Russian airframer Aviastar has completed work on the first vertical fin for the Irkut MC-21, and transferred the component for bird-strike tests.
The company says that the composite fin – with the leading edge newly-installed on the fin box – will undergo bird-resistance testing at the Central Aerohydrodynamics Institute.
Ulyanovsk-based Aviastar is producing several sections for the twinjet and it has recently finished fuselage panels for the F4 section of the aircraft, says MC-21 assembly plant chief Mikhail Chuvashlov.
It has produced similar panels for the F1, F2 and F3 sections of the first flight-test aircraft and sent them to the Irkut plant for further work.
As well as these panels and the tail sections the airframer is producing a number of other components including doors and the auxiliary power unit compartment.