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Airliner · Civil · Russia

Ilyushin Il-96

Manufacturer: Ilyushin · Updated: August 5, 2026

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September 28, 1988
First flight
1992
Introduced
In service
Status
37
Units built
RA-96103 Ilyushin IL-96-400TColin Cooke Photo (CC BY SA), vía commons
Ilyushin Il-96 (Aeroflot) RA-96008Aleksandr Markin (CC BY SA), vía commons
Rossiya Special Flight Ilyushin IL-96-300 RA-96023 MD1Acroterion (CC BY SA), vía commons
RA-96023 - Ilyushin IL-96-300 - Rossiya - Special Flight Squadron - 74393202023 - VGHSMd Shaifuzzaman Ayon (CC BY SA), vía commons
Ilyushin Il-96 (Aeroflot) RA-96005Aleksandr Markin (CC BY SA), vía commons

The Ilyushin Il-96 is a four-engined long-haul wide-body airliner designed by Ilyushin in the Soviet Union and built by the Voronezh Aircraft Production Association. It is a shortened, longer-ranged and technologically advanced development of the Il-86, featuring a supercritical wing with winglets, a glass cockpit and fly-by-wire controls, with avionics allowing two-crew operation and ICAO CAT III/A landings. It was the first Russian aircraft never given a NATO reporting name. The first prototype flew on 28 September 1988 with Aviadvigatel PS-90A engines, and the first aircraft was handed over to Aeroflot on 29 December 1992. The Russian carrier took seven airframes between 1992 and 1994 and used them for non-stop links from Moscow to destinations such as Havana or San Francisco, beyond the reach of the shorter-legged Il-86. The Il-96-300 seats 262 passengers in a two-class layout with a range of around 11,000 km. The programme never achieved commercially viable output: in August 2009 the Russian Minister of Industry and Trade announced that manufacture of the Il-96-300 would cease, the type having been judged inferior to its Boeing and Airbus counterparts at a build rate of one aircraft a year. International sanctions after 2022 revived interest in the design. Today it serves as the main Russian presidential aircraft, Cubana de Aviación is its only remaining commercial passenger operator, and Sky Gates Airlines flies two Il-96-400T freighters.

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History

From the Il-86 to a modern quadjet

The Il-96 grew out of the long-range version of the Il-86, whose weak point was precisely its range. That project, the Il-86D, envisaged a longer-range version powered by Lotarev D-18 engines, and that line of work eventually evolved into the Il-96. The result was an aircraft with an entirely new supercritical wing tipped with winglets, quieter and more economical engines, a glass cockpit with six colour displays, inertial and satellite navigation, a traffic collision avoidance system and fly-by-wire controls. The Il-96-300 was launched in 1985 and the prototype flew on 28 September 1988, powered by four 157 kN Aviadvigatel PS-90A turbofans.

Commercial service and variants

Aeroflot opened services on 29 December 1992 and operated seven aircraft delivered between 1992 and 1994; the last of them, RA-96007, was retired and sold to Cubana in 2015. The family branched into three lines: the basic Il-96-300; the Il-96M, stretched by ten metres, fifteen tonnes heavier and fitted with Western avionics and Pratt & Whitney PW2337 engines for 312 passengers in three classes; and the Il-96-400, equivalent to the latter but with Russian avionics and PS-90A1 engines, able to carry up to 436 passengers. The Il-96M/T never materialised after the US Export-Import Bank suspended financing talks for its engines and avionics under pressure from Boeing. In 2005 Russia grounded the Il-96-300 fleet indefinitely over faults in the braking systems, weeks after a technical glitch forced President Putin to use a back-up aircraft.

Presidential transport and a second life

The Il-96-300PU, adapted as a command post, is the backbone of the Russian presidential fleet: five aircraft have served Boris Yeltsin, Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev, operated by a special squadron of Rossiya Airlines. In February 2013 Cubana signed for three 350-seat Il-96-400s. The Il-96-400T freighter spent most of its life in storage until December 2023, when Sky Gates leased an overhauled example to carry cargo to and from Russia. The most recent derivative, the Il-96-400M, with a fuselage 9.65 m longer than the Il-96-300 and a planned 390 seats, was rolled out on 7 June 2023 and made its first flight on 1 November that year. By 2026 two decommissioned Il-96s had been restored to service in response to the shrinking Russian civil fleet. In its entire operating history no accident has caused the death of a passenger or crew member.

Variants

Il-96-300Il-96MIl-96-400TIl-96TIl-96-400MIl-96-300PUIl-96-300VIl-96-400Il-96-400TZIl-96-400VPUIl-96-500TIl-96-550
First flightSeptember 28, 1988April 6, 1993May 16, 1997May 16, 1997November 1, 2023———————
Aircraft typeLong-haul wide-body airlinerStretched long-haul wide-body airlinerLong-haul wide-body freighterLong-haul wide-body freighterModernised, stretched long-haul wide-body airlinerPresidential and airborne command post version of the Il-96-300Projected Il-96-300 variant with built-in airstairsStretched long-haul wide-body airliner with Russian engines and avionicsAerial refuelling tankerStrategic airborne command postProjected freighter with enlarged fuselage for oversize cargoProjected double-deck airliner
PowerplantFour Aviadvigatel PS-90A high-bypass turbofans of 156.9 kN (16,000 kgf) thrust each, carried on underwing pylons and fitted with thrust reversers.Four Pratt & Whitney PW2337 turbofans of 165 kN thrust each, the first American engines fitted to a Russian airliner.Four Aviadvigatel PS-90A1 turbofans of 170.7 kN (17,400 kgf) thrust each, with a low-emission combustor and Russian avionics.Four Pratt & Whitney PW2337 turbofans of 165 kN thrust each; also offered with Aviadvigatel PS-90A1 engines.Four Aviadvigatel PS-90A1 turbofans of 170.7 kN thrust each; the prototype flew with this powerplant, although the project envisaged a move to the more efficient PS-90A3.Four Aviadvigatel PS-90A turbofans of 156.9 kN thrust each, the same powerplant as the Il-96-300 it derives from.Four Aviadvigatel PS-90A turbofans of 156.9 kN thrust each, unchanged from the Il-96-300.Four Aviadvigatel PS-90A1 turbofans of 170.7 kN (17,400 kgf) thrust each, the Russian replacement for the Il-96M's Pratt & Whitney engines and slightly more powerful than those.Four Aviadvigatel PS-90A1 turbofans of 170.7 kN thrust each, the same powerplant as the Il-96-400T it derives from.Four Aviadvigatel PS-90A1 turbofans of 170.7 kN thrust each, unchanged from the Il-96-400.Four Aviadvigatel PS-90A1 turbofans of 170.7 kN thrust each: the preliminary design is based on the in-production Il-96-400 to save time and cost.Four Kuznetsov NK-93 propfans, an engine flight-tested in 2007 before the programme was cancelled; some Russian sources cite the NK-92 for the same study.
Powerplant4 × Aviadvigatel PS-90A4 × Pratt & Whitney PW23374 × Aviadvigatel PS-90A14 × Pratt & Whitney PW23374 × Aviadvigatel PS-90A14 × Aviadvigatel PS-90A4 × Aviadvigatel PS-90A4 × Aviadvigatel PS-90A14 × Aviadvigatel PS-90A14 × Aviadvigatel PS-90A14 × Aviadvigatel PS-90A14 × Kuznetsov NK-93
Thrust per engine157 kN165 kN171 kN165 kN171 kN157 kN157 kN171 kN171 kN171 kN171 kN—
Length55.4 m64.7 m63.9 m63.9 m—55.4 m—63.9 m—63.9 m——
Wingspan60.1 m60.1 m60.1 m60.1 m60.1 m60.1 m—60.1 m60.1 m60.1 m——
Height17.6 m17.6 m———17.6 m—17.6 m————
Wing area350 m²350 m²350 m²350 m²350 m²350 m²—350 m²350 m²350 m²——
Empty weight120,400 kg132,400 kg—116,400 kg———122,300 kg————
MTOW250,000 kg270,000 kg270,000 kg270,000 kg270,000 kg250,000 kg—265,000 kg270,000 kg———
Top speed910 km/h900 km/h900 km/h900 km/h———900 km/h————
Max speed altitude12,000 m———————————
Cruise speed870 km/h870 km/h870 km/h870 km/h870 km/h870 km/h—870 km/h————
Cruise altitude12,000 m12,000 m12,000 m12,000 m12,000 m——12,000 m————
Service ceiling13,100 m13,100 m13,100 m13,100 m13,100 m13,100 m—13,100 m————
Range11,000 km11,482 km9,700 km9,700 km—11,000 km—10,000 km————
Ferry range13,500 km———————————
Combat radius0 km0 km0 km0 km0 km0 km0 km0 km0 km0 km0 km0 km
Range conditions11,000 km with 262 passengers in two classes and fuel reserves; 9,000 km at the 40 t maximum payload; 13,500 km with maximum fuel load.11,482 km with a 30 t payload and reserves.Shares airframe and fuel capacity with the Il-96T: 9,700 km with a 58 t payload.9,700 km with a 58 t payload.Long-haul aircraft with the airframe and fuel capacity of the Il-96-400.Retains the airframe, fuel capacity and long-haul range of the Il-96-300.—10,000 km with 315 passengers in a three-class layout.Fuel delivery at up to 3,500 km from base, against 3,000 km for the Il-78M.Retains the airframe and fuel capacity of the Il-96-400.——
ArmamentNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNone
Max weapons load0 kg0 kg0 kg0 kg0 kg0 kg0 kg0 kg0 kg0 kg0 kg0 kg
Payload40,000 kg58,000 kg92,000 kg92,000 kg58,000 kg——58,000 kg————
Cargo capacityAirliner: 300 seats single-class, 262 in two classes (18 + 244) and 237 in three classes; up to 40 t of payload, with LD3 containers and crew rest areas in the lower holds.Fuselage stretched about 10 m over the Il-96-300: 420 seats single-class, 340 in two classes and 307 in three; maximum payload 58 t.Freighter derived from the Il-96T with Russian engines and systems: up to 92 t of payload and 776 m³ of hold volume, with a side cargo door. No passenger seating.Freighter version of the Il-96M, without cabin windows and with a large cargo door on the forward left fuselage: up to 92 t of payload and 776 m³ of usable volume. No passenger seating.Passenger version of the Il-96-400T freighter, with the fuselage stretched 9.65 m over the Il-96-300 and overhead bins: 390 seats planned.VIP and government communications interior; the cabin layout is specific to each airframe and no commercial seating figure is published.Project adding two sets of built-in airstairs for airports without jet bridges; never built.436 seats single-class, 386 in two classes and 315 in three; maximum payload 58 t and lower holds for LD3 containers.Tanker projected for the Russian Ministry of Defence, able to transfer more than 65 t of fuel against the Il-78M's 40 t, using UPAZ-1 universal refuelling pods. No passenger seating.Il-96-400 converted into an airborne command post under the "Zveno-3S" programme to replace the Il-80: command and communications fit in place of the commercial cabin.2019 preliminary design with an enlarged fuselage cross-section for outsize cargo, notably Angara rocket sections bound for the Vostochny cosmodrome. It never left the study stage.Study of a double-deck Il-96 for 550 to 600 passengers; development stopped when the engine was cancelled.
Crew3232—3—3—3——
Passengers300420——390——436———600
Units built331311———————

Images

AllOur imagesElsewhere
RA-96103 Ilyushin IL-96-400TColin Cooke Photo (CC BY SA), vía commons
Rossiya Special Flight Ilyushin IL-96-300 RA-96023 MD1Acroterion (CC BY SA), vía commons
RA-96023 - Ilyushin IL-96-300 - Rossiya - Special Flight Squadron - 74393202023 - VGHSMd Shaifuzzaman Ayon (CC BY SA), vía commons
Ilyushin Il-96 (Aeroflot) RA-96008Aleksandr Markin (CC BY SA), vía commons
Ilyushin Il-96 (Aeroflot) RA-96005Aleksandr Markin (CC BY SA), vía commons

Elsewhere

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Videos

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  • Cómo el Ilyushin IL-96 ruso acaba de SUPERAR a Boeing y AirbusMetales en vueloNovember 13, 2025 · 11:18 · Español · Translated into EnglishWatch on YouTube
  • Il-96-400M, avión de fuselaje ancho y motor PD-35: ¿El regreso de Rusia a la aviación?Altitude AddictsDecember 13, 2024 · 6:23 · Español · Translated into EnglishWatch on YouTube
  • IL-96-400M: el futuro avión insignia de RusiaSkyShips en EspañolAugust 22, 2021 · 19:51 · Español · Translated into EnglishWatch on YouTube