East Line considers its fleet plans

Published: 2/25/2000

Amirani Kurtanidze, Executive Director of East Line, Russia's largest cargo carrier, has said that the company is negotiating with Ilyushin and Airbus on the Il-96-300C, Il-76TF and A-310-300C, to replace its ageing Il-76 fleet over the next three to five years. Igor Kamenshik, Chairman of East Line Group, has also confirmed his commitment to spend “good money” for the renewal of the fleet suggesting the airline is abandoning previous practise of leasing aircraft with short frame and engine lives remaining . The airline is reportedly ready to fund the completion of three Il-96-300s at VASO factory in Voronezh and three to five Il-76TFs at TAPO in Tashkent. Negotiations are ongoing between East Line, Ilyushin Finance Company and the Ilyushin design bureau. Kurtanidze is not interested in the Il-96T/M with PW engines and Rockwell Collins avionics, but East Line has a high opinion of the economic efficiency of a cargo version of the ordinary Il-96-300, already in service, as a passenger version, with Aeroflot and Domodedovo Airlines. In the cargo version, “-300C”, the airplane would be able to carry a 75 t load over a distance of 9000 km. The Il-76TF is a civil variant of the Perm powered military Il-76MF, currently undergoing certification trials. So far, only one such airframe has been completed, with three more airframes at near-completion stage at TAPO. Kurnatidze said that East Line was ready to take the 96s and 76s “on slightly revised terms offered by Ilyushin Finance”. These terms are said to require a 40% up front payment for the aircraft, with the remainder to be paid off later, in the form of monthly rentals. He added that East Line would support indigenous aircraft manufacturers, as soon as the long-proposed state aircraft leasing system begins to work. Explaining East Line's rejection of the Il-96T, Kurtanidze said that the PS-90A had overcome the difficult early years of operational service. Most of its teething problems have been solved and the engine was now “trustworthy”. According to Kurtanidze, three Il-96-300s in service with Domodedovo Airlines show a high operational reliability, comparable to that of long-serving types. “ In the past year, Domodedovo Airlines amassed up to 460 hours a month per Il-96, which is a pretty good figure”, he said, adding that one of PS-90A engines have had 7,000 flight hours

Article ID: 1482