Russia plans to refurbish hundreds of Soviet-era transport planes amid the aviation crisis
The aggressor country is considering bringing a large number of obsolete An-2 aircraft, commonly known as “corncob planes,” back into service.
The Siberian Aviation Research Institute has proposed restoring about 700 such aircraft, currently in storage, to save the industry from collapse.
According to Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service, this move is driven by an acute shortage of light aircraft and a lack of alternatives.
Due to international sanctions, Russia’s access to modern Western technology is completely blocked, and its own developments have failed.
The promising Russian LMS-901 “Baikal” project, which was supposed to replace the Soviet legacy, has turned into a long-term construction project.
Its certification dates are constantly being pushed back: first to 2025, then to 2026, and according to the latest data—now to 2027, with no guarantees.
Another modernization attempt, the TVS-2MS aircraft, also failed to gain support within Russia.
This project was developed without state investment and was eventually shut down; the technology is now being pursued by the Mongolian company MUNKH AERO using American engines.
The lack of powerplants remains a critical obstacle to restoring the 700 mothballed An-2s.
Western engines are unavailable due to restrictions, and the Russian equivalent, the TVD-10B, exists only in the form of blueprints and promises.
Russia has encountered systemic problems with the maintenance of Antonov aircraft
The Armed Forces of Ukraine have halted the production of missile microchips in Russia
Additionally, Ukrainian paratroopers have begun clearing the center of Hryshyne.
Fighters from the SIGNUM battalion destroyed a Russian tank using drones.
