ARMAVIA COMPANY HOLDS NEGOTIATIONS ON ACQUISITION OF BOEING AIRCRAFT
ArmInfo
2008-07-07 22:14:00
Armavia company is holding negotiations on acquisition of a Boeing
aircraft, Mikhail Bagdasarov, the owner of Armavia air company and
Mika Limited concern, told journalists, Monday.
According to him, this aircraft is to serve a trans-Atlantic
flight Yerevan-Los Angeles which the company is going to open in
2009-2010. During an air show in London on July 14, the Boeing
Corporation will present aircrafts to Armavia which may be launched
in this direction, Bagdasarov said. He noted that Armavia is a
dynamically developing company and if it earlier leased planes,
now it is considering the possibility of purchasing them. "Today to
have an own plane is much more profitable for the company from the
economic viewpoint", he said. He added that such a small company as
Armavia should have one type of aircrafts – Boeing or Airbus. The
businessman didn’t conceal that simultaneously Armavia is holding
negotiations on acquisition of an Airbus.
"We’ll purchase the planes of those who offer us the best terms",
Bagdasarov said. Today Armavia’s air fleet has 9 planes, but the number
of the planes will be increased to 15-20. It is envisaged to purchase
Russian Sukhoi Superjet 100 planes, Bombardier CRJ, Boeing or Airbus,
the businessman said.
He added that the company suffers losses due to the increase of prices
of jet fuel, but the leadership has taken no decision to increase the
air ticket prices yet. According to Bagdasarov, despite the recent
opening of new air flights, the company has to close the flights to
Minsk and Dubay.
Reduction of other flights is also possible, he said but he denied
the rumors that Armavia "is being sold".
Regional Sales Director of Boeing corporation Sergey Leshinsky,
who was also present at the meeting with journalists, noted that the
parties haven’t yet agreed on the form of cooperation and the choice
of the aircraft’s type.
"Armavia has set itself the highest standards of work with clients
and is successfully implementing them due to its reasonable policy
and skilled personnel", he noted. He said that the company’s task to
open a trans-Atlantic intercontinental flight is also realizable.
According to Armavia CJSC’s administration, the company’s air fleet
has 2 Airbus A-320, two Ð~B-319, a CRJ -100, a Tu-134, a Yak-42,
an IL-86 (under repair) and a Boeing 737-300.
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