MOSCOW. July 29 (Interfax-AVN) - Loans totaling USD1bn will be raised before 2009 to implement the program of the TU-334 short-range passenger plane development, Director General of the Natsionalny Proekt 334 JSC Grigory Stilbans said on Tuesday.
"Developers and producers of the TU-334 are planning to get loans from Russian banks to complete the plane development program. A special state guarantee program is required for it. The volume of the bank line may amount to about USD1bn before 2010," Stilbans told reporters.
The TU-334 is currently offered to airlines for USD12.9m per piece. "A solid stock of orders" for about 40 planes has been created, the director general said.
According to him, the MIG aircraft corporation and the Tupolev JSO which developed and produced the plane are planning to obtain a solid stock of orders for about 100 pieces soon.
"This will allow us to manufacture 24 TU-334 planes at the Lukhovitsy aircraft plant annually from 2004 to 2009," Stilbans said.
According to Russian experts, the TU-334 will become the country's main short-range passenger plane and perform up to 80 percent of domestic flights before 2010. It will replace the TU- 134 Crusty and TU-154B Careless planes that have become outdated and worn out.
The basic price of the aircraft will vary between USD15m and 19m. According to preliminary expert estimations, the demand for the aircraft on the CIS market will amount to about 800 items before 2010.
First deputy chief of the Russian Aviation and Space Agency Valery Voskoboinikov has said more than 100 requests for the TU- 334 have been received.