OREANDA-NEWS. A rental agreement for three Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft was signed between the Russian airline Red Wings and Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company.

The aircraft will be handed over to the airline by the end of 2014 for one year with the possibility of extension. Red Wings airline plans to operate Sukhoi Superjet 100 in Russia: from Moscow to Ufa, Makhachkala, Chelyabinsk, Sochi and Mineralnye Vody.

"The aircraft operated by the airline featuring fully Russian air fleet will become the new page for the Sukhoi Superjet 100 project", noted Ilya Tarasenko, the President of Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company. "Among the advantages of Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft to Red Wings can be noted an opportunity to develop city-pair markets until demand for them becomes appropriate to put on these routes sing-aisle aircraft with higher capacity, which the airline already has", he said.

Substitution, if necessary, of larger seating capacity aircraft operated with low passenger load factor during seasonal downturns. Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft allows to substitute higher capacity aircraft both for a long period in a "low" season and during the day without compromising passenger comfort.

"Operations of aircraft such as the Sukhoi Superjet 100 will enforce the opportunities for Red Wings to enter into regional transportation market which is new for the airline",noted Evgeny Klyucharev CEO of Red Wings airline. "The signing of the rental agreement for Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft marked the beginning of the first phase of the program implementing a new type of aircraft in the fleet of Red Wings, as we plan to increase the number of Sukhoi Superjet 100 to fifteen by 2017. At the same time, we remain committed to our strategy of flights operated by the Russian-built aircraft", he concluded.

Red Wings Airlines - a Russian airline based in Moscow, was established in 1999. The airline operates scheduled and charter flights in Russia and abroad. It is expected that passenger traffic of Red Wings in 2014 will total about one million passengers.