Izvestia: “Flying Russian Style”
Aeroflot Airlines is set on becoming a monopoly air carrier. However, the words of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin had a chilling effect on the carrier: there will be no domination by a Russian carrier who uses foreign-made aircraft. Meanwhile there are almost no Russian planes left in Aeroflot's fleet.
Thirty years ago all Russians flew Aeroflot; alternatives were non-existent. Many carriers of various sizes appeared later, and the big airlines started a tug-of-war for the best foreign routes and the most money-making Russian routes: Moscow-Sochi, Moscow-Vladivostok etc. The "little carriers" quietly took the leftovers - flights to provincial cities like Moscow-Yaroslavl. Everything seemed to be fine. But today the major airlines are not happy.
"There is a problem in our industry", complained Aeroflot General Director Vitaly Savelyev to Vladimir Putin on Saturday. "Russia currently has about 160 airlines. It is too many for the country. Many airlines have just one or two planes and really get in the way of normal operations."
In Savelyev's view this contradicts international trends towards mergers, which are numerous: Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines, Air France and KLM, British Airways and Iberia. The goal was to withstand the crisis. Nevertheless, Aeroflot has no desire to merge with anybody. It has different objectives.
"Our primary objective is to dominate the Russian domestic market," Mr Savelyev said, laying his cards on the table.
Savelyev offered a simple explanation for his desire to monopolise the domestic market: that is to compete with Europe's "Big Three" - British Airways, Air France and Lufthansa, after Russia joins the WTO. The only way to achieve this objective is the acquisition of smaller competitors. With the consent of Russian Technologies State Corporation, Aeroflot is now ready to acquire three joint stock aviation companies and three federal state unitary enterprises, State Transport Company Rossiya among them.
Having heard the plans, Vladimir Putin asked about the carrier's fleet. And it came to light that out of Aeroflot's 115 aircraft only six aging Il-96s are Russian-made. They have been upgraded, at a cost of 100 to 200 million roubles each, and are now engaged in carrying people who are entitled to benefits from the Far East.
"In 2016, we are expecting deliveries of 22 Boeing Dreamliners (787s) and 22 Airbus-350s now under development," said Savelyev to the prime minister. However, the latter did not approve the purchases.
"In fleet renewal, it is necessary to consider purchases of domestic equipment first and foremost. You are saying you want to dominate the domestic market, but do not want to buy domestic aircraft. It won't work," said the premier.
"We are doing this. For example, we have ordered Sukhoi Superjets (30 have been ordered. -Izvestia), and the Il-96s may remain operational for another four or five years, until newer aircraft is delivered. And we have decided on our plans for STC Rossiya: it will fly An-148s," the head of Aeroflot justified himself.
"Too little," replied Mr Putin stiffly.
Too little, indeed. But where should new planes to be taken from? Actually, the long-awaited Superjet has just finished certification tests and will not be rolled onto airfields before January. And the Russian aviation industry has not produced anything more up-to-date. Airlines find it expensive and risky to repair older models. The attraction to Airbus and Boeing can well be explained by simple cost calculations. These are larger planes designed for hundreds of passengers. In addition, there are no problems with parts and servicing. But this is not all. The entire Airbus family has identical cockpits, which means that a pilot that has mastered an А-320 can fly a state-of-the-art А-350 with his eyes closed. No retraining, no extra costs, only steadily growing passenger traffic.
Anastasia Savinykh
