A retired Tupolev Tu-144D is undergoing volunteer-led restoration at Zhukovsky airport near Moscow, potentially preparing the supersonic airliner for renewed static display at a future MAKS airshow. Aircraft CCCP-77115 has received a TA-6A auxiliary power unit and extensive electrical and mechanical work, but the project is not intended to return the aircraft to flight or enable taxi demonstrations.
The restoration is being led by Pavel Efter and the Restorer144 volunteer group at the shared grounds of the Gromov Flight Research Institute and Zhukovsky airport. The Legends of Aviation charitable fund and engineering-services company NIK have also been associated with work on the two Tu-144 aircraft at the site.
Since 2023, volunteers have repaired the ground-power generator, cabin lighting and analogue navigation system, while testing cockpit instruments, landing-gear lights, fire-detection equipment and tire inflation. They have also serviced the retractable “moustache” canards, checked the APU-bay doors and operated the aircraft’s retractable nose cone.
CCCP-77115 has served as a static exhibit at MAKS for about two decades and was last displayed at the 2021 event. MAKS has not been held since then, with its return reportedly postponed repeatedly. The restoration is consistent with expectations of a possible 2027 revival, although no official decision has confirmed the show’s return or the aircraft’s participation.
The second aircraft, CCCP-77114, was moved in 2019 and installed on a pedestal near a road outside Zhukovsky airport. The volunteer initiative is focused on preserving the aircraft and making its systems available for display, rather than restoring flight capability.