Sans Airbus support, Russian Ural Airlines aims an inhouse Program to Extend Airbus A320 Lifespan beyond 96,000 flight hours.

Russia's Ural Airlines said it will launch what it described as a first-of-its-kind domestic program to extend the service life of Airbus A320 family aircraft beyond 96,000 flight hours, as the country’s aviation sector grapples with Western sanctions and a shortage of spare parts.

The carrier said work would be carried out at its own maintenance facility and would include full disassembly, inspection, airframe repairs and final reassembly beginning in autumn 2026.

The airline said no comparable comprehensive program exists in Russia. It called the initiative a “logical continuation” of its engineering development and "a major step forward for the domestic aviation industry."

Ural Airlines added that it is also designing workshops to repair fuel, hydraulic and pneumatic systems.

"In parallel, the design of new workshops for in-depth repairs of fuel, hydraulic, and pneumatic system components is underway, laying the foundation for a full technical cycle. Starting this fall, the practical phase of the project will begin. Specialists will proceed to large-scale work: from complete disassembly and diagnostics of the airframe to its repair and final assembly," the company explained.

The Airbus A320 is a family of narrow-body passenger airliners for short- and medium-haul routes. Initially, the design lifespan of the A320 family was about 60,000 flight hours, but as the fleet aged, Airbus developed the Extended Service Goal program, which allows aircraft to be operated up to 120,000 flight hours with additional work.

Russian civil aviation is facing serious challenges due to Western sanctions imposed after the start of the war in Ukraine. Due to the ban on supplying new aircraft and spare parts from Boeing and Airbus, the number of available airframes is shrinking: Russian airlines are disassembling planes to use their parts to keep other airliners flying.


Industry specialists have raised safety concerns over the scheme. Ural Airlines' announcement means the airline intends to extend aircraft lifespans in ncertified centers. This further distances such aircraft from international practices for complying with flight safety standards.

In September 2025, Russia had appealed to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to ease the sanctions. The appeal detailed, Russian airlines are forced to import parts for more than 700 aircraft, mostly Boeing and Airbus, through complex schemes. In Moscow, they emphasized that these components are critical for the safety of civilian flights and called the sanctions themselves "unlawful coercive measures."

Replacing Airbus and Boeing aircraft with Russian made is not working out. Of the 15 commercial aircraft that Russian aircraft factories were supposed to deliver in 2025, only one was handed over. The plan fell through due to sanctions that deprived manufacturers of foreign components and technologies.

The Ural Airlines fleet consists of 51 aircraft from this family, A321, A320, A319, A320neo, and A321neo. And in its report for the first half of 2025, the airline noted a 7% decline in passenger traffic compared to the previous year due to "difficulties the company faced in maintaining airworthiness for the new-generation Airbus neo aircraft."

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* Origin: AVIATION ECHO HQ (2:292/854)

FYI, Ural Airlines are the ones who successfully landed a commercial airliner in a wheat field pretty much intact.

After attempts to let it take-off again from an improvised runway were unfeasable as well as removing the wings and truck it in parts to a facility to re-assemble it, it was being canibalised in-situ for spare parts ... much of the airframe still sits where it came to a stop ... much to the joy of the farmer who is making money without having to plant anything.

\%/@rd

Sans Airbus support, Russian Ural Airlines aims an inhouse Program to Extend Airbus A320 Lifespan beyond 96,000 flight hours.

Russia's Ural Airlines said it will launch what it described as a first-of-its-kind domestic program to extend the service life of Airbus A320 family aircraft beyond 96,000 flight hours, as the country’s
aviation sector grapples with Western sanctions and a shortage of spare parts.

The carrier said work would be carried out at its own maintenance
facility and would include full disassembly, inspection, airframe repairs and final reassembly beginning in autumn 2026.

The airline said no comparable comprehensive program exists in Russia. It called the initiative a “logical continuation” of its engineering development and "a major step forward for the domestic aviation
industry."

Ural Airlines added that it is also designing workshops to repair fuel, hydraulic and pneumatic systems.

"In parallel, the design of new workshops for in-depth repairs of fuel, hydraulic, and pneumatic system components is underway, laying the foundation for a full technical cycle. Starting this fall, the practical phase of the project will begin. Specialists will proceed to large-scale work: from complete disassembly and diagnostics of the airframe to its repair and final assembly," the company explained.

The Airbus A320 is a family of narrow-body passenger airliners for short- and medium-haul routes. Initially, the design lifespan of the A320 family was about 60,000 flight hours, but as the fleet aged, Airbus developed
the Extended Service Goal program, which allows aircraft to be operated
up to 120,000 flight hours with additional work.

Russian civil aviation is facing serious challenges due to Western sanctions imposed after the start of the war in Ukraine. Due to the ban
on supplying new aircraft and spare parts from Boeing and Airbus, the number of available airframes is shrinking: Russian airlines are disassembling planes to use their parts to keep other airliners flying.

Industry specialists have raised safety concerns over the scheme. Ural Airlines' announcement means the airline intends to extend aircraft lifespans in ncertified centers. This further distances such aircraft
from international practices for complying with flight safety standards.

In September 2025, Russia had appealed to the International Civil
Aviation Organization (ICAO) to ease the sanctions. The appeal detailed, Russian airlines are forced to import parts for more than 700 aircraft, mostly Boeing and Airbus, through complex schemes. In Moscow, they emphasized that these components are critical for the safety of civilian flights and called the sanctions themselves "unlawful coercive measures."

Replacing Airbus and Boeing aircraft with Russian made is not working
out. Of the 15 commercial aircraft that Russian aircraft factories were supposed to deliver in 2025, only one was handed over. The plan fell through due to sanctions that deprived manufacturers of foreign
components and technologies.

The Ural Airlines fleet consists of 51 aircraft from this family, A321, A320, A319, A320neo, and A321neo. And in its report for the first half of 2025, the airline noted a 7% decline in passenger traffic compared to the previous year due to "difficulties the company faced in maintaining airworthiness for the new-generation Airbus neo aircraft."

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* Origin: AVIATION ECHO HQ (2:292/854)

Russia's Ural Airlines said it will launch what it described as a first-of-its-kind domestic program to extend the service life of Airbus A320 family aircraft beyond 96,000 flight hours, as the country’s
aviation sector grapples with Western sanctions and a shortage of spare parts.

This is awesome. Other companies in the same predicament may soon receive some international phone calls with the guy on the other line saying "Hello Tovarish, we're calling about your extended Airplane warranty. Interested?" ...

:)

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|08 @ 911:1614/0 .. 21:3/226 .. 1:226/20 .. 46:1/117 .. 1337:3/224

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This is awesome. Other companies in the same predicament may soon receive some international phone calls with the guy on the other line saying
"Hello Tovarish, we're calling about your extended Airplane warranty. Interested?" ...

How about getting it insured ?

There's no way these airframes are going to be allowed to operate outside of Russia and some of its satellite states....

\%/@rd

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* Origin: AVIATION ECHO HQ (2:292/854)