IRRE STORY...

[ChiefT]

Foreign Aircraft Deal Offered for Russian Carriers

 

 

Russian media reports indicate that a German group has offered Russia a deal to provide foreign-built aircraft to Russian carriers while domestic manufacturers catch up in their ability to provide replacement planes for the country's ageing fleets.

 

According to reports in Kommersant and Vedomosti, the German transport ministry has offered to lease as many as 200 second-hand McDonnell Douglas MD-80 and Fokker 100 aircraft to replace the country's carriers' ageing Russian-built types. While nationally-owned Aeroflot has several western types in its fleet, it also holds a large fleet of ageing Russian-built planes that it uses regionally and domestically. Less fortunate are most of Russia's privately-owned and local government-owned carriers, which have not had access to adequate funding resources to purchase the more expensive foreign aircraft.

 

The aircraft on offer currently are owned by SAS Group, Germania and General Electric Capital Aviation Services (GECAS. The foreign aircraft would be used to replace Tupolev TU-134s and TU-154s for two years while domestic Russian replacements for the country's 580-strong fleet of the types, nearly half of which are to be written off in 2006. Under the deal, part of the payments made by Russian airlines to lease the aircraft would be later applied to the cost for purchase of domestically produced aircraft.

 

One airline industry source told Vedomosti that the offer sounded like an attempt to get rid of planes not currently under demand, while an industry colleague said that "the idea is good," but that airlines may not need all the aircraft.

 

Transaero, which already has western aircraft, told Vedimosti that it is not interested in the aircraft offer but Russia's second largest carrier, Sibir, said it is "seriously examining" the proposal. While the carrier recently secured rare funding for a new Tupolev TU-204, securing financing for new aircraft has been one of fast-growing Sibir's biggest challenges.

 

Domestic replacements for the ageing models already exist with Russian design houses. In addition to the TU-204, already in service with several carriers, the TU-334 has been in development for more than 10 years, and a domestic regional jet is currently under development by a group affiliated with Boeing. But Russian manufacturers in the post-Soviet Union environment have been saddled by the weak Russian economy, a shortage of non-Russian customers and a lack of funding for aircraft purchase. The country's aerospace industry -- in which there are four civil airframe designers working with separately-owned aircraft factories -- also doesn't help.

[gtrecker]

siehe auch den artikel in der moscow times von gestern

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2004/02/10/043.html

[Gast]

Kann mir zwar nicht vorstellen, dass man die 200 Maschinen an den mann bringt, aber wenn dann hat die Russiscshe Flugzeugindustrie weit mehr als ein Problem.

 

Wäre recht Amüsant, wenn auch langweilig, wenn in Russland nur noch Heckstrahler rumfliegen

 

Ich weis zwar, dass es um die Russischen Airlines Finanziell net so dolle ausschaut, aber anstatt wieder nur 2nd-Hand flieger zu holen, würde ich gleich auf neue ala Aeroflot setzen.

 

Aber wie gesagt, dass Geld fehlt dazu.

 

Russland verkommt dann auch zu einem absoluten Mülldeponie was Flugzeuge betrifft, wenn dann da nur 2nd hand - Kisten rumtuckern. So in der art: "...bracuen wir net mehr....also ab zu den Russen..."

[vincent]

wer hat denn im Moment die Germania MD82?

Oder hat ST evtl. doch ein paar F100 zuviel gekauft?

[Hias]

@Vincent

 

dabei müsste es sich zum Teil um die ex Crossair/Swiss MD80 handeln, die im Moment in ZRH rumstehen...

 

Gruss

 

Mathias

-----------------------------------------

http://www.spotter.de.vu <--- Aviation Photography

[Micha]

Würde mich ehrlich gesagt wundern wenn die russische Regierung da mitmacht, meines wissens belegt sie westliche flugzeuge mit nem hohen Zoll um die heimische Flugzeugindustrie zu schützen und ehrlich gesagt würde ich der Leasingfirma wünschen dass das gesamte Geschäft in die Hose geht.