Russia is trying to increase production of combat aircraft in the medium and long term, but this process is slowed by a number of factors.
This is stated in a report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
The aircraft plant in Kazan lacks capacity and people
The Finnish publication Yle has published satellite images that show the expansion of the Kazan Aviation Plant.
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Russia built or expanded at least five buildings totaling 19,000 square meters between mid-2024 and May 2025.
Despite this, the plant is struggling to meet modernization and production plans due to sanctions and a long-term labor shortage in Russia.
“Sanctions, as well as shortages of parts and labor, will likely continue to slow aircraft production in Russia, even as Russia works to expand physical production capacity,” ISW noted.
Russian authorities plan to complete the expansion by the end of 2026 to increase production capacity.
Currently, the company produces and modernizes Russian strategic Tupolev aircraft: Tu-160M, Tu-160M2 and Tu-22M3, as well as helicopters.
The Russians claimed that the Kazan plant plans to build four Tu-214 aircraft by 2025, seven by 2026, 17 by 2027 and 28 by 2028.
At the same time, in 2024 the company delivered only two Tu-160M2 and two Tu-160M instead of ambitious plans.
