OREANDA-NEWS. December 13, 2011. The first conference on the Sukhoi Superjet aircraft operations by Armavia Airlines was held at the headquarters of Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company (SCAC) in Moscow on November 22, 2011. Representatives of Armavia, SCAC, SuperJet International (SJI) and PowerJet attended the conference.

The positive results noted during the conference confirmed the successful commercial operation and efficiency of the Sukhoi Superjet 100 (SSJ100). During seven months of operations (from April 21 to November 20) the aircraft totaled 528 commercial flights and over 1,300 flight hours. The SSJ100 carried over 33,000 passengers and covered distance nearly a million kilometers.

Armavia SSJ100 regularly performs flights from Yerevan to 31 airports in Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Western and Southern Europe and Middle East. Flights were performed at 35000 — 39000 ft altitude, at the speed of 0.78-0.8 M. The highest daily utilization reached 16.5 flight hours while the longest distance exceeded 4,000 kilometers on route Yerevan — Madrid. The SSJ100 fully confirmed to be suitable both to regional and to short-haul routes.

“Operations of our first production aircraft by Armavia match our expectations. I am confident that the SSJ100 will be efficiently operated by all our customers. Together with our partners on the SSJ100 Program we will actively listen to the airlines’ needs and rapidly fulfill their requirements”, said JSC Sukhoi Civil Aircraft First Vice-President for design and certification Igor Vinogradov.

“On behalf of our closed-to-operations people — pilots, flight attendants and technician staff I would like to say that the SSJ100 perfectly met our requirements. It’s worth saying that with SSJ100 in our fleet we have the aircraft which efficiently fits some of our mainline destinations. As confirmed by our flight attendants, the passengers highly appreciate the extreme comfort of the aircraft. I believe that continuous dialogue between Armavia, SCAC and SJI teams will help to optimize the operation, so that to use the full potential of this remarkable aircraft” noted Head of Armavia Flight Services Sergey Kharatyan.

During the conference the SuperJet International’s customer support had the opportunity to register Armavia’s impression on the multifaceted after-sales infrastructure to best support the SSJ100 program and to pave the way for further improvements. A firmly positive feedback from Armavia was received in particular on the highly professional training services offered to Armavia’s pilots, cabin crews and maintenance staff.