Putin orders Baikal planes into production to replace An-2

According to the report, Russia has started producing the LMS-901 Baikal plane, which is meant to replace the An-2 transport aircraft. However, as is often the case with new Russian projects, problems have already arisen.

Cost

Even the Russians admit that no one will buy this plane because its price has skyrocketed nearly fourfold—up to 445 million rubles (approximately $4.87 million). Furthermore, the cost is expected to increase by 4% annually.

There’s another issue – the number of runways available to handle these aircraft is insufficient, even though Putin has ordered the Baikal into serial production.

Engine

Another problem is that the Russians decided to equip the Baikal exclusively with the VK-800SM engine. According to the publication, the first flight of the Baikal with this engine was planned for the third quarter of this year.

"However, according to new information, the engine’s certification will not take place until 2025, with deliveries starting only in 2026. This raises questions about the entire production timeline for the Baikal," the authors note.

Russia's failures

Russian forces often boast about new developments and projects, but many such initiatives fail. One notable example is the Russian "Proryv" tank.

For instance, RBC-Ukraine previously reported that Ukrainian forces have been successfully destroying and capturing Russian equipment. Ukrainian troops managed to seize a Russian T-90 "Proryv" tank, along with several other armored vehicles and used them to destroy enemy forces.