The company “Armavia” opened its new flight Yerevan-Archangelsk-Yerevan

YEREVAN, May 31. /ARKA/. Official opening ceremony of new flight of “Armavia” Yerevan-Archangelsk-Yerevan took place on Sunday in the International Airport of Archangelsk, Nana Avetisova, press-secretary of “Armavia” informs.

“Arrival of Armenian delegation to Archangelsk is not only opening of new flight but new air bridge between Armenia and Russia”, said Oleg Yesayan, Armenian Ambassador in Russia.

Opening of new flight will strengthen economic and cultural relations between two countries. Dmitriy Medvedev, President of Russia and Serzh Sargsyan, President of Armenia pay special attention to regional development and cooperation.

Yesayan said that Armenia is of special interest for Archangelsk region also in tourism sphere as Armenia is a country of tourism which attracts attention of thousands of tourists.

Mikhail Baghdasarov, Director of “Armavia” said that Yerevan becomes a transit country connecting South to East and East to West.

“For the beginning there will be one flight in two weeks and in future – two times in a week. We need time for the establishment of relations and development of marketing policy”, he said.

Geographical position of Yerevan allows to transport the passengers from Archangelsk to Yerevan and from Yerevan – to Dubay, Deli, Antalia, Tunis, Sharm el-Sheikh and other southern countries where they can have a rest.

Transit flight of Air Company is through Tbilisi to Russia. Recently opened flight to Deli will become transit to West.
Ernest Belokorovin, Minister of Industry, Transport and Communications of Archangelsk region said that the new airline can join Armenia with UAE in future.

After the ceremony, official meeting of Archangelsk region Governor Ilya Mikhalchuk and Oleg Yesayan, Armenian Ambassador in Russia took place where high officials of both countries were present.
Source: arka.am

Arkhangelsk grabs airspace

Today Armenian airlines announced a new air route that will connect Armenia and Arkhangelsk. To start with, there will be one flight per two weeks, though in future the route will reach two flights per week, said Mikhail Baghdasarov, Director of Armavia in the company’s press release.
May 25, a Russian low cost carrier Avianova opened flights Arkhangelsk – Moscow (Sheremetyevo). Earlier, the company serviced Arkhangelsk to St.Petersburg only. New flights of Avianova, Arkhangelsk-Moscow, will be carried out twice a week, on Tuesdays and Saturdays.
July 3, Arkhangelsk will get a direct air connection with Europe by Airbaltic; flights Arkhangelsk – Riga will be scheduled twice a week (Tuesday, Sunday).
In the 90s, Arkhangelsk had already attempted to establish regular air connection with Europe: the city opened regular air routes for direct travel to Rovaniemi and Stockholm, yet they turned economically inefficient and were closed.
The most viable European route has been regularly connecting Arkhangelsk with Tromso via Murmansk since early 90s.
Charter flights operate till Rovaniemi and Levi.
In summer vacation period, Arkhangelsk opens more charter connection with Egypt, Turkey, Greece, and Spain.


Source: barentsnova.com  

Airline company “Armavia’ presented a gift to its 200th passenger

Yesterday national airline company “Armavia” presented a valuable gift to its 200th passenger since 2010.

“A gift from the airline company TV-set LCD received Sofia Elchey, representative of one of international organizations who arrived to Yerevan from Tbilisi for participation in the seminar of statistics.

She thanked the airline company “Armavia” for warm attitude and attention saying that it is the first time she had success.
“It is very pleasant to have such a surprise being in a business trip. After Yerevan we depart to Kiev and other NIS countries. We have a large Armenian community in Budapest. I know Armenians and respect them”, she said.

Acting Commercial Director of the company Anna Atoyan emphasized the importance of such an action which became a tradition for the company.

Atoyan said that from July regular flights will be implemented to Barcelona, Warsaw and Tehran.

Airline Company “Armavia” was established in 1996. From July 2005 the full package of shares went to Mikhail Baghdasarov, president of the company “Mika Limited”. In 2009 more than 700 thousand passengers were transported by “Armavia”. Currently “Armavia” consists of 9 planes (А320-3, А319-3, CRJ-200, YAK-42-VIP).

Source: arka.am

Armenian Airline Delays Direct Flights To U.S.

Armavia's new Airbus A320

YEREVAN -- Armenia's national airline has postponed a long-awaited launch of direct flights to the United States, RFE/RL's Armenian Service reports.

The private airline Armavia and the Armenian government are blaming each other for the delay.

The flights were initially to have begun late last year, and the start was then postponed to this spring.

A direct flight service between the countries was made possible by a U.S.-Armenian "open skies" agreement that was signed in November 2008 and went into effect in June 2009.

The Armenian government's Civil Aviation Department said in June 2009 that Armavia would soon apply to the U.S. Transportation Department for a license to fly to New York and Los Angeles. The head of the department, Artyom Movsisian, was confident the company would gain approval by the end of 2009 after a visit to Yerevan by U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectors.

But the inspection has still not taken place. Neither the Civil Aviation Department nor Armavia gave a clear explanation when contacted by RFE/RL.

"The state's involvement in this matter has come to an end," said Nelly Charchinian, a spokeswoman for the civil aviation authority. "It is Armavia's responsibility to deal with the remaining issues."

Armavia spokeswoman Nana Avetisova said the airline needs the FAA assessment before it can begin flights.

"In essence, Armavia is ready to start flights to Los Angeles and New York," she said. "However, the issue is related to [Armenia's] Civil Aviation Department and the [Yerevan] airport because the U.S. side was supposed to give clearance to the flights only after its inspections aimed at ascertaining whether the airport is prepared for the service."

Avetisova also confirmed that Armavia has yet to acquire long-haul passenger jets used in trans-Atlantic flights. "Our management keeps saying that we will definitely acquire a plane for trans-Atlantic flights this year," she said. "But that probably depends on the [U.S.] flight permissions."

The Armavia fleet currently consists of eight mostly Western-made aircraft flying to some 30 destinations in Europe, the former Soviet Union, and the Middle East. One of them, an Airbus A320 jet, was purchased and went into service last week.

Armavia Director-General Norayr Belluyan told journalists on May 7 that the company plans to acquire two more airplanes by the end of this year.

The planned trans-Atlantic flights will allow thousands of Armenians traveling to and from the United States each year to avoid lengthy layovers at European airports.

There are an estimated 1.5 million ethnic Armenians living in the United States.

Source: rferl.org

Launch Of Armenia-U.S. Flights Delayed

Armenia’s national airline has postponed the long-awaited launch of direct flights to the United States, expected late last year, for reasons that are not yet clear. The Armavia private carrier and the Armenian government blame one another for the delay.

A direct flight service between the two countries was made possible by a U.S.-Armenian “open skies” agreement that was signed in November 2008 and went into effect last June. The agreement is equally applicable to Armenian and U.S. airlines.

The Armenian government’s Civil Aviation Department said in June that Armavia will soon apply to the U.S. Department of Transportation for a license to fly to New York and Los Angeles. The head of the department, Artyom Movsisian, was confident that the company will get the green light by the end of 2009, after a planned visit to Yerevan by a team of inspectors from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

They were due to look into Armenian aviation facilities, safety rules and practices, and assess their conformity with international standards. The inspection has still not taken place, however. Neither the Civil Aviation Department, nor Armavia gave a clear explanation for that when contacted by RFE/RL’s Armenian service this week.

“The state’s involvement in this matter has come to an end,” said Nelly Charchinian, a spokeswoman for the civil aviation authority. “The state has nothing to do anymore.”

“It is Armavia’s responsibility to deal with the remaining issues,” she added. “It has to file an application to U.S. aviation authorities and then organize flights.”

But Armavia spokeswoman Nana Avetisova countered that the airline can not do that before an FAA assessment. “We planned to start flights in the spring of 2010,” she said. “In essence, Armavia is ready to start flights to Los Angeles and New York. However, the issue is related to the Civil Aviation Department and the [Yerevan] airport because the U.S. side was supposed to give clearance to the flights only after its inspections aimed at ascertaining whether the airport is prepared for the service.”

Avetisova also confirmed that Armavia has yet to acquire long-haul passenger jets used in Transatlantic flights. “Our management keeps saying that we will definitely acquire a plane for Transatlantic flights this year,” she said. “But that probably depends on the [U.S.] flight permissions.”

The Armavia fleet currently consists of eight mostly Western-made aircraft flying to some 30 destinations in Europe, the former Soviet Union and the Middle East. One of them, an Airbus A320 jet, was purchased and went into service last week.

“We plan to acquire two more airplanes by the end of this year,” the airline’s director general, Norayr Belluyan, told journalists on May 7. He did not specify their type.

The planned Transatlantic flights will allow thousands of Armenians traveling to and from the United States each year to avoid lengthy layovers at European airports. They account for a large part of passengers taking daily flights between Yerevan and major European cities.

Source: armeniadiaspora.com

Eyjafjallajokull volcano still going strong, ash plume lessens slightly

The ash plume of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano increased slightly Tuesday afternoon, with a darker and slightly higher plume, but there were no other major changes in its eruptive activity, the daily report from the Icelandic Meteorological Office and the Institute of Earth Sciences at the University of Iceland said.
The eruption plume rose to between 17,000 to 20,000 feet high, heading south south east, and was grey in color. Tephra (larger bits of rock and ash thrown from the volcano) was clearly seen on the monitoring video cameras placed nearby. Nine lightning strikes were recorded on the scientific equipment.
There was a slight increase in the lower frequency bands of the seismic tremors. Sixteen earthquakes were recorded, mostly between 11 and 12 miles deep, but none had a magnitude greater than two.
Eyjafjallajökull's ash cloud was pushed by winds south down Europe and then to North Africa on Tuesday, shutting down airports in Spain, Turkey and Morocco, 2,350 miles away. The ash cloud over the mid North Atlantic began to disperse, allowing the Eurocontrol air traffic control agency to end the rerouting of flights between North America and Europe.
The areas of high ash concentration at high altitude which dispersed during the night, Eurocontrol reported.
Ash at lower altitudes was still causing troubles for some trans-Atlantic flights as well as Madeira and the Azores. Areas of high ash concentration at lower altitudes, which could possibly close some airports, exist in the Mediterranean between the Spanish mainland and the Balearic Islands, and were moving north east.

Source: usatoday.com

Mikhail Bagdasarov: Armavia’s losses incomparable to those of major European companies

Armavia’s losses, caused by volcanic eruption in Iceland are incomparable to those of major European companies, Armavia CEO Mikhail Bagdasarov stated.
As he told a news conference on May 7, the company had to cancel 5 flights. “We don’t have the exact figure yet. At the moment, losses are being assessed.”
The 2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajokull were a sequence of major volcanic events at Eyjafjallajokull in Iceland which disrupted air travel across western and northern Europe over an initial period of 6days in April 2010. Further more localized disruption continued into May 2010.

Source: panarmenian.net

We incurred minor losses due to Icelandic volcano: Mikhail Bagdasarov

New flights by Armavia Air Company to be carried out in 2010 and construction of the second terminal to be put into operation next year will considerably increase the passenger traffic, head of Mika Limited Company and Armavia Air Company owner Mikhail Bagdasarov told journalists today.
He noted that turn of year was unsuccessful for the company, expressing hope that they will manage to come up with good indicators by the year end.
Asked by news.am  correspondent about losses the company incurred as a result of Icelandic volcano eruption, Bagdasarov replied that compared with European air companies, Armavia’s losses are minor. “We have cancelled 5 flights to Paris, Amsterdam and Zurich, but are lucky not to have such losses as European companies did,” he said.
May 7, a new А-320 aircraft purchased by Armavia Air Company arrived in Zvartnots International Airport. Boeing was previously operated by China and Singapore. “We plan to have 15-unit aircraft park by 2010 end,” company’s Director General Norayr Beloyan stated, adding that Armavia will get two more Sukhoi Superjet aircrafts by the end of the year. According to him, air company transported over 170 000 passengers starting Jan. 2010, increasing last year’s indicator by 4.5%.

Source: news.am

Yerevan-London flights conducted as scheduled

To date Yerevan-London-Yerevan flights are conducted according to timetable, as ash cloud covered only a part of Scotland and Northern Ireland, representative of British Midland International Yerevan office Erik Gyulazyan told news.am.
He assured there is no ground for concern, as Heathrow airport experiences no landing difficulties. Asked whether, British Midland International incurred losses as a result of canceled flights due to Icelandic volcano eruption, Gyulazyan replied that no precise data is available, as the calculations are underway.
Armavia Air Company press secretary Nana Avetisova informed news.am that company has not made such calculations yet.
Eyjafjallajokull volcano, 150 km from Reykjavik, started erupting on March 20, 2010.
April 14 eruption closed major part of Europe’s airspace that also affected Armenia.

Source: news.am

Greek strikes not to affect Yerevan-Athens flight

Greek strikes will not affect Armavia flights, Air Company’s press secretary Nana Avetisova told news.am, adding that Yerevan-Athens-Yerevan flight are conducted as scheduled – twice a week on Mondays and Fridays. She also noted that the May 7 flight to Athens will be made as well.
Strike in Greece on Wednesday paralyzed airports, trains and ferries traffic, as well as public services. Schools, museums, and the Acropolis will also be closed. Strike is organized in the protest against spending cuts which EU links with providing of financial assistance to the country. Greece has already reviewed tax legislation (increased VAT) to get the EU loan and announced the cut of wages and pensions, as well as wage freeze of public servants.

Source: news.am

Yerevan-Tbilisi flights resumed

“Armavia” air company will resume Yerevan-Tbilisi-Yerevan flights starting April 23, company’s press secretary informed news.am. Flights to be carried out twice a day.
Armenia-Georgia air communication was temporarily suspended since February 1, 2010. According to Georgian United Transport Administration, the suspension is only seasonal. The flights were cancelled due semi-full flights.

Source: news.am

Eight air routes from Armenia to Europe open

Since the airports of Zurich and Amsterdam resumed operation, the Armavia airline resumed Yerevan-Zurich-Yerevan, Yerevan-Amsterdam-Yerevan flights starting April 20, 2010, Armavia Press Secretary Nana Avetisova informed news.am.
She reported that Yerevan-Odessa-Yerevan (April 24), Yerevan-Kharkov-Yerevan and Yerevan-Kiev-Yerevan flights will be also conducted according to timetable.
On April 15 Armavia stopped serving nine European air routes, except for Russia, due to the eruption of volcano in Iceland. To date eight of the nine routes are open, except for the Yerevan-Berlin route.

Source: news.am

Armavia to organize charter flights to Europe

Armenia’s national airline carrier, Armavia, said today it may operate charter flights from Yerevan to Paris, Zurich and Amsterdam if flights to Europe will be allowed before its next scheduled flights to these destinations, Nana Avetisova, a spokeswoman for Armenia, told Armenia Novosti news agency.

Armavia had to cancel flights to Europe on April 16 after aviation authorities in EU closed their airspace for air traffic as the volcanic ash from Iceland crippled air travels across Europe.

Nana Avetisova said Armavia offers its passengers to re-book their tickets for the next nearest flights to these destinations. She said passengers may also return their tickets.

She said the flight to Odessa in Ukraine, scheduled for April 24 will be operated. Flights to Kiev and Kharkov in Ukraine will be operated in accordance with the schedule, she said.

Source: arka.am

Berlin-Yerevan on 20.04.2010 is canceled

Flughafen Tegel: Der Flug U8 116 nach Yerevan am 20.04.2010 wurde annulliert. 
Airport Tegel: The flight  U8 116 to Yerevan on 20.04.2010 is canceled.

Source: flyamo.de

Global Fallout: Iceland volcano 3,000 miles away affecting Armenia

Photolure

By Siranuysh Gevorgyan

ArmeniaNow reporter

Armenia is among countries whose airline traffic has been affected by an Iceland volcano eruption that shut down travel for several days across Europe.

British Midland International (BMI) cancelled Yerevan-London-Yerevan flights and Armavia shut down Yerevan-Paris-Yerevan, Yerevan-Zurich-Yerevan, Yerevan-Amsterdam-Yerevan, Yerevan-Odessa-Yerevan flights. On Monday, April 19, the flights to Prague, Vienna, Athens and Perm were also canceled.

Due to European delays in air traffic, even an international conference scheduled on Tuesday by the Civilitas foundation is also postponed, because the main participant of the even has not managed to fly to Yerevan.

Levon Vardanyan, Head of Haypethydromet, told ArmeniaNow that they yet could not provide any information whether the volcanic ash will reach Armenia.

“We have not had such an experience before, that is why we do not have an opportunity to examine this case now. This is the first time that the volcanic ash is spread so widely, and we do not know what will happen tomorrow,” Vardanyan says.

Source: armenianow.com

The DO's and DON'Ts of Visiting Armenia

As tourist season slowly approaches, several local business owners and others who have come across tourists, have put together a list of DOs and DON'Ts for future reference.

DO tip generously, restaurant staff depend on it.
DO ask other tourists and repats about their favorite restaurants.
DO buy fruits, veggies, cheese and bread and have a picnic.
DON'T forget your trash when you leave.
DO chat with locals (especially kids) in villages.
DON'T pass out gum like its gold. Better yet, don't even bring gum. Armenia has plenty of chewing gum from five different countries.
DO pay the Yerevan taxi drivers 1000 wherever you go in the center of town, even if its close by. After all, youve taken them out of their line, and the absolute minimum for any distance is 600 Drams, anyway.
DON'T talk rudely to the owners of the vegetable stalls; this is their life, these are their fruits and they're proud of what they do.
DON'T try to get a tour driver's phone number so that you can hire them directly.
DO venture out of the city center. Komitas, Monument, Zeitun are all interesting neigh-borhoods with good restaurants.
DON'Tdrink too much mulberry vodka (tutti oghi) trust us on this one!
DO sit in cafes near midnight. The city almost never sleeps.
DO enjoy a cognac after dinner.
DON'T enjoy more than 3.
DO get involved and volunteer for projects while youre here and especially when you return home Rome wasnt built in a day.
DO be on your best behavior you never know who is sitting next to you at a concert or cafe you may find out youre related.
DO make a list of all the places you missed seeing. And
DO come back soon.

Source: armeniadiaspora.com

Yerevan-London flight suspended

Yerevan-London flight was suspended due to volcano eruption in the south of Iceland, news.am was informed in Zvartnots airport. The flights are not canceled but indefinitely delayed.
Volcanic ash cloud forced UK to close airspace in the territory of the country until Friday morning, BBC reports. Flights were also canceled in northern Sweden, Finland and Norway.
The eruption of Eyjafjallajokull volcano started on Wednesday, April 14. Earlier, about 800 people were evacuated from disaster area.

Source: news.am

Volcanic eruption affected Armenia-Europe flights

Armavia air company suspended Yerevan-Paris flight till April 17, 9:00 a.m. due to ash cloud caused by eruption of volcano in Iceland, company’s press service informed news.am. Earlier, it was reported that British Midland Airways cancelled Yerevan-London flight.
Disaster caused aviation collapse in many European countries. Thus, yesterday airspaces of Belgium, UK, Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Finland and Sweden were closed.
The eruption of Eyjafjallajokull volcano covered UK and a number of states in the Continent, as well as Scandinavia, Finland and northern-western regions of Russia.
Meanwhile, the experts forecast that disaster might upset operation of air transport for weeks and even months.
About 6000 flights were cancelled in Europe within last 24 hours. Largest European airports are closed for an indefinite period. Passengers, who bought tickets on their own might return them and get a refund with no fine in case of cancelled flight.
Cancellation and suspension of flights in European airports, as well as closed airspaces might cost companies $1bn.

Source: news.am

Yerevan-Paris flight delayed due to volcanic ash

PanARMENIAN.Net - Armavia national carrier has delayed Yerevan-Paris flight.
“The flight was delayed due to the ash cloud formed from an Icelandic volcano that filled the skies over northern Europe,” Zvartnots Airports press service told PanARMENIAN.Net
Air France office in Yerevan said that all flights to Paris were delayed till 2 pm (6 pm Yerevan time).
Authorities in Ireland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Belgium also closed their air space. France shut down 24 airports, including the main hub of Charles de Gaulle in Paris, Germany's Berlin and Hamburg were shut Thursday evening, and several flights out of the U.S. had to double back.

Source: panarmenian.net

Armavia launches direct communication with India

On April 13, Armavia national carrier launched the long-expected direct flight to Delhi, the capital of India.

“This flight will enable to expand trade and economic relations between the two countries and will contribute to their deepening,” Managing Director of the Minar Travels Indian travel agent, Armavia’s general representative in India, Mr. Duggal told reporters at Delhi International Airport.
Armavia’s Regional Managing Director on Middle East, Mr. Kolia Khatchatourian, for his part, added that India is interested in developing relations with Armenia. “The Indian side proposes operating the flight twice instead of once a week, given big prospects for bilateral collaboration,” he said.
On the eve of the new flight’s official launching, Armavia organized a meeting at Yerevan Mkhitar Heratsi Medical University during which Indian students were briefed on the company and its plans, in particular, the new Yerevan-Delhi-Yerevan route. Five most active students in the meeting were invited to take part in the pioneer flight.

Source: panarmenian.net

Armavia launches flights to Rimini

Starting May 22, 2010, Armavia airway company starts operating regular flights to Rimini.
Yerevan-Rimini –Yerevan flights will be carried out on Saturdays.
Armavia airway company is Armenia’s national air carrier, which fully complies with the international requirements of IATA. Currently, Armavia conducts over 340 flights per month to 35 destinations in 20 countries.
Rimini is a city and comune in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It is located on the Adriatic Sea, near the coast between the rivers Marecchia (the ancient Ariminus) and Ausa (Aprusa). Coast navigation and fishing are traditional industries and, together with Riccione, it is probably the most famous seaside resort on the Adriatic Riviera.

Source: panarmenian.net

Armavia launches flights to Israel

Extending the geography of its flights, Armavia Air Company presented Yerevan-Tel-Aviv-Yerevan flight on March 28.

According to Mikhail Baghdassarov, the company President, the regular flight will allow promoting contacts between the two countries and will rather ease Armenian citizens’ trips to Israel. At the same time, Mikhail Baghdassarov expressed hope that Armenia’s cultural and historical spots will be of keen interest for Israelis.

Edgar Karapetyan, the company’s Commercial Director, noted that the flights will be conducted twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays, by A320 and A319 aircrafts. The tickets will cost 350 euros in both directions. The flight will last up to 2 hours, which will significantly save passengers’ time, as previously they had to fly from Tbilisi.

Armavia’s first plane left Yerevan for Tel-Aviv with more than 60 passengers on board, the Company’s press office reported.

Armavia Company is Armenia’s national air carrier, which fully complies with the international requirements of IATA. Currently, Armavia conducts over 340 flights per month to 35 destinations in 20 countries

Source: panarmenian.net

Israeli citizens to fly directly to Armenia

Yesterday “Armavia” air-company presented direct Yerevan-Tel Aviv-Yerevan flight, operating starting March 28, that according to company’s president Mikhail Baghdasarov will enable active communication between the countries and facilitate traveling to Israel. He expressed hope that the mutually advantageous initiative will assist frequent visits to cultural-historic sights in both Armenia and Israel.
Commercial Director Edgar Karapetyan informed that the flights will be carried out twice a week – Thursdays and Sundays by А-320 and А-319 airbuses. Round trip airfare is around €350 with 2-hour time en route, that dramatically reduces the duration of previous ones for Armenians taking Tbilisi flights.

Source: news.am

iPhone: Armavia Tickets on www.armavia.mobi

Dear customers,

you can book your flights on iPhone.
The interface of IBE is in German:

IBE iPhone - Internet Booking Engine iPhone version
iPhone books online - einfach online buchen

Mount Ararat Webcam

Ararat rises from a flat plain and dominates the skyline of Armenia's capital, Yerevan. Since ancient times, Ararat has been revered by the Armenians as their spiritual home. Today, it is the national symbol of Armenia. The mountain is often depicted by Armenian artists on paintings, obsidian engravings, backgammon boards and other artifacts. From Yerevan, and throughout much of the country, citizens and tourists get a clear glimpse of both peaks, Mount Ararat and Little Ararat. For more information, have a look at Mt. Ararat page on Wikipedia.

Source: wikipedia.org , arminco.com

Link to Mount Ararat Webcam

Fourth Superjet 100 Flies on Borrowed Powerjet Engines

The fourth Superjet 100 flew for the first time on February 4.

Sukhoi Civil Aircraft (SCAC) managed to fly the fourth prototype of the Superjet 100 this month, no thanks to Russian engine maker NPO Saturn, which partners with Snecma in building the Superjet’s Powerjet engines. Clearly feeling desperate after the Saturn-Snecma partnership failed to deliver the program’s seventh and eighth Powerjet SaM146 turbofans  in due course, Sukhoi removed the engines from the first prototype and installed them on the fourth, simply to get the airplane airborne, in time perhaps to gain Russian certification by July. Meanwhile, a lack of ready production airplanes likely means launch customers Aeroflot and Armavia won’t receive their first examples until late this year.

Plagued last year by near financial collapse, an exodus of more than 200 engineers, quality-control inadequacies and a change in ownership structure, Saturn not only failed in its commitment to Sukhoi, it also might have validated skepticism over the wisdom of Snecma’s partnership with the Russian company. Snecma, which is controlled by France’s Safran Group, agreed to build the high-pressure side of the engine and ceded responsibility to Saturn for the low-pressure side and final assembly in Russia. But rather than result in an equal partnership, the deal has seen Safran send a team of engineers to Saturn’s assembly facility in Rybinsk to help Saturn work through its quality “issues.” The partnership has also reallocated production of certain low-pressure components–most notably fan blades–to French suppliers.

Alas, Powerjet—one of the earliest examples of aerospace collaboration between Western Europe and the former Soviet Bloc—might well serve as a cautionary tale for other companies. Happily for Safran, Sukhoi and the marketing joint venture between Italy’s Alenia and SCAC known as Superjet International, the Russian government has intervened with monetary support for Saturn–but not in time to save the program from another year-long delay and perhaps a loss of credibility that will require more than money to recover. 

Source: ainonline.com

Armavia launches Israel service

Armavia from 28MAR10 launches 2 weekly Yerevan – Tel Aviv service with CRJ200. Schedule as follows:

U8277 EVN2030 – 2115TLV CRJ 57
U8278 TLV2215 – 0250+1EVN CRJ 57

Source: airlineroute.net

« ArtsakhAvia » va mettre en place des vols réguliers Stepanakert-Erévan-Stepanakert

Mikhaïl Baghdassarov le propriétaire d’Armavia a informé lors d’une conférence de presse que sa compagnie va mettre en place des vols réguliers sur les lignes intérieures ainsi que soutenir une compagnie du Haut Karabagh à l’installation et l’exploitation de la ligne Stepanakert-Erévan-Stepanakert.

« Malheureusement, aujourd’hui il existe en Arménie à peine deux aéroports aux normes internationales, ceux de « Zvartnots » à Erévan et « Chirag » à Gumri. Pour ce qui est des aéroports de Goris et Ghapan, très vite nous allons acquérir des avions ATF 42-500 de 48 places qui pourront assurer les vols intérieurs, si l’aviation civile arménienne donne son autorisation pour ces types d’appareils » dit M. Baghdassarov. « Après la rénovation de l’aéroport de Stepanakert, la compagnie « ArtsakhAvia » mettra en place des vols réguliers Stepanakert-Erévan-Stepanakert qui bénéficieront du soutien d’« Armavia ».

Krikor Amirzayan

Source: armenews.com

Armavia gets IOSA certificate

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Armavia national carrier got its IOSA certificate (IATA Operational Safety Audit) on February 3, 2010. 

 

The IOSA registration revalidation was granted to Armavia after the conclusion of the auditing process by independents and accredited technicians by IATA (International Air Transport Association. The IATA audit certified that the company had satisfied standards for safety and operational quality.

The IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) program is an internationally recognized and accepted evaluation system designed to assess the operational management and control systems of an airline. IOSA's quality audit principles are designed to conduct audits in a standardized manner.’

With the implementation and international acceptance of IOSA, airlines and regulators achieve the following benefits: A reduction of costs and audit resource requirements for airlines and regulators; Continuous updating of standards to reflect regulatory revisions and the evolution of best practices within the industry; A quality audit program under the continuing stewardship of IATA; Accredited audit organizations with formally trained and qualified auditors; Accredited training organizations with structured auditor training courses; A structured audit methodology, including standardized checklists; Elimination of audit redundancy through mutual acceptance of audit reports; Development of auditor training courses for the airline industry.

Source: panarmenian.net

No changes in Armavia's tariff policy

Armavia will make alterations in company’s tariff policy, Armavia President Mikhail Bagdasarov told the journalists on February 3, underlining that special discounts for tickets are already available.

“The price cut for Yerevan-Moscow flights for males will be introduced, thereafter action will extend to females and discounts will be available for everyone,” he said, adding that high airfares are conditioned by heavy airport tariffs and administrative expenses, as well as high credit tariffs. “High prices are conditioned by relations with leasing companies as they have high loan rates. Presently we are negotiating with creditors, as rates were set two years ago under economic upturn and prices for aircrafts were high. Presently, under the global crisis the situation changed dramatically,” Bagdasarov stated, noting that if creditors cut rates it will affect the airfare. Armavia president outlined that this year company’s profit fell compared to February, 2009.

Source: news.am