A Russian construction giant is planning to redevelop a military base 45km (28 miles) south-west of Moscow as the nation's first airport specifically dedicated to business aviation.
Billionaire Suleiman Kerimov's Nafta Moskva group has already set up a subsidiary company called Kubinka Airport, which is close to completing the concept phase of the project, and representatives of Kubinka Airport have inspected the base recently, according to Russian business paper Kommersant daily.
Nafta Moskva refuses to comment on the situation, but one business jet operator in Moscow says his clients have been approached by Kerimov with a proposal to base their aircraft at Kubinka.
The new Kubinka Airport firm's head is Oleg Lipatov, who was previously head of a development project for a "millionaire's town" not far away.
The timetable for the business airport is under wraps, but the military units on the base will move out by December, according to a military source there. They will be relocated at the air force's test and evaluation centre at Lipetsk. Kerimov's business empire has previously carried out projects in co-operation with the Russian defence ministry.
Moscow has one dedicated business aviation terminal, at Vnukovo-3, although there are also business facilities at Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo and Bykovo airports, and Gazpromavia's own airport at Ostafyevo. A lack of dedicated infrastructure has long been seen as one of the biggest factors holding back business aviation development in Russia.
Business jet operators welcome the plan. Leonid Koshelev, chairman of charter-sales firm Jet 2000, says: "Kubinka definitely could be used. It would need quite a lot of investment. The big issue is infrastructure and the link to the city, which will be essential for people to really use it."
Source: Flight International