Armavia owner denies debt to Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company

The owner of Armavia Mikhail Bagdasarov denied the aircompany’s debt to Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company (SCAC) for Sukhoi SuperJet 100 plane.
"The jet cost $20 million. We paid $16 million in advance, with $4 to be added. However, later we returned the plane. We believe we owe nothing for technical services, yet SCAC insists we are indebted $1 million in encumbrance charges," he said, noting the latters to be the responsibility of SCAC.
In August SCAC reported that Armavia owed $4million for the jet. As the Company noted, Armavia cannot return the plane the latter being encumbered by an Armenian bank, media sources say.

Source: panarmenian.net

Armavia, Sukhoi agree on SSJ100 terms

Armenian carrier Armavia (U8), which took delivery of the first production Sukhoi Superjet 100 in April 2011, has reached a new leasing agreement with Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Co. on operating terms (ATW Daily News, April 20, 2011).
The carrier has refused to operate the aircraft this summer for reasons that have not been announced officially. It also refused to take delivery of the second aircraft it ordered.
According to a statement on Sukhoi’s website, the parties have reached a six-month lease agreement. “After its termination, the parties will meet again to continue discussions on the issue,” Sukhoi said. The negotiations on the second aircraft are continuing.

Source:  atwonline.com

Armavia cannot reject second Sukhoi SuperJet

Armenian national carrier Armavia cannot reject the second Sukhoi SuperJet (SSJ), without having paid for the first one, official representative of the Civil Jets Sukhoi (CJS) Andrey Muravyev told Armenian News-NEWS.am. He confirmed reports spread by the Russian outlets that Armavia owes the CJS $4 million for the first SSJ, currently the jet is at the CJS for examination. Everything depends on Armavia, if the company pays for the jet, it will come to Armenia.
Besides, the debt for the first jet hampers rejection from the second jet, as the contract was concluded for two jets at once.
In response to the question about the price for the first jet, Muravyev said it made about $25-26 million. Whereas Armavia has concluded a contract with the BTB-Armenia bank in the amount of $55-60 million for purchasing the two jest.

Source: news.am

Armavia refuses to take back repaired Sukhoi Superjet 100 plane

Armavia Armenian airline company has refused to take back repaired Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft. The company currently owns two SSJ planes.
“We haven’t issued any official statements. We find having the repaired aircraft back inappropriate,” the company’s press service reported.
Earlier, Sukhoi Civil Aircraft CJSC noted that Armenian Air Company is reluctant to pay off its debts for aircraft maintenance. According to the company’s representative Andrey Muraviev, “Armavia” SSJ is currently in Zhukovsky flight test center.

Source: panarmenian.net

Armavia gives Superjet-100 the boot

The first customer of the Sukhoi Superjet-100 airliner has decided it’s no longer going to fly the type. Armenian airline Armavia became the launch customer of the 100 seat aircraft taking delivery of a plane in 2011.
Armavia has refused to go through with the purchase of a second plane, and both are now at the Sukhoi civil aircraft test facility in Zhukovsky outside Moscow.
The RBC daily quotes the plane maker’s spokesman Andrei Muraviev, “So far we haven’t received any official request to cancel the purchase. We are trying to resolve all issues arising in relations with Armavia.”
Another source familiar with the situation told the newspaper that Armavia owes Sukhoi money for servicing of the first plane and refuses to pay.  Armavia reportedly used a loan from an Armenian bank to acquire the plane.
Sukhoi Civil Aircraft has reportedly already offered to restructure the deal with the Armenian airline, and arrange delivery of both Sukhoi aircrafts through a leasing company.

"The plane is not bad, but not perfect. Airbuses and Boeings fly 330-350 hours per month, while the Sukhoi spent only 150 hours flying, " RBC daily quotes a source close to Armavia. “The last straw was it spent four days clearing customs in Russia to have a two-day service. But Armavia warned Sukhoi in July that it will under no circumstances use the plane” says the source. “Armavia is a small company and cannot afford experimenting and Sukhoi has already returned the money paid for the plane excluding the $1 million servicing fee,” concludes the source.
Armavia started operating the first Sukhoi Superjet plane in April 2011. The second plane was expected to be handed to the carrier last year, but it delayed delivery. In early July 2012 representatives of the Armenian airline said the airline had decided to give up the second Sukhoi  SuperJet to buy aircraft from Boeing and Airbus, which offer cheaper servicing and spare parts.
According to Armavia President Mikhail Bagdasarov, Russia has also not worked out a scheme of financing the supply of equipment to foreign companies by providing government guarantees such as lower rates for loans.
Branded as the first civilian aircraft developed from scratch in modern Russia, the SSJ-100 consists of more than 60% internationally produced components. Sukhoi however claims the jet has relatively low service costs and a fuel consumption advantage over its competitors, which would potentially bring Sukhoi new contracts, particularly after the Russian Accounting Chamber reported that the Sukhoi project has been severely underfunded through state-run programs.
Another headache is that commercial loans cannot fill in the gap as the manufacturer, Sukhoi Civil Aircraft, has too large a debt portfolio to take any out. In 2003-2010, the federal government spent a total of $518 million on the SSJ-100 project through the aircraft development program, while Sukhoi drew another $842 million in off-budget investment. This means that more than $1.3 billion has already been spent on the SSJ-100, and is more than it was spent on the development of similar jets by Canada’s Bombardier and Brazil’s Embraer which required around $600 million each, and $100 million spent on the Tupolev TU-334 since 1992.
The Sukhoi Superjet-100 has suffered a series of setbacks in the past few months after a tragic crash during a demonstration flight in Indonesia on May 9 that killed 45 people on board. The crash, however, was attributed to human error.
A Sukhoi Superjet-100 airliner with 64 passengers and six crew members on board had to make an emergency landing at Sheremetyevo Airport last week due to a technical problem, RIA-Novosti reported on Friday.
At the recent Farnborough Air Show, many potential customers were reluctant to commit after the Indonesian accident, suspending orders until the results of the investigation are announced.  Sukhoi did not conclude any contracts, only announcing that Mexico’s Interjet’s option has been turned into an order, and that the company plans to bring the number of jets on its portfolio to 210 over the next few months, signing contracts with three Asian airlines.

Source: rt.com

Armenia Cancels SSJ Order

Armenian national carrier Armavia will not be buying a second Sukhoi Superjet 100, the company has said.
"Armenia is not going to buy it," airline spokeswoman Nana Avetisova told Interfax on Monday. She did not give a reason for the cancellation.
Armavia, which has a single Superjet, was the first airline to launch commercial flights using the SSJ in April 2011. It was due to take delivery of a second aircraft between June 20 and July 30 this year. The only other SSJ operator so far is Aeroflot, which has eight of the aircraft. Russian media have reported that Aeroflot's fleet has been plagued by technical difficulties. The Superjet's reputation suffered a blow when one flew into the side of an Indonesian volcano during a demonstration flight in May, killing 45 people.

Source: themoscowtimes.com

Armenia’s Armavia to buy three more Sukhoi Superjet in 2012

CEO of Armenia’s national air carrier, Armavia, Mikhail Baghdasarov, told Prime News that his company plans to conclude a firm contract for the delivery of three Sukhoi Superjet 100 in 2012.
Speaking at a news conference today Baghdasarov said the second Sukhoi Superjet will be delivered before the end of this year, following which the contract will be signed for delivery of three more planes. Armavia was the first company to start commercial operation of new short-haul airliner.
Bagdasarov said the operation of the plane has revealed some problems that need to be eliminated.
Armavia National Air Company was established in 1996. The company meets IATA international requirements. Armavia operates over 100 flights a day to more than 40 destinations in 20 countries. It possesses 11 aircrafts - А320-3, А319-3, CRJ-200, Yak-42-VIP and Il-86 and Superjet -100.

Source: arka.am

SaM146 Enters Service

"We plan quite a huge ramp-up in production of the SaM146 engine for the Sukhoi Superjet 100 regional airliner," says Marc Sorel, Country Delegate in Russia for Safran, which makes the engine in a joint venture with NPO Saturn.
Plans call for 24 engines to be in service by the end of 2011, "and next year will be another huge ramp-up," he said.
Today, four engines are in scheduled operation on the two Superjets delivered, one each to the Armenian airline Armavia and Russia’s Aeroflot. The third Superjet is expected to be delivered during MAKS 2011.
Sorel said the engine is working well. Armavia has logged 700 hours and carried 11,000 passengers since putting the aircraft into service in April, and it is currently flying six one-hour flights a day. Aeroflot took delivery in June and plans six flights a day, but has suffered two groundings of the aircraft, though not for engine problems, Sorel said.
Armavia grounded its aircraft to change an engine, a process that stretched out to nearly a week due to customs issues, he said. "There are just two aircraft, so this is a very cautious entry into service. We don’t want to take any risks."
"The engine is proving very robust," Sorel noted, and survived an in-flight birdstrike unscathed. "Fuel consumption is exactly what we expected, and the airlines are satisfied." Cabin noise is also very low, he added.
John Morris

Source: ato.ru

Second Sukhoy Superjet 100 Will Arrive In August Or September

The second Sukhoy Superjet 100 passenger aircraft will arrive in Armenia in August or September, Armavia national carrier president, Mikhail Bagdasarov, told journalists today.

The first Sukhoy Superjet 100 arrived on April 19, 2011. The cost of the aircraft is $24 million

Short-haul passenger aircraft Sukhoy Superjet 100 is designed to carry up to 98 passengers at a distance of 4,400 km.

Armavia has attracted about $40 million in loans for the purchase of aircrafts, Bagdasarov said.

"We are moving gradually away from the principle of leasing aircrafts, because it is more expedient now to acquire them," said Bagdasarov, explaining that renting and leasing prices are quite high, and the large supply of aircrafts at the market has led to significant declines in their prices.

He also declined media speculations that the carrier is threatened by bankruptcy.

Armavia was established in 1996. It meets the international requirements of IATA. Armavia operates more than 100 flights a week to over 40 destinations in 20 countries.

SuperJet International to Exhibit at Paris Air Show 2011, Booth A296, Jun 20 - 26, 2011

Press Kit Materials are Available at: http://www.tradeshownews.com/events/Paris-Air-Show-2011/Superjet/

Company:		SuperJet International
Booth/Stand:		A296
Event:		Paris Air Show 2011 Jun 20 - 26, 2011 Paris, FR
Web:		http://www.superjetinternational.com
Facebook:		http://www.facebook.com/SuperJetIntl
Twitter:		http://twitter.com/superjetintl
YouTube:		http://www.youtube.com/user/SuperJetIntl
LinkedIn:		http://www.linkedin.com/company/superjet-international

About SuperJet International
SuperJet International (SJI) is a joint venture between Alenia Aeronautica, a Finmeccanica Company, (51%) and Sukhoi Holding (49%). The company is in charge of marketing, sales, customization and delivery of the Sukhoi Superjet 100 regional jet in Europe, the Americas, Oceania, Africa and Japan. SJI is also responsible for training and worldwide after-sales support, as well as the design and development of VIP, business and cargo variants. The Sukhoi Superjet 100 currently represents the largest industrial programme between the Russian Federation and the rest of the world in the commercial aircraft sector. The SSJ100 is a state-of-the-art 100 seat new generation regional jet. The aircraft entered into revenue services with Armavia airline on April 21, 2011.

Source: sys-con.com

The Sukhoi Superjet 100 airplane landed in Venice for the first time

The Sukhoi Superjet 100, flight U8-123, landed in Venice, at "Marco Polo" airport, at 1:18 pm of yesterday, from Yerevan, Armenia, after approximately 4 flight hours.

For the first time the regional jet Sukhoi Superjet 100 (SSJ-100), developed by Sukhoi Civil Aircraft in partnership with Alenia Aeronautica (Finmeccanica Group), arrives in Venice. Namely the Sukhoi Superjet 100 opens weekly flights of Armenian national carrier Armavia to Venice.

The SSJ-100 was delivered to Armavia on April 19, 2011 during a ceremony at Zvartnots airport. The aircraft was put into commercial operation within unprecedentedly short time after delivery, having started service on April 20 with flights Erevan–Moscow–Erevan.

The aircraft received the name after the first cosmonaut “Yuri Gagarin” and the tail number EK 95015.
The Sukhoi Superjet 100 has accumulated 24 flights in routes like Yerevan–Athens–Yerevan, Yerevan– Donetsk–Yerevan, Yerevan–Aleppo–Yerevan, Yerevan–Tehran–Yerevan, Yerevan– Tel Aviv–Yerevan and Yerevan–Simferopol–Yerevan, scoring approx. 50 flight hours.

The SSJ-100 Entry Into Service opens a new stage of the Program: the beginning of commercial operation and full-scale serial production. The second aircraft will join Armavia fleet in June 2011.

There are currently 17 aircraft are in serial production at various stages of completion, including 6 in the final assembly shop. This year Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company plans to deliver 13 aircraft in total.

Mr. Carlo Logli, Chief Executive Officer of SuperJet International, was on board of the SSJ-100. Upon his arrival in Venice he stated: “It was a great satisfaction flying on board of the Sukhoi Superjet 100. The aircraft is superior for the comfort delivered to its passengers, for the larger cabin, wider seating and more spacious overhead bins.

We are pleased to see the SSJ-100 landing at Marco Polo runway, next to the headquarters of SuperJet International. Venice, in fact, is the delivery center for the western Customers. We expect the first delivery to the Mexican airline Interjet for the second half of 2012. SuperJet International, responsible for the after-sales support, is actively working in order to provide Armavia with a reliable and high-quality after-sales support. At the same time, SuperJet International is providing Armavia with Flight Crew, Cabin Crew and Maintenance staff Training Courses” concluded Mr.
Logli.

The Sukhoi Superjet 100 is definitely the first production aircraft of modern Russia, created in partnership with world-wide aerospace leaders. The SSJ-100 represents a state-of-the-art aircraft in the 100-seat aircraft segment because of its outstanding characteristics in terms of quality, comfort and operational costs, the industry declares.

Source: avionews.com

Armavia airline starts flights to Venice on Russia's Superjet-100

The Armenian airline Armavia opens on Sunday regular passenger flights from Yerevan to Venice and back using Russia's newest commercial plane, the Sukhoi Superjet 100, company's press service said.
The flights will be made regularly once a week on Sundays, the company said.
The newest Russian aircraft was delivered to Armavia at a ceremony in Armenia on April 27. Next day it completed its first passenger flight from the capital of Armenia to Moscow carrying 90 passengers.
The Superjet 100 is a family of medium-haul passenger aircraft developed by Sukhoi in cooperation with U.S. and European aviation corporations, including Boeing, Snecma, Thales, Messier Dowty, Liebherr Aerospace and Honeywell.
The aircraft is capable of carrying 75-95 passengers up to 4,500 kilometers.
Armavia, which bought four of the planes in 2007, plans to use the aircraft to conduct flights to Moscow, St Petersburg, Sochi and Ukraine.
Currently, there are 17 models in production at different stages of completion.
The company plans to manufacture at least 14 Superjet 100s this year, and 25 in 2012, and intends to sell 35% of them to the United States, 25% to Europe, 10% to Latin America, and 7% to Russia and China.

Source: en.rian.ru

Celebrations as First Superjet 100 is Delivered

The first Sukhoi Superjet 100 jet was delivered to launch customer Armavia (of Armenia) today at Zvartnots airport, with the aircraft being named after the first man in space, Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin.

Sukhoi general director Mikhail Pogosyan said: "The delivery of the first production aircraft is the key milestone of the Sukhoi Superjet 100 project.  The event opens a new stage for the programme - the beginning of commercial operation and full-scale serial production."
Armavia ordered the aircraft in September 2007, and plans to use its aircraft on flights to Moscow, St Petersburg, Sochi and Ukraine. Airline owner Mikhail Bagdasarov remarked: "We are very grateful for such an aircraft.  This is definitely a great milestone for the Russian aerospace industry, because the SSJ100 is in fact the first production aircraft of modern Russia, created in partnership with world-wide aerospace leaders.  We congratulate everybody with such a significant achievement!"
The Superjet 100 (SSJ100) is manufactured by Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company (SCAC) in partnership with Alenia Aeronautica. The companies have a joint sales organisation for international sales, SuperJet International, which is based in Venice, Italy. The SSJ 100 is powered by two Powerjet SaM146 turbofan engines - Powerjet being a joint venture between Russia's NPO Saturn and Snecma of France.

Source: eraa.org

First Sukhoi Superjet 100 delivered to Armenian airline

The first Sukhoi Superjet 100, Russia's newest commercial plane, was delivered to the Armenian airline Armavia on Tuesday. 
The plane was named after Yury Gagarin, the first man in space, in a glitzy ceremony at Yerevan's Zvartnots airport. 
Armavia head Mikhail Bagdasarov said the plane will head for Moscow on its first flight on Wednesday.  Sukhoi currently has over 120 confirmed orders for the Superjet, the bulk from Russia's flagship airline Aeroflot. 
The company is seeking to sell at least 800 planes, more than half to foreign airlines.

Source: en.rian.ru

Armavia takes delivery of first Superjet 100

Armenian flag-carrier Armavia has taken delivery of the first serially-produced Sukhoi Superjet 100 regional jet. The hand-over ceremony took place today at the airline's base airport, Yerevan Zvartnots.

© Superjet International

Armavia's cockpit crew piloted the aircraft from Sukhoi manufacturing plant KnAAPO in Komsomolsk-on-Amur with a landing in Novosibirsk.
The carrier's representative in Moscow, Gagik Sarkisyan, says it will enter commercial service in a few days following completion of its registration.

© Superjet International

"Most likely, we'll deploy the Superjet 100 on the premier Yerevan-Moscow route for an inaugural flight," he says, adding that Armavia is expecting to take the next delivery in May.
The aircraft has been named "Yuri Gagarin" to honour the 50th anniversary of the first manned space flight. It was due to enter service last week.

By Tom Zaitsev

Source: flightglobal.com

Russian Sukhoi Superjet-100 to arrive in Armenia on April 19

The Russian airliner “Sukhoi Superjet” will arrive in Armenia on April 19 without delays, Spokeswoman for Armavia Air Company Nana Avetisova told Armenian News-NEWS.am.
According to her, “Sukhoi Superjet” is designed to carry out short distance flights. “It is already agreed that the new aircraft will make flights to Moscow, St. Petersburg, Sochi and cities of Ukraine,” she said.
Asked on the price for the new aircraft, Avetisova said that it is a commercial issue. “I can say that the liner is designed for 98 passengers. Moreover, Armenia is the only country in the region with “Sukhoi Superjet-100,” she noted.
The leadership of Russia’s Aeroflot is going to offer the Russian government to fine the company for violation of terms of receiving the aircraft.
It was reported earlier that the first flight of Sukhoi Superjet-100 will be carried out on the Day of Astronautics on April 12.

Source: news.am

Armavia misses key date for Superjet handover

Armavia has missed the planned handover date for taking the first Sukhoi Superjet 100, although it has signed a technical acceptance agreement for the aircraft.  It was intending to take the twinjet - aircraft 95007, named after cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin - for operations on 12 April, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of Gagarin's first voyage into space.  But the handover was pushed back at least a week. Sukhoi says the Superjet has completed ground and flight tests and is "technically sound" and is ready for "immediate implementation of commercial flights".  Armavia representative Gagik Sarkisyan says, however: "There are minor technical issues and acceptance-related paperwork that remain to be tackled. But we still intend to receive the aircraft before May."

Source: flightglobal.com

Armavia становится должником российских аэропортов

Армянская авиакомпания Armavia готовится принять первый российский лайнер Superjet. Однако перевозчику, возможно, придется скорректировать торжественную церемонию, связанную с началом эксплуатации нового самолета. Проблема — в больших долгах Armavia перед аэропортом Внуково, из-за чего первый рейс может быть перенесен в Домодедово.
Как рассказал источник РБK daily в аэропорту Внуково, авиакомпания Armavia перестала платить за обслуживание своих рейсов. По его словам, сейчас долг перевозчика перед аэропортом достиг 70 млн руб. Не исключено, что перевозчик вообще прекратит полеты из этого аэропорта. По словам другого источника, с финансовыми проблемами был связан перенос церемонии открытия первого коммерческого рейса нового российского лайнера Superjet из аэропорта Внуково в Домодедово. Официальный представитель Внуково отметил, что авиакомпания действительно задолжала аэропорту, однако речи о закрытии рейсов из Внуково не ведется. «Перевозчик стоит в расписании аэропорта до осени», — сказала РБК daily официальный представитель Внуково.
У Armavia проблемы не только с российскими аэропортами. Вчера армянские СМИ сообщили о том, что авиакомпания выпустила с задержкой в среднем в 5 ч рейсы Ереван — Рим, Ереван — Ростов, Ереван — Тегеран, Ереван — Дели и отменила рейсы Ереван — Мюнхен. Согласно сайту ереванского аэропорта Звартноц, в среду были отменены рейсы в Москву (Шереметьево) и Амман. Согласно сайту аэропорта Внуково рейс из Еревана вместо планируемых 16.20 вылетел в 21.40. Ранее 16 марта Armavia задерживала свои рейсы на час в знак протеста против высоких цен, установленных аэропортом Звартноц. Однако пресс-секретарь Звартноца Геворг Абрамян вчера пояснил армянскому изданию Tert.am, что у Armavia большой долг перед аэропортом. Гендиректору авиакомпании Armavia Михаилу Багдасарову РБК daily вчера дозвониться не удалось.
Авиакомпания Armavia является стартовым покупателем нового российского самолета Superjet. В компании — производителе самолета «Гражданские самолеты Сухого» РБК daily вчера заявили, что «компания их уведомила, что возникшие проблемы были урегулированы, компанию интересует, чтобы заказчик выполнил все предусмотренные контрактом условия поставки Superjet». Первый Superjet будет поставлен армянской авиакомпании в апреле.
 

Source: rbcdaily.ru

SuperJet in Use by May 15

Aeroflot has scheduled Sukhoi SuperJet-100 (SSJ-100) aircraft for the Moscow-Nizhny Novgorod flight as of May 15, an airline source said.
The first SSJ-100 was due to be supplied to the air carrier in 2008. The delivery date was postponed several times. According to the latest reports, the first SSJ-100 plane will be supplied to Armenian airline Armavia in April.
The aircraft has an up to 98-passenger capacity and is can cover a distance of up to 4,400 kilometers. In 2011, manufacturer Sukhoi Civilian Aircraft is planning to make 14 SSJ-100s, increasing to 25 in 2012 and later reaching an annual output of 60 to 70 airliners.

(Interfax)

Source: themoscowtimes.com

Sukhoi SuperJet 100 to make first flight with passengers on April 12

Russia’s Sukhoi 100 passenger jet will start flying passengers for the first time on April 12 when it travels from Armenia’s capital of Yerevan to Moscow.

The flight will coincide with the 50th anniversary of Yury Gagarin’s flight that made him the first man in space, RIA Novosti reports.

Armenia’s Armavia airline bought four Superjets in 2007. Sukhoi currently has 122 firm orders for the type and hopes to sell more than 700, with 35% going to North America, 25% to Europe, 10% to Latin America and 7% to Russia and China. Russia’s flag carrier Aeroflot has orders for 40 Superjets and will be the second airline to receive the aircraft.

In January Mexico’s second largest airline, Interjet, ordered 15 Superjets for US$650 million, according to RIA Novosti. This marked the first contract for the Superjet from a Latin American country.

Sukhoi developed the Superjet 100 family of medium-haul passenger jets to compete against offerings from Embraer and Bombardier. Sukhoi claims its aircraft is cheaper to operate and less expensive to procure.

Sukhoi developed the Superjet with assistance from American and European aviation companies, including Boeing, Snecma, Thales, Honeywell, Messier Dowty and Liebherr Aerospace.

Italy’s Finmeccanica has a 25% stake in the Superjet programme. In 2007 Finmecannica’s Alenia subsidiary formed the Superjet International joint venture with Sukhoi, which is responsible for marketing, sales and aircraft delivery in Europe, the America’s, Africa, Japan and Oceania, as well as worldwide logistic support.

The Superjet is capable of carrying between 75 to 98 passengers up to a range of 4 400 kilometres.

Source: defenceweb.co.za