHS AGO IT WAS COLD AS ICE! BORDER IS CLOSED, PRICES ARE DOWN. WAGES ARE UP!' Aditya Bhagchandani serves as the Senior Editor and Writer at Business Upturn, where he leads coverage across the Business, Finance, Corporate, and Stock Market segments. With a keen eye for detail and a commitment to journalistic integrity, he not only contributes insightful articles but also oversees editorial direction for the reporting team.
