Sukhoi Superjet Acquires an Italian Accent
// ItAli Places First Foreign Order
The company Sukhoi Civilian Aircraft (GSS), which is preparing for the production of a new regional plane called the Sukhoi Superject (SSJ), announced its first foreign order yesterday. The order was placed by a little-known Italian airline company called ItAli Airlines, which is part of the group Aeroservices. Experts in the field speculate that ItAli is run by the Italian airplane builder Finmeccanica, a strategic partner of GSS, and that the new aircraft will soon attract more foreign buyers.
GSS announced the deal at a trade exposition in Paris yesterday. The details of the agreement have not been worked out, but the contract that is likely to be signed soon promises the delivery of ten SSJ 95 planes between 2009 and 2011 (modified to carry 98 passengers) and the option of ordering another ten such planes. The contract without the option is worth $283 million.
"With the acquisition of the new Russian planes, ItAli plans to expand its range with flights to Moscow, Paris, Warsaw, and other large European cities," said ItAli spokesman Lorenzo Meccardi. According to Mr. Meccardi, the company purchased the SSJ planes to replace some of its fleet because of their low price, high efficiency, and inexpensive upkeep.
ItAli, which was founded in 2003, is part of businessman Guiseppi Spadaccini's Aeroservices group. The group also includes personnel training companies, aviation technology support services, and the company AirColumbia SA, which supplies planes for emergency rescue services. The group did 90 million euros worth of business in 2005. ItAli is based in the city of Pescara and maintains a fleet of five MD-82s, two Dornier 328s, two Fairchild Metroliner SA 227s, and one Cessna Citation that it flies on charter and regional flights.
Before the order from ItAli, GSS received orders for 45 planes from Aeroflot, 10 planes from the Financial Leasing Company, 15 planes from the Russian air alliance AiRUnion, and 6 from Dalavia. Experts speculate that ItAli could have been hooked up with GSS by the Italian airplane builder Finmeccanica, which became a strategic partner of the Russian company and its mother company Sukhoi last summer. Aviaport chief analyst Oleg Pantaleev points out that ItAli "is not a leader in the market either in Europe or even within Italy – just buying planes like the SSJ is a gigantic step forward and practically the creation of a new company."
Alexei Yekomovsky and Sergei Rykhzin
All the Article in Russian as of June 20, 2007
|
