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   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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