Chris Kjelgaard/NEW YORK
With Siberia's soaring oil-based economy fuelling rapid growth on Tyumenaviatrans (TAT) Aviation's scheduled routes within the huge Tyumen region, the Russian carrier says it plans to acquire Bombardier Dash 8s to replace its ageing short-haul fleet of Soviet era turboprops. The airline is also looking to expand its international operations.
Andrei Martirossov, the general director of the Surgut-based airline and heavy-lift helicopter operator, does not reveal how many Dash 8s his carrier plans to acquire or whether it wants new or used aircraft. The airline is the only Russian aviation company whose shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange.
TAT Aviation's eight elderly Antonov An-24s, which are similar in size to the 50-seat Dash 8-300, are targeted for replacement. Five Antonov An-2s as well as nine ageing Yakovlev Yak-40 30-seat trijets could also be included in the fleet renewal programme.
The company's short-haul fleet totals 25 aircraft, and the carrier has options for 25 new generation Antonov An-140s. If the Dash 8 acquisition supplants the An-140 plans, then the airline could eventually need some 25 examples of the Canadian turboprop.
The airline has moved into the black for the first time in several years with an operating and net profit for the first-half of 2000. TAT Aviation is also experiencing booming traffic on its routes from Surgut to major cities in western and southern Russia. It is also now operating charter flights to Greece, Turkey, Cyprus and the United Arab Emirates.
Visiting New York to open TAT Aviation's first US office near the headquarters of the United Nations, Martirossov says the carrier will soon launch its first international scheduled routes - to countries where it now offers charter services. Seven Tupolev Tu-154s are being upgraded for the new routes, and four more examples may be acquired in the near term.
TAT Aviation's airline division expects to carry 600,000 passengers this year, almost double its 1999 total, to help its parent generate $80 million in revenues and to record a profitable 2000. Martirossov predicts that in 2002 TAT Aviation will board a million passengers, 100,000 of them on international routes.
Source: Flight International
