IFC supplies the Cosmonaut Training Center with two Tu-204-300
On March 29, 2019, at the Chkalovsky airfield of the Ministry of Defense of Russia, one of the two Tu-204-300 Sergey Korolev aircraft was put into operation by the joint aviation detachment of the Gagarin Research Institute of the Central Research Institute of the Russian Federation.
These aircraft are designed to transport astronauts and an operational group of the Roscosmos State Corporation to the launch pad of the Baikonur cosmodrome.
Both aircrafts "Yuri Gagarin" and "Sergey Korolev" are made in a special layout that allows carrying up to 53 passengers accommodated in 3 cabins. For the transportation of astronauts, the aircraft are equipped with six specialized compartments that provide maximum comfort during long flights, and there are also single seats outside the compartment for accompanying persons or medical personnel of each cosmonaut. An interactive entertainment system is installed in each compartment. The aircraft are equipped with a satellite communication system that provides telephone communication and Internet access during the flight.
Tu-204-300 RA-64044 and RA-64045 aircraft are being put into operation by the CPC from JSC Rusaviainter and the leasing company OJSC “Ilyushin Finance Co.” (IFC), which previously owned these aircraft and carried out their modernization in accordance with the requirements of the Cosmonaut Training Center.
The Tu-204-300 aircraft, equipped with two Russian PS-90A engines, is a modification of the Tu-204-100B aircraft with a fuselage shortened by almost 6 m, increased to 107.5 tons take-off weight. Tu-204-300 complies with Chapter IV of the ICAO Annex on noise on the ground and the requirements of Annex 16 (Volume 2) ICAO standards for the emission of harmful substances due to the perfection of the design of engines, as well as the selection of noise-absorbing devices. The aircraft is certified for flights on international air lines, as well as for flights in the conditions of RNAV-1, RNAV-5 zone navigation and according to the reduced RVSM vertical separation standards. The flight range of Tu-204-300 aircraft is about 9000 km.
The Court of First Instance in its decision pointed out that the balance of mutual obligations, on which JSC "AK "Transaero" based its claims, is not applicable in this situation. Nevertheless, during the trial, the court found that if the calculation of the mutual balance was applied to the disputed legal relations according to the rules established by the Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation dated 14.03.2017, it was LLC IFC Asset Management that would have the right to demand compensation from JSC AK Transaero.