Tupolev Tu-204
| Tu-204 / Tu-214 / Tu-234 | |
|---|---|
| An Air Koryo Tu-204-100 at Vladivostok Airport | |
| General information | |
| Type | Narrow-body jet airliner |
| National origin | Soviet Union/Russia |
| Manufacturer | Aviastar SP (Tu-204 series) Kazan Aircraft Production Association (Tu-214) United Aircraft Corporation (Tu-214) |
| Designer | Tupolev |
| Status | In service, in production |
| Primary users | Red Wings Airlines |
| Number built | 89 as of December 2015 |
| History | |
| Manufactured | 1990–present |
| Introduction date | 23 February 1996 with Vnukovo Airlines |
| First flight | 2 January 1989 |
The Tupolev Tu-204 (Russian: Туполев Ту-204) is a twin-engined medium-range narrow-body jet airliner capable of carrying 210 passengers, designed by Tupolev and produced by Aviastar-SP and Kazan Aircraft Production Association. First introduced in 1995, it was intended to be broadly equivalent to the Boeing 757, with slightly lower range and payload, and had competitive performance and fuel efficiency in its class.
It was developed for Aeroflot as a replacement for the medium-range Tupolev Tu-154 trijet in the 1990s. The latest version, with significant upgrades and improvements, is the narrow-body Tu-204SM, which made its maiden flight on 29 December 2010. In April 2022, United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) announced plans to assemble 70 Tu-214s by 2030. However, in early 2024, Aeroflot expressed intention to transfer its order for fleets exclusively to next-generation MC-21 jets. The rejection of the Tupolev has various reasons, including no two-member cockpit, and also the evacuation ramps and about 13% of avionics (e.g. TCAS) still needing to be replaced by Russian equipment. The production plan remains, especially for designing new domestic aircraft parts.