SuperJet International and Malev sign Letter of Intent

The LOI has been executed today at the Paris Air Show, by Martin Gauss, Chief Executive Officer of Malév Hungarian Airlines and Alessandro Franzoni, Chief Executive Officer of SuperJet International. The agreement has a potential value of up to 1 Billion US$.

Malév is planning to buy Sukhoi Superjet 100s (SSJ100/95) in the 98 seats configuration. The first aircraft will join the Malev fleet starting from 2011 with the delivery of six aircraft per year.

"The new Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft characteristics to fly both regional and medium-haul routes, is perfectly matching Malév's network," said Martin Gauss, CEO of Malev. "In its revised, long-term fleet restructuring programme Malév forecasts that the airline will register growth in the next decade and it will require more aircraft than at present."

"This announcement is of particular value since it is made during the first international appearance in flight of the SSJ100 at Le Bourget" said Alessandro Franzoni, Chief Executive Officer of SuperJet International.

"The execution of this Agreement with a primary and valuable European airline like Malev demonstrates the interest and the confidence that Customers are showing for the SSJ100. Once in operation, airlines will appreciate the great value granted by the SSJ100 in terms of performance, fuel consumption and environmental impact. Moreover, this achievement confirms the value of SuperJet International's strategy, focused on Customers "super care", from contract negotiation to continuous after sale support."

Designed, developed and built by Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company (SCAC), the Sukhoi Superjet 100 family is comprised of 78- and 98-seaters in basic (SSJ100/95B and SSJ100/75B) and long-range (SSJ100/95LR and SSJ100/75LR) configuration. The SSJ100 is the most advanced and environmentally friendly new generation regional jet. Superior technical and operational characteristics make SSJ100 a fully marketable and competitive product - cost-effective, easy to operate and maintain. SSJ100 is a conceptually new platform designed specifically for a 100-seat segment offering the most efficient combination of regional efficiency with mainline capabilities.

The first SSJ100 was rolled out from SCAC's final assembly shop at Komsomolsk-on Amur on September 26, 2007. First flight was successfully accomplished last May 19, 2008.

With two aircraft in the air since December 24, 2008, the programme scored over 213 flights for a total of over 650 hours.

The first two aircraft are currently in test flight with a third aircraft scheduled to joint the flight test program soon. The certification plan calls for Russia civil certification by November 2009, followed by EASA certification in 2010 and FAA certification thereafter.


(c) Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation. Date posted: 16-Jun-09