The static displays of the MAKS 2011 air show, which took place in Zhukovsky, Moscow Region in August 2011, featured the new An-140-100 turboprop sporting an unusual dark-gray paintjob. The aircraft with side number 41254 is the first An-140 made by the Aviakor plant in Samara on order of the Russian Defence Ministry. It performed its maiden flight on 6 August of this year and arrived in Zhukovsky a week later for the airshow. Aviakor has built only three production An-140s delivered to the Yakutiya air carrier during 2006–09. The full-fledged productionising of the An-140 in Samara is attributed to a contract signed by Aviakor and the Russian Defence Ministry recently. Having ordered its first An-140 (c/n 002) shown at MAKS 2011, the Russian Defence Ministry in May ordered nine more planes to be delivered within three years. All of them will be in the standard 52-seat passenger layout and oust the obsolete An-24s and An-26s used for top brass carriage.

The An-140 also may see new vistas opening up owing to last-year’s refusal of the Russian Defence Ministry to keep on finding the Ilyushin Il-112V light airlifter development programme. On 6 May, the Russian government issued Resolution on the signature of the Protocol by the Government of the Russian Federation and the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine on cooperation in aircraft development, production, delivery and operation. The protocol lists, inter alia, several new An-140 versions, e.g. the An-140-110 and An-140-200 airliners, An-140C-100, An-140T-100 and An-140T-210 freighters and An-140MP patrol aircraft.

The An-140T-100 freighter with a lifting capacity of 6 t is an in-production An-140-100 derivative with the cargo tail ramp. Antonov offers the An-140T-210 with a greater lifting capacity, which is a derivative of the in-development 68-seat An-140-210 stretch. Since the Defence Ministry’s advanced light airlifter acquisitions are stipulated by the 2020 Governmental Armament Acquisition Programme, it is possible that planes to be acquired may be latest ramp-equipped An-140 versions under development by Antonov, given the rejection of the Il-112V and the An-140-100 airliner order landed by Aviakor recently.

In addition, Aviakor and Radar MMS, a major Russian developer and integrator of special airborne radio-electronic gear, made an agreement during MAKS 2011 to look into the feasibility of fitting Radar MMS systems to the An-140. Probably, they are going to develop the An-140MP maritime patrol aircraft mentioned in the 6 May 2011 governmental resolution.

It also was reported during MAKS 2011 that the Samara-built An-140 was promising enough in terms of export as well. During the show, Aviakor and Rosoboronexport agreed to cooperate, with their agreement providing for the feasibility of the An-140 becoming part of Rosoboronexport’s export programme. “The agreement signed indicates keen interest of the major Russian combat gear supplier in Aviakor’s business processes and plane”, Aviakor Director General Sergei Gusev said. “Now, Aviakor has got an order for an An-140 batch for the Russian Defence Ministry. The cooperation with Rosoboronexport will enable us to offer our main product to defence ministries of other nations”.