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Aviation History
1993
1993 - 1612.PDF
Normal cabin loading will be via two 0.84 x 1.85m passenger doors on the port and two 0.65 x 1.6m service doors star board. Galleys, toilets and cabin furniture are optional. BIG BROTHER TU-204 The cockpit is designed for a crew of two, with two optional jump seats, and two storage wardrobes are provided for the crew's personal belongings. To minimise corrosion, Kalygin has designed an organised drain system, with improved heat insulation, to deal with condensation. Corrosion-resistant alloys and below-floor enamelling have been used to protect against the effects of hydraulic leaks. The aircraft has also been designed for easy and multiple access, which, Kalygin says, should permit a turnaround time of as low as 25min. He has aimed for quick maintenance times and claims that the condition-monitoring data system and a flexible maintenance schedule should make an aircraft-on-ground time of 35min per flight hour achievable, using eight man hours per flight hour. The Tupolev team has designed the aircraft's electrical hydraulic control sys tems and has selected avionics from man ufacturers and designers from Russia, as well as other CIS states. As on the "big brother" Tu-204 cockpit, instrumentation comprises six colour cathode-ray-tube (CRT) displays for flight, navigation and integrated systems information, with built-in test capability. The CRT displays continuous systems status, alert messages and primary and secondary engine parameters. Tupolev has yet to select a Western cockpit supplier, but deputy general- director Youli Kashtanov confirms that, if the customer wants a Western cockpit, it will be available "at extra cost". It seems likely that Rockwell-Collins could supply avionics for the Tu-334 in the wake of its recent contract with joint Russian/UK Igor Kalygin has maximised use of lightweight materials for the Tu-334 An optional Western cockpit is available at extra cost company Bravia to equip the Tu-204. Kalygin has confirmed that Tupolev will work towards commonality between the Tu-204 and Tu-334. The original Tu-334 was intended to be powered by two propfans, but, as enthusi asm waned, a decision was taken in 1990 to switch to the Lotarev D-436 Tl, the resulting aircraft then being dubbed the Tu-334-100. The D-436, an upgraded D-36 three- shaft turbofan, is already in use on the Yakovlev Yak-42 and is regarded as the quietest and most fuel-efficient of Rus sian/Soviet engines. The D-436 has been tested by the Gromov flight-test centre at Zhukovsky on an Ilyushin H-76. Tupolev general designer Vadim Kli- mov is expected to meet BMW Rolls- Royce at the Paris air show to discuss using the BR715 engine on the Tu-334- 200 model, a 126-seat (at 810mm pitch) variant, with a 4.2m stretch. Kalygin is also working on a Tu-334 cargo variant, the Tu-334C, which will probably be available as a production aircraft rather than as a conversion. The first -200 is likely to be a variant of the -100. While the BR715 is the likely engine for the -200, the Lotarev D- 436 could be offered with increased power as an option for CIS airlines requiring the larger version. PROTOTYPE TEST Construction of the first prototype began in 1991 at the Tu polev workshops in Moscow. When com plete, the aircraft will be disassembled and brought by road to Zhukovsky, some 97km away. The first and third prototypes will then be re-assembled, to begin the flight-test programme. The second proto type will go to the Aerodynamics Test and Research Centre, for static tests. The flight-test programme will involve three aircraft, which will complete 1,200 flights before Russian certification, tar geted for late 1995. The prototype aircraft are likely to be joined by the first two production aircraft from Tupolev's Kiev and Taganrog factories. Tupolev will also aim for US Federal Aviation Administration and European Joint Aviation Authorities certification, but the bureau does not expect to receive Western approval until mid-1996. The Tu-334-100 is expected to enter service in early 1996, although no orders have yet been received. The aircraft is aimed at Russian/CIS Tu-134 operators as well as Tupolev's traditional markets of China, India and Eastern Europe. Kash tanov concedes that Western markets may be difficult to conquer, but is clearly confident that the aircraft will succeed in its other markets. Aeroflot Russian International Airlines (ARIA) executive director Vladimir Pota- pow is looking at the Tu-334 as the likely replacement for its fleet of eight Tu-134s. "There is little point in replacing ARIA's Tu-134s with Western aircraft when the 334 is near completion," he says. He is already looking at the Tu-204 as the likely replacement for ARIA's Tu-154s. Kashtanov comments on the marketing drive for the Tu-334 project as part of the Tupolev family: "With the 204, we have begun at last to pay serious attention to product support and after-sales service, areas given little attention in the past. We will have to wait and see what difference this will make." CI FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 23 - 29 June, 1993 55
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