Maker of Superjet and iconic fighters gets free rein in Russia's aerospace conglomerate
It has been a heady month of May at Sukhoi - and not just because the airframer finally got its much-heralded 98-seat Superjet 100 regional jet off the ground for a maiden flight and the run to certification. While engineers and test pilots were clearing that milestone, management and shareholders were detailing plans to give Sukhoi complete responsibility for the Superjet project under the umbrella of its parent, the Russian aerospace conglomerate United Aircraft (OAK), and extend the involvement of Sukhoi's Italian investor, Alenia Aeronautica.
Critically, the annual shareholders meeting at Sukhoi Civil Aircraft (SCAC) took the company a vital step along its 2006 "Superjet roadmap" by approving a plan to issue new shares to allow Alenia to invest $250 million into the Superjet project. That includes about $100 million to purchase a 25% stake in SCAC, which has been 100% owned by OAK since the conglomerate was formed last year to consolidate much of Russia's state-owned aerospace industry. Russian law was amended this year to permit the Alenia investment, and Alenia and Sukhoi had already formed a joint venture, Superjet International, to manage certification and marketing of the aircraft to Western customers.
The plan is for SCAC to have financial and organisational responsibility for Superjet until at least 2010-12, when Alenia is expected to receive an offer to swap its shares in SCAC for shares in OAK.
Sukhoi Supreme
In refining its strategy for 2008-15, OAK has given Sukhoi complete responsibility for two key fighter programmes, the Su-27SM2 and its export version Su-35, and the Su-34. Along with Superjet, these programmes enjoy large research and development and export sales funding from the Russian defence ministry and Kremlin-controlled banks including VTB, VEB and, for Superjet, the French and Italian COFACE and SACE export support agencies. These arrangements are designed to protect OAK from creditors should the Su-35 or Superjet projects fail, by making Sukhoi and SCAC liable.
Meanwhile, OAK has secured a Rb24.5 billion ($1.07 billion) long-term credit line from VEB, and is talking to other Kremlin-controlled banks about borrowing money to increase production of already certificated aircraft and to modernise manufacturing sites in Ulyanovsk and Kazan.
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For 2008-15, OAK is allocating more resources to its Tupolev narrowbodies and their intended replacement, the MS-21, as well as ramp freighters and airlifters. Most will rely on Aviadvigatel PS-90A turbofans, as OAK hopes to produce 300 Tupolev twins and 80 Ilyushin quads by 2015.
OAK's restructuring, and its adoption of Western accounting standards, is partly in preparation for an initial public offering planned for 2010, says president Aleksei Fiodorov. He is encouraged by OAK's product line: "We have a complete range of aircraft with seating capacity of between 50 and 300. Our smallest is the Ilyushin Il-114, which we see as a competitive turboprop. In the 70- to 100-seat capacity we have the Antonov An-148 and Superjet."
Above 100 seats are the Tupolev narrobodies and MS-21, and limited production of Ilyushin quads, he says.
That OAK has a long way to go to reach Western output standards is born out by production figures: last year Russia produced just seven mainline airliners.
Aviastar expects to deliver 32 Tu-204s in 2008-10, including 24 in 2010. KAPO will add Tu-214s, but its main specialisation is strategic bombers and special mission variants of Tupolev airliners. It is restoring Antonov An-124 Ruslan production preparing for the fourth-generation"Il-476" airlifter.
At VASO, output of Il-96s will be just three yearly in 2008-10 it also plans to increase An-148 production from four this year to 12 in 2009 and 18 in 2010.
In 2010 OAK aims for a stable output of the An-148, Ilyushin Il-96, Tu-204/214, and, probably, Tu-334 passenger jets.
Source: Flight International
