OREANDA-NEWS. One of the leading Russian carriers, UTair Aviation, announces it has received the first Airbus A321 jetliner within the contract with Airbus for 20 such aircraft to be produced and delivered between 2013 and 2016. Financing for the deal was arranged by VEB-leasing, a subsidiary of Vnesheconombank.

The aircraft was handed over to the airline at a gala ceremony at the Airbus plant in Hamburg, Germany. This is the first contract signed between UTair and Airbus, to date comprising the largest single order for the A321 aircraft among Russian carriers.

According to the contract, the A321 aircraft are equipped with CFM56 engines and feature a single-class cabin layout seating 220 passengers. The airline is planning to operate these aircraft on international and domestic routes with high passenger flow. 

“Progress on the realization of the contract with Airbus demonstrates our strong intention to strengthen our positions among the leading Russian airlines,” said UTair CEO Andrey Martirosov regarding the deal. “The A321 aircraft was chosen for our fleet modernization program in line with the airline’s effort to create a new product - an innovative air transport model affordable to a wide range of customers with a high safety margin and level of quality aboard a new generation of aircraft,” he said.