By the beginning of the eighties, the An-24, which was considered the main passenger aircraft of the USSR and was widely used on domestic airlines, was morally obsolete. In addition, the fleet of these machines began to rapidly decline due to the development of their resource. To this was added such a factor as increased volumes of air transportation - both passenger and cargo. An-24 did not meet the requirements and needs of modern times. He needed an urgent and high-quality replacement.
In 1982, the Design Bureau. Ilyushin, then headed by chief designer G.V. Novozhilov, took the initiative to build a new type of passenger aircraft, the Il-114, for use on local airlines. The foundation for this machine was to be thirty years of experience in operating a variety of modifications of the IL-14.
This initiative was supported by the Minister of Civil Aviation itself, which marked the beginning of the design of the local aircraft Il-114. Design work continued for a long five years, since they were carried out in parallel with the very time-consuming development of the long-range long-range civilian aircraft IL-96-300.
It was only in July 1987 that a full-scale model of the machine was designed, in which almost all systems of the future IL-114 were reproduced. The salon with sixty seats found the most complete reflection in the layout, and the crew cabin was also modeled in detail. After a detailed and thorough consideration by the breadboard commission of the presented IL-114 project, a decision was approved to start its mass production.
The leading enterprise for the production of this machine was designated the Tashkent Aviation Production Association, which had previously produced many Ilyushin models. As the second serial enterprise, the Moscow Banner of Labor Aircraft Plant was chosen, leading its history from 1909.
The aircraft was constructed from high-strength aluminum and titanium alloys, as well as from a variety of composite and non-metallic materials. The fuel system of this aircraft includes two caisson tanks located in the wing. Their total capacity is 8360 liters.
The main structural feature of this machine is that it is schematically made as a free-standing monoplane with a low-wing wing. A pair of TV7-117C turboprop engines is installed on the plane. The diameter of the screw is 3.6 meters, and the take-off power of one engine is 2.5 thousand liters. from.
The first flights of aircraft of this model with passengers on board took place only in 1999 (already in another country), when, after repeated tests, it was finally put into operation. The excellent aerodynamic qualities of the new aircraft, as well as its efficiency, reliability and low maintenance cost, should have made the IL-114 a very popular machine in the civil aviation system. However, only 17 aircraft were produced. As of 2012, their production in Tashkent has been discontinued.
To date, a modification of this Il-114-100 aircraft, which differs from the “one hundred and fourteenth” installation of more powerful Canadian-made PW-127H engines, is quite actively exploited, which significantly optimized the flight characteristics of this model. This is especially noticeable in the high altitude and sultry climate of the southern latitudes, for which the Il-114-110, in principle, is intended.