On Tuesday an Aeroflot Sukhoi Superjet 100-95 reportedly experienced a hydraulic failure. The aircraft was able to land safely at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport, but the precise cause of the hydraulic failure remains unclear.
An Aeroflot Sukhoi Superjet 100-95 experienced a hydraulic failure on Tuesday 31 March as it was coming in to land at Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport. The aircraft, registered RA-89043, was operating flight SU-1101.
What happened?
According to reports by The Aviation Herald, flight SU-1101 took off from Krasnodar. Krasnodar is a city in the South of Russia which sits just north of the Black Sea. For the most part, the flight proceeded as planned. However, just before landing at Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport, the crew reported the aircraft had experienced a hydraulic failure of some kind.
Despite an apparent hydraulic failure, the aircraft landed at Moscow Sheremetyevo’s runway 06L at 15:30 local time, following a flight of 2 hours 44 minutes. The landing was completed without incident and none of the 80 passengers aboard the aircraft were injured.
Subsequent investigation into the incident
Despite reporting a hydraulic failure, the flight SU-1101 was able to land at Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport safely. According to reports by The Aviation Herald, Aeroflot launched a subsequent investigation to determine whether or not the reports of a hydraulic failure were genuine or just the result of a malfunctioning sensor aboard the aircraft.
The Sukhoi Superjet 100-95 involved in the incident has been in service less than five and a half years. According to Airfleets.net, RA-89043 operated its first flight for Aeroflot on 24 December 2014, having been delivered brand new to the airline straight from the manufacturer.
Considering the aircraft is relatively young, neither a sensor malfunction or genuine hydraulic failure is particularly good news. The aircraft remained on the ground at Moscow Sheremetyevo for at least 36 hours following its landing.
Teething problems for the Sukhoi Superjet 100
The Sukhoi Superjet 100 is still a reasonably new type, as far as many others go. The aircraft type commenced commercial operation in 2011, and is currently operated by just one non-Russian carrier – Mexico's Interjet.
The Sukhoi Superjet 100 was originally developed and marketed as a joint venture between Sukhoi and Italian Aerospace and Defense company Leonardo. However, Leonardo reduced its stake in the project to just 10 percent in 2017.
The Sukhoi Superjet 100 has seen its fair share of issues over the past nine years of commercial service, mainly relating to poor reliability. Unfortunately, the type has also been involved in a series of high-profile accidents which have resulted in 86 deaths between them.
The aircraft’s hydraulic systems appear to have been the cause of a number of issues which have resulted in flight cancelations and unexpected landings over the past couple of years. According to Aero Inside, there have been at least three other incidents involving hydraulic malfunctions or failures aboard Sukhoi Superjet 100s since February last year. Sukhoi does, however, currently have more than 100 orders for the type.
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Simple Flying has reached out to Aeroflot with a request for comment on the incident. The airline has not yet been able to respond, but we will update this article once we receive more information.