MOSCOW, August 15 (Itar-Tass) —— Tupolev will present two new planes at the MAKS-2011 air show.
One is the new medium-haul passenger plane Tu-204SM. “Unlike its counterparts, this plane has better performance characteristics,” Sergei Rayevsky, head of Tupolev’s department of external relations and marketing, said on Monday, August 15.
Specialists say hat the number of innovations used in the plane is so big that “the plane could be given an individual name as a new model”.
The Su-204SM went on its maiden flight in December 2010. A second plane has been undergoing certification tests since August 2011. The company plans to complete certification and start supplies to airlines from 2012.
Ilyushin Finance leasing company Director-General Alexander Rubtsov said at the 8th International Forum “Wings of Russia” in October 2010 that potential buyers had already requested 40 planes.
“We think that the plane will be quite efficient in operation. It is furnished with the new PS-90A2 engine and an auxiliary power unit. It is complete with modern avionics and an air conditioning system. Like in all foreign planes of such class, the cockpit is designed for two pilots instead of three or four. The airliner is preparing for flight testing,” Rubtsov said.
He believes that airliners’ plane operation costs will decrease considerably “owing to a new maintenance programme and lower labour costs.” All this will improve the consumer qualities of the new plane, he added.
Speaking of demand for the Tu-204SM plane on the domestic market, Rubtsov said, “A big deal is about to be closed shortly.”
“The deal will be completed before the end of the year,” he said, adding that it would involve the purchase of a large batch of planes of “about 40 Tu-204SM planes”.
He did not name the potential buyer though.
The Tu-204SM is an in-depth modification of the Tu-204 airliner. The plane is up to present-day and potential international requirements for the safety of flight. In most characteristics, the plane is up to Boeing airliners of similar class and in some things even excels foreign analogues.
The main difference of the Tu-204SM from other airliners of the Tu-204 family is that it is fitted out with PS-90A2 engines that have characteristics that are up to world standards. The dependability of the engines is 50-100 percent higher compared to the prototype (PS-90A) while operating expenses are 35 percent lower during the entire length of operation. The ecological parameters (noise, emission of harmful substances) are up to potential international requirements.
Sergei Mochalov, head of the press service of the aircraft factory, has pointed out, “Due to the newest avionics and structural solutions, this airliner will be able to remain airborne without refuelling for about nine hours.”
The other novelty is the Tu-214ON plane. It has been certified under the Open Skies Treaty for monitoring flights in the United States and Canada.
The plane is furnished with modern equipment for aerial photographing and other effective means of observation, both domestic and foreign-made.
The new equipment is needed for inspection flights over member states of the Treaty on Open Skies, adopted by the OSCE member states. Its purpose is to monitor compliance with international agreements, including disarmament ones.
The new plane will replace Tu-154 and An-30 aircraft.
The Tu-214 plane is the next version of the Tupolev Tu-204 but with bigger weight and range capacities. It was designed by Tupolev and manufactured by Kazan Aircraft Production Organisation (KAPO) in Tatarstan.
“The plane can go on missions over Eurasia and North America as well as over the member states of the Treaty on Open Skies,” Rayevsky said.
The Tu-214ON is furnished with the PS-90A engines certified by the Aviation Register of the Interstate Aviation Committee. The plane’s maximum, take off weight is 110.750 tonnes and maximum range is 6,500 kilometres.