MINSK, October 29. /TASS/. Belavia is interested in buying new airplanes, including in Russia, CEO of the Belarusian air carrier Igor Cherginets said.
"Yes, we had certain difficulties after introduction of sanctions by the United States. Nevertheless, we purchased three Airbus 330 airplanes last year. We need aircraft and we will buy them. It is impossible to fly, to perform passenger transportation without airplanes, and therefore the expansion of opportunities of flights for our citizens and the number of destinations is on our agenda," the chief executive said.
The company is working with Western manufacturers and with Russian ones as regards the purchase of airplanes, Cherginets said. "We have the preliminary memorandum signed on the joint work with the United Aircraft Corporation on MC-21 and Superjet airplanes. We await production of these airplanes. They are now at the stage of certification and tests; performance specifications and the cost are being updated. This process is to end in 2026-2027, then we will start more clear consideration of the issue of buying these airplanes - at what prices, where they can fly. We will consider it later," the chief executive added.