The transfer of An-148-100 aircraft, previously operated by other airlines, to Ukraine has a positive effect for Antonov state-owned enterprise, Viktor Kazurov, the program director for An-148 and its modifications, said.
“For Antonov state enterprise, this is a new stage in the development of the regional passenger aircraft program, which will have a positive effect on their production,” he told Interfax-Ukraine, commenting on the recent statement by Sergei Turkin, the director of the Voronezh leasing company Ilyushin Finance Co, about the intention, as part of a civil aircraft remarketing strategy, to sell its remaining five An-148s, possibly to Ukrainian operators.
According to Kazurov, the use of An-148-100 by Ukrainian airlines will allow Ukrainian citizens to travel even from small regional airports with the level of comfort and speed of mainline liners, and the planes themselves will fly, not stand idle.
The director of the An-148 aircraft program positively assessed the appearance in Ukraine at the end of October of this year of a new airline Air Ocean Airlines, whose fleet includes An-148s.
“This airline appeared at the right time and in the right place. It is developing an actively growing niche of regional transportation,” he said.
Kazurov recalled that Air Ocean Airlines passed state certification on October 23, and on October 30 it made its first flight on the route Kyiv (Zhuliany)-Mykolaiv-Kyiv. Then in November the company opened flights from Kyiv to Zaporizhia, Lviv, Chernivtsi, and in December it connected Lviv and Kharkiv.
“We welcome the arrival of this company to the Ukrainian market, which contributes to the development of regions, the creation of new jobs, the promotion of An-148 aircraft. Before the New Year, Air Ocean Airlines plans to establish air traffic between Lviv and Zaporizhia, as well as Kyiv and Kharkiv. Antonov provides comprehensive support to the operator and resolves emerging issues as soon as possible,” the expert emphasized.
Kazurov clarified that Air Ocean Airlines plans to receive three or four more aircraft in the first half of 2022, and in the future to bring the fleet to ten aircraft of the An-148/158 type.
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