New challenges for Sukhoi Superjet 100

The end of this summer and all of the fall were quite intense for the Sukhoi Superjet 100 program. The new Russian regional airliner’s manufacturer Sukhoi Civil Aircraft (SCAC) saw its backlog grow impressively, and received positive news about the initial operation results of its brainchild in Latin America and Asia.

The total number of SSJ100 orders reached 200 at the MAKS 2013 aerospace exhibition in Zhukovsky, outside Moscow, in August. On the first day of the show, Ilyushin Finance Co. (IFC) firmed up 20 preliminary orders. Five of the aircraft, in the SSJ100LR long-range variant, are to be delivered to an as-yet undisclosed customer from late 2015. Thinner seats will allow for extending these airliners’ capacity to 103 passengers. The rest of the IFC aircraft will come in the baseline variant; these will be delivered to customers in Southeast Asia and the Middle East in 2015.
Another Russian lessor, Sberbank Leasing, used MAKS to sign a $700 million preliminary agreement with SCAC for the delivery of 20 aircraft. The parties also announced during the show that they will set up a joint venture to promote SSJ 100 sales in Russia and abroad.