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Aviation History
2004
2004-09 - 1429.PDF
AIR TRANSPORT TENDER VLADIMIR KARNOZOV / MOSCOW Aeroflot kicks off regional jet hunt Russian, Ukrainian and Western manufacturers invited to bid for 50-aircraft requirement in 65- to 100-seat category Aeroflot has issued a request for proposals (RFP) for the acquisition of up to 50 regional jets for delivery from next year. The Russian flag carrier is seeking aircraft in the 65- to 100-seat cate gory, and has issued the RFP to Russian, Ukrainian and Western manufacturers and leasing compa nies. The tender result is due to be announced early next year, with deliveries extending to 2010. CIS designs invited for evaluation in clude the Antonov An-148-100/200; the Sukhoi-led Russian Regional Jet RRJ-75/95; andTupolevTu-334-100. The Bombardier CRJ700/900 and Embraer 170/190 families are also being considered, as is the out-of- production Fokker 70/100. The request for proposals con tains requirements for the cabin and onboard systems, as well as specifying certain performance cri teria and capabilities including a maximum range with full commer cial load of "l,500-2,300km" (810- l,240nm); a minimum airframe life of 80,000h; an annual utilisation of 3,000h; and a turnaround time of 25min. Although a unit price is not specified, sources say that Aeroflot has set itself a limitation of $15 million an aircraft. The tender will have two phases, the first of which will be completed by 30 September and will focus on shortlisting the proposals that meet the airline's technical require ments. Aeroflot says that "most active" negotiations at this stage will be held with CIS manufactur ers, centering on performance of their aircraft. PROGRAMMES The second phase will focus on a financial evaluation of the bids, from both CIS and overseas suppli ers, with the selection process tar geting the best value-for-money option. Aeroflot says it is seeking "comprehensive" offers that would include leasing schemes, mainte nance programmes and crew train ing including the provision of flight simulators. Embraer is seen as a possible fron- trunning non-CIS supplier, as its deliveries to Russian carriers could be incorporated in a deal between Russia and Brazil involving the sup ply of Sukhoi Su-35 fighters to Brazil in return for more favourable condi tions for Embraer regional jets. However, Russian state officials deny any connection between the Brazilian fighter tender, for which Sukhoi is competing, and the Aeroflot requirement. Antonov boosts commitments for the An-148 Antonov has boosted commitments for its 80-seat An-148 regional jet to 30, having secured deals from leasing company llyushin-Finance and airline Volga-Dnepr. At last month's Farnborough air show llyushin-Finance signed a provisional agreement for 12 An-148-100s, which the lessor says is worth $216 million and will be firmed up by the end of this year. Also at the show, Volga- Dnepr confirmed its intention to purchase three An-148s for its passenger subsidiary, which now operates Yakovlev Yak-40s from Ulyanovsk and Voronezh to Moscow. Other customers for the new twinjet include Ukraine's Odessa Airlines, which has expressed its intention to take two aircraft, and KrasAir, which has commitments for 12 An-148s and expects to place follow-on orders if the type meets expectations once in service. llyushin-Finance and Antonov are optimistic of their chances of meeting the Aeroflot requirement for up to 50 regional jets with the An- 148. 'We do not see strong competitors in the Aeroflot contest. All requirements that Aeroflot put forward can be met by the An-148," says the design bureau. Meanwhile, the Kharkov-based KhGAAP production plant that was meant to be the major An-148 assembly site, is reducing its share in the project as it focuses on producing the An-140 and An-74. The Ukrainian govern ment is expected to decide this year to instruct the country's second largest manufacturer, Kiev-based Aviant, to undertake An-148 final assembly. Roll-out of the first An-148, which is being assembled at Antonov's experimental factory in Kiev, is scheduled for September, with first flight following in December. The first batch of five production aircraft is planned for delivery in late 2005. ^t^*^t« LAUNCH Saab evolves 2000 for Darwin Swiss start-up Darwin Airline launched services last week, following approval to operate the Saab 2000 on the steep approach into Lugano airport. The airline's plans to start flying between Lugano and Geneva last year, succeeding Swiss International Air Lines, were put on hold when Swiss aviation regulators introduced restrictions for operating the steep approach into Lugano. This prevented air craft that were not certificated to make a steep approach of at least 6° - including the Saab 2000 - from operating into the airport. ENGINES GUY NORRIS /LOS ANGELES CFMI details insertion plan for Tech 56 CFM International has clarified details of its Tech 56 technology insertion plan for the CFM56, say ing the upgrade for the Airbus and Boeing narrowbody engines will be based on redesigns of existing com ponents using Tech 56 advances, rather than through wholesale replacement of modules. The upgrade, due to be launched by the end of this year, will be introduced into the CFM56-5B and -7B engines in early 2007. The package of changes, which includes improvements to the high-pressure (HP) compressor, the combustor and HP and low- pressure (LP) turbines, will also be available as a retrofit (Flight International, 20-27 July). "The compressor will have the same number of stages and blades as in the current engines, but will be aerodynamically modified using the analysis and design methods devel oped as part of Tech 56," says CFM president Pierre Fabre. During the test effort CFMI proved its new design techniques on an advanced six-stage compressor with a reduced parts count. These techniques will be used to upgrade the current nine- stage compressor, says Fabre. The same principle is also used for the combustor, LP and HP tur bine improvements, says Fabre. 10 3-9 AUGUST 2004 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL www.fliqhtinternational.com
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