Aviation History
Russian aviation dates to the Imperial era, when engineer Igor Sikorsky built some of the world's first large multi-engine aircraft before the 1917 revolution. Soviet civil aviation was organized under state control starting in the 1920s, eventually consolidated into Aeroflot, which became the world's largest airline by fleet size during the Soviet period. Soviet-era engineering produced notable milestones, including early jet airliners and a supersonic transport. The 1991 Soviet collapse fragmented Aeroflot into numerous independent post-Soviet carriers, and Russia's aviation sector has since gone through cycles of consolidation and, more recently, severe disruption tied to geopolitics.
Engineer Igor Sikorsky designed the Ilya Muromets in Imperial Russia, among the world's first successful four-engine aircraft, later adapted as a heavy bomber.
Dobrolet was established as an early Soviet civil aviation company, laying groundwork for what would become a unified state airline.
Soviet civil aviation was consolidated under the Aeroflot name, becoming the country's sole airline for the rest of the Soviet era.
The Tupolev Tu-104 became one of the world's first jet airliners in sustained scheduled passenger service, alongside the British Comet.
The Tu-144 made its first flight in late 1968, becoming the first supersonic transport aircraft to fly, narrowly ahead of the Anglo-French Concorde.
The dissolution of the Soviet Union split Aeroflot's assets among newly independent states, spawning dozens of successor carriers across the former USSR.
The Sukhoi Superjet 100 regional jet, Russia's first major post-Soviet civil aircraft program, completed its maiden flight.
Following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Western sanctions cut off aircraft leasing, spare parts, and much international airspace access for Russian carriers, a situation still evolving.
Aeroflot · S7 Airlines · Ural Airlines · Pobeda (low-cost)
General aviation history sources; the post-2022 sanctions situation is volatile and details (fleet access, route restrictions) may have changed since research date.