The Beriev Be-103 amphibian has been certificated in Russia and is to be one of the first aircraft to benefit from harmonised Russian-US standards. The aircraft received Russian AP-23 type certification late last year and US Federal Aviation Administration certification should be "quick and easy", says Russian airworthiness body AR MAK.
"The Be-103 is similar in size to the already FAR-23 certificated Ilyushin Il-103, and also has US-made avionics and engines," says AR MAK head Anatoly Kruglov. The FAA has approached MAK with an offer of FAR certification of the Be-103 six-seat piston amphibian - "the first such case in history", says Kruglov.
The test programme, involving two prototypes and five production examples, began in 1997, and to date 263 flights involving 181h have been achieved, including 59 flights from water.
Kruglov says systems upgrades, the creation of credible after-sales support and modernisation of the Sukhoi factory are all essential for international sales, in addition to FAR certification. Beriev general director Gennady Panatov says the first ten Be-103s are close to completion, with the launch customer being Russia's forestry service, which has ordered six aircraft.
The Russian state aircraft export agency, Aviaexport, has set a price tag of $600,000 on the 155kN (210 hp) Teledyne Continental IO-360-ES4-powered aircraft, and expects break even after 100 sales.
Source: Flight International
