Tajik national air carrier, Tajik Air, intends to acquire four Russian type aircraft, Asia-Plus reported.
Tajik Air intends to acquire four Sukhoi Superjet-100s (SSJ-100) on the basis of financial leasing, the source said, noting that an appropriate agreement on that subject was signed in Moscow on sidelines of International Air Show MAKS-2011 (International Aviation and Space Salon). According to him, the first two SSJ-100s are expected to arrive in Dushanbe by the end of 2013.
The Sukhoi Superjet 100 is a modern, fly-by-wire regional jet in the 75- to 95-seat category. With development starting in 2000, the plane was designed by the civil aircraft division of the Russian aerospace company Sukhoi in cooperation with Western partners. Its maiden flight was conducted on May 19, 2008 and the plane received its Interstate Aviation Committee certification in January 2011 with European Aviation Safety Agency certification expected in mid-2011. On April 21, 2011, the Superjet 100 performed its first commercial passenger flight, on the Armavia route from Yerevan to Moscow.
Designed to compete internationally with its Embraer and Bombardier counterparts, the Superjet 100 aims for substantially lower operating costs at the price of $23-$25 million. With over 200 orders secured by early 2011, the Superjet 100 is widely regarded as the most important project of the Russian civilian aircraft industry.
Tajik Air (Tajikistan Airlines) is the national air carrier of Tajikistan. It has its head office on the property of Dushanbe Airport in Dushanbe. The airline has its main hub at Dushanbe Airport, and it retains a secondary focus point at Khujand Airport in Sughd province.