MOSCOW, July 6 (AVN) - The agreement reached by Russian President Vladimir Putin and his French counterpart Jacques Cirac on supplying over 30 A-340 planes to Russia from the Airbus Industry company will be a one-time action and have no continuation, Atlant-Soyuz airlines Director General Stanislav Leichenko said on Friday.
Leichenko was asked by the Military News Agency to comment on media reports about the deal.
Russia should rely on its own modern aircraft which are comfortable and more profitable than the Western ones in the process of the aircraft park restoration, Leichenko said. The matter primarily concerns the IL-96 long-range and TU-204 medium-range passenger airliners.
According to Leichenko, Atlant-Soyuz considers IL-96 to be its main plane for next 10 to 20 years. The plane meets all requirements as far as noise, ecology and design are concerned and perfectly fits into the cargo transporation market. IL-96 can airlift up to 90 percent of the cargo that is in demand at the moment and transportation would be profitable. If Russian engines and avionics are installed in the plane its cost will almost halve to about USD32m, which is to make the plane competitive with any foreign aircraft of such class including A-340.