Military

Lukhovitsy Machine Building Plant (LMZ)
Lukhovitsy Aviation Production and Test Complex (LAPIK)

Lukhovitsy Machine Building Plant (LMZ)
Lukhovitsy, Moscow Region, Russia 
Tel/Fax: +7 09663 1 1376/+7 095 234 4313
E-mail: lmz-avia@mtu-net.ru

Lukhovitsy Machine Building Plant (LMZ) is an integral part of Federal State Unitary Enterprise- Military Industrial Group "MAPO" (FSUE "MIG "MAPO"). The plant was founded as a subsidiary of Moscow Machine-Building Plant "Znamya Truda" ("Banner of Labour") in 1953 and before 1968 functioned as its test-flight base. The Lukhovitsy Aircraft Production and Test Complex includes the Tretyakovo airfield facility established to perform test flights and acceptance flights of all aircraft produced by the RAC "MiG".

The Lukhovitsy Aircraft Production and Test Complex is a high-capacity facility provided with up-to-date equipment which manufactured the IL-28 tactical bombers and the MiG-23 / MiG-27 family fighter/strike aircraft. Later the Complex was responsible for production of MiG-29 fighters.

Pyotr Dementyev was Minister of the Aircraft Industry. Dementyev found future General Designers, such as Sergei Mikheyev (head of the Kamov Design Bureau). When Mikheyev worked as designer, Dementyev told the head of the personnel department to watch his future, adding: "This guy is very talented. After Kamov he is very likely to become General Designer." And that is what happened. During the Soviet period Aviation Plant #30 was named after [immeni] Dementyev.

In order to test the armament control system Mikoyan MMZ plant converted two mass-produced MiG-29 (9-13) aircraft, which became the MiG-29S prototypes. Tests of both models were completed in 1991, and in 1994, the MiG-29S became operational. By this time, MAPO named after Pyotr Dementyev had produced over 50 planes. However, only 16 of them were purchased by the Russian Air Force, while the rest were later converted into the MiG-29SE export models.

The Lukhovitsy Machine Building Plant was involved in the production of the MiG-21U, MiG-21M, MiG-21MF, MiG-21MT, and MiG-21F-13. The plant is a modern aviation productive complex with close-loop manufacturing process of parts and units, their assembly, with ground and in flight trying out of the MiG-29 fighters, ground and in flight testing of the light civil aircraft Il-103, I-1l and other middle sized aircraft. On 10 May 2005 a large batch of MiG-29 fighters from manoeuvre units of the Russian air force came for modernization to the Lukhovitsy aircraft production-and-test facilities of the MiG aircraft building corporation.

The Lukhovitsy Machine-Building Plant (LMZ) has been extensively involved in the manufacture of light civilian aircraft. The LMZ s first experience in the production of general aviation aircraft was the SL-90 two-seater developed by Interavia JSC, which later evolved into the I-1L aircraft powered by the Textron Lycoming IO-320-E2A engine, currently undergoing final certification tests. Cooperation with the Ilyushin Aviation Complex - the Il-103 aircraft developer - began in 1993 and has brought considerable results. On July 9, 1997, in accordance with the Federal Aviation Authority's Order #145, the Il-103 produced by the MAPO Midge s Lukhovitsy Machine-Building Plant was cleared for operation in Russia.

In accordance with the existing RAC "MiG" development and restructuring plan, the Complex was to carry out final assembly of the Tu-334 airliner, the MiG-29K/KUB carrier-based fighters and the Ka-60/62 helicopters. Lead-in conversion programs at the Lukhovitsy Aircraft Production and Test Complex include series production of several light civil aircraft ranging from the Aviatika-MAI-890/890SKh ultralight aircraft to the IL-103 four-seat utility aircraft. Besides, the Complex produces unique composite materials used in the aircraft industry.

In February 2002 MiG began moving its production facilities from Moscow to Lukhovitsy where a hall was to be built for the assembly of the Tu-334 passenger liner. Even though 70 per cent of the assembly workshop for Tu-334 has been completed by 2003, it was not clear yet where parts of the plane are to be produced. It would be reasonable to shift the production complex to the machine-building enterprise in the town of Lukhovitsy, the third component of the aviation corporation. The MiG representatives are hoping that the production move will allow a lowering of expenses for personnel by approximately 20 percent. In 2001, the average salary was 6,000 rubles a month according to RSK MiG, and the fund for payment for labor approximately 1.3 billion rubles a year.

Lukhovitsy had initially planned to carry out a final assembly of deck-based MiG-29K fighter jets, regional Tu-334s, and also MiG-110s and Il-103s for local lines. But by 2004 the Tu-334 project had been passed to the Kazan Aircraft Production Association, the MiG-110 and Il-103 projects were practically frozen, and the MiG-29 was planned to be assembled at Nizhny Novgorod's Sokol plant.

On 17 May 2006 European companies Airbus and EFW and Russian corporations Irkut and MiG signed a memorandum for creating a joint venture to convert passenger airplanes A320/330/340 into cargo aircrafts in Berlin. According to Irkut vice-president Valery Bezverkhny, the planes will be converted in Dresden and in Lukhovitsy near Moscow. Two production sites will be used for the final assembly of converted aircrafts-one in Dresden, the other-in Lukhovitsy near Moscow. Dresden will specialize on wide-body ?330/340 planes, and Lukhovitsy will be converting narrow-bodied A320. Planes of 10-15 years and no more than $10 million each will be converted. Companies like DHL and Fedex are among the buyers.

In March 2007 MiG agreed to hand over to the Irkut Research and Production Corporation its production premises at Lukhovitsy, Moscow Region, which Irkut planned to use to convert European Airbus 320 airplanes into cargo aircraft. "The Lukhovitsy plant could be either leased to Irkut following a decision by the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) or physically transferred from their statement to [our] assets," said Oleg Demchenko, Irkut president. "But this will only be possible after MiG has been incorporated and joins the UAC [which must take place early in 2008]."

Airbus Freighter Conversion (AFC) is a joint venture between Russian companies - United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) and Irkut Corp, each with 25 per cent stake- and EADS Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH (EFW) 32 per cent and Airbus 18 per cent.

On 22 March 2007 European aerospace and defence group EADS and Russia's United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) signed four agreements which further specify cooperation programmes under discussion between the partners. The agreements are based on the findings of a top-level working group which has been set up end of last year. One agreement provided for the establishment of a joint venture located in Dresden, which will have the task of setting up freighter conversion centres for the Airbus A320 Family at Lukhovitsy near Moscow in Russia and the German site.