Vladimir Karnozov/KAZAN
Russian airline Dalavia, based in Khabarovsk, has taken delivery of the first production Tupolev Tu-214 and will use the twinjet to upgrade its services to Moscow and Asia.
The aircraft was handed over on 22 May at the Kazan Aircraft Production (KAPO) factory in Kazan, Tatarstan, where the high gross-weight, long-range derivative of the AviadvigatelPS-90-powered Tu-204 is assembled. A second Tu-214 will be delivered to Dalavia next month, and the aircraft are being taken on eight-year financial leases from Financial Leasing (FLC).
Established by Moscow-based Zenit bank, the Tatneft oil giant and the Solid investment company, FLC arranged the deal between KAPO and Dalavia a year ago. With a range of 7,200km (3,890nm), the 164-seaters will be used by Dalavia to replace ageing Ilyushin Il-62Ms on scheduled services to Moscow and charter flights to China and South Korea.
According to Tu-214 chief designer Yuri Vorobyev, KAPO plans to complete four Tu-214s this year, seven in 2002 and 12 in 2003. Eleven airframes are close to completion, only requiring installation of avionics and engines.
Several Russian airlines have shown serious interest in acquiring Tu-214s, including KrasAir in Siberia, Transaero and GTK Rossiya. "Russian airlines are eager to fly new locally-built airliners as they are more economically attractive than their western equivalents, while offering similar performance," says Aleksandr Neradko, head of Russia's civil aviation authorities.
Until recently the main difficulty with aircraft sales has been unavailability of the aircraft on lease terms. Russian airlines have been unable to pay $25 million in one sum for a Tu-214, but now they do not have to, says Eugeny Zaritsky, general director of FLC.
"The factory's [KAPO] employees are good at producing aircraft but they are not good [business] managers," says Zenit chairman Aleksei Sokolov. Because of this, the administrations of the Tatarstan Republic and Khabarovsk Region, who provided most of the funding for completing Dalavia's aircraft, chose FLC, which has experience in arranging lease schemes in oil and automotive industries, to manage the project.
Tatarstan provided $10 million and Khabarovsk $6 million funding, used primarily to purchase components such as the engines.
Sokolov says that investing into civil aviation programmes not only helps Tatarstan's employment issues, but also promises to be rewarding for the republic's treasury, which will make a $3 million profit over the next eight years from the Dalavia deal. In comparison, Tatarstan only receives $9million from taxes.
Source: Flight International
