MOSCOW, February 05, 23:45 /ITAR-TASS/. Sukhoi Civil Aircraft, which makes the Sukhoi Superjet 100 (SSJ-100) passenger plane, said it was surprised by increased attention to the aircraft from the Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC).
“I have no idea why there should be such increased attention. The plane is going through its teething period and we hope it will pass it soon,” the company’s Vice President Igor Vinogradov told Ekho Moskvy radio on Wednesday, February 5.
“There has been no any significant increase in the number of flight incidents [with SSJ-100],” he said but admitted that had been some increase last year to 31-32 incidents from 27 in 2012.
However he noted that these incidents could not lead to critical situations during the flight and blamed them on the growing number of planes in operation.
“The reaction [IAC report on SSJ-100 problems] is entirely on the conscience of the Committee leadership. They probably thought it necessary to bring this to our attention and to the attention of the general public,” Vinogradov said. “However we see no incidents. We are rapidly upgrading our pool of planes and we have just finished testing new software which will be installed on our planes and which will eliminate such defects [in slats extension]. They will not occur again.”
The Federal Agency for Air Transportation said 15 incidents with SSJ-100 wings had been registered. “They are particularly dangerous in wintertime and on slippery runways,” it said.
SuperJet-100 acquired an IAC certificate in January 2011.
Slats are aerodynamic surfaces on the leading edge of the wings of fixed-wing aircraft which, when deployed, allow an aircraft can fly at slower speeds, or take off and land in shorter distances. They are usually used while landing or performing maneuvers which take the aircraft close to the stall, but are usually retracted in normal flight to minimise drag.
Sukhoi SuperJet-100 is a regional 100-seat plane designed and made by Sukhoi Civil Aircraft in cooperation with Alenia Aermacchi. Its basic version can fly for a distance of up to 3,048 kilometres. An increased range is 4,578 kilometres. The company plans to start making a long-range version of the plane from 2013 and to offer a business version of the plane in 2015. It may be of interest to Middle East countries.
The SuperJet, the first new Russian passenger plane over the past 20 years, is being created through unprecedentedly broad international cooperation that involves more than 30 major international aerospace companies, system and component suppliers. Sukhoi SuperJet-100 integrates the world’s best industry practices and solutions.
Sukhoi SuperJet-100 integrates the world’s best industry practices and solutions. All aircraft will be certified in accordance with both Russian and international requirements. SSJ100's technical and operational performance make the product fully marketable and capable of taking a solid share in the highly competitive global market. Thus, Sukhoi expects to sell 800 aircraft until the year 2024, while the global demand for the aircraft of this class totals 5,400. So far the company had secured 73 solid orders for the aircraft.
SuperJet-100 will in the future provide the basis for a whole family of planes, including transport and special purpose planes. However now the main goal is the certification of the plane and serial production of 60-70 planes annually.
The Sukhoi SuperJet-100 family consists of two types of aircraft of basic and increased flying ranges with the carrying capacity of 75 and 95 passengers respectively.
The SuperJet-100 aircraft got in the focus of public attention after one of the planes had crashed in Indonesia in May 2012, killing 45 people, including eight Russians. The accident was blamed on the pilot’s error.