Sirocco Aerospace International plans to announce its first lease commitments for the Rolls-Royce RB.211-535E4-powered Tupolev Tu-204-120, following the certification of the engine/airframe combination by the Russian Air Registry, and the first delivery later this month.
Sirocco was officially launched in Moscow in December 1996 by Egypt's Kato Group and its partners - which include Tupolev Ulyanovsk, Russia-based production plant Aviastar and Russian foreign-sales organisation Aviaexport - to spearhead marketing for the re-engined Tu-204-120.
Kato has a contract for up to 200 Tu-204s, including 30 firm orders, for delivery through to 2001. Deliveries should start this month at the rate of one a month, ultimately rising to five a month.
"The first production Tu-204-120 was flown on 7 March, 1997," says Gerry Connolly, Sirocco's president and chief operating officer, "and Russian certification of the RB.211-powered aircraft is scheduled for June." He adds that Sirocco has recently entered into a contract with Tupolev to finance European Joint Aviation Authorities certification.
The first five Tu-204-120s will be completed with Russian avionics, but will have a new interior developed by the UK's Diamonite. The "Phase II" version will have an AlliedSignal Engines auxiliary-power unit and new navigation and communications equipment, while the definitive aircraft is being fitted with avionics supplied by AlliedSignal and Honeywell, including the latter's Versatile Integrated Avionics VIA2000 avionics suite, says Connolly. It will also have a full in-flight-entertainment specification.
Connolly confirms that several deals are already in place, but these will not be unveiled until after certification. "A launch event is planned for July, when we will announce firm orders and options," he says, adding that negotiations are under way with operators outside Russia. One is believed to be Cairo Air, which was formed earlier this year by a group of Egyptian entrepreneurs to operate Tu-204-120s ordered by Kato.
Bilateral agreements will allow the Russian-certificated aircraft to be registered "offshore" in countries such as Egypt, Mauritius and the Seychelles. This will satisfy the security concerns of the banks, such as Citibank, which are providing financing, says Connolly.
One major concern is the issue of product support. "We are establishing a UK-based central product support division near London Heathrow Airport," he says.
Source: Flight International
