Three Russian air carriers would add a total of eight Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft to their fleet following three separate contracts signed among Irkut Corporation and PSB Leasing Group.
On November 10, 2020, the Russian airplane manufacturer Irkut and PSB Leasing company signed three agreements following which Russian airlines including Aeroflot (SU), Azimuth Airlines (A4), and Red Wings Airlines (WZ) would receive delivery of eight Sukhoi Superjet 100 planes.
Under the contracts, five Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft would be delivered to Aeroflot, the flag carrier Russia. All the twin-engine jets were expected to be equipped with a two-class seating consisting of 12 seats in Business class and 75 seats in Economy. The other two aircraft configured with a single-class seating layout would be taken by Azimuth Airlines, the Rostov-based air carrier. Meanwhile, one single-class seating Superjet 100 plane would replenish Red Wings Airlines fleet and would be able to carry 100 passengers onboard.
According to a press release made by the United Aircraft Corporation, Promsvyazbank, the Russian financial company, in collaboration with PSB Leasing would fund all eight Sukhoi Superjet 100s deliveries through a credit line opened by PSB Leasing to enable the purchase and lease of the jets in 2020 and 2021.
“The production and operation of domestic civil aviation equipment are one of the priority tasks of the country’s economic development. The signed agreements are the first stage in the implementation of the largest deal in recent years for the supply of new passenger aircraft in the Russian aviation segment,” said Sergei Ogienko, the General Director of PSB Leasing.
“I am confident that our joint work with the aircraft manufacturer, Irkut Corporation, and aircraft operators will positively affect the development of the Russian air transportation market and the opening of new interregional routes, ” added Ogienko.
The General Director of PSB Leasing explained that lease payments that would be received from all three Russian air carriers would service the loans.
Oleg Gulyaev, the Head of the Regional Aircraft branch of the Irkut Corporation, said that the partnership among PSB Leasing and Promsvyazbank would help Irkut to continue the further development of the Sukhoi Superjet 100 program.
“Due to the combination of capacity, range, and comfort for passengers, our aircraft meets the basic requirements of Russian airlines actively developing a network of air transportation between the cities of our country,” said Gulyaev.
According to the recent Planespotters.com data update, Aeroflot has a total of 54 Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft in its fleet, while Red Wings Airlines has only 3 Superjet 100s. In addition, Azimuth Airlines operates a homogeneous fleet of 12 Sukhoi twin-engine jets.