Russia to Deliver 12 Sukhoi Fighter Jets to India in 2006

Created: 16.06.2006 11:20 MSK (GMT +3), Updated: 11:20 MSK , 5 hours 48 minutes ago

MosNews

Russia’s Irkut Corporation is planning to deliver 12 Su-30MKI fighter jets to India this year. The company will also start supplying Algeria and Malaysia from 2007 as production at its plant picks up, the company’s director said in an interview with Vedomosti business daily. The interview was published on Thursday, June 15.

“The contract has already been agreed, its signature is expected in the next few months, and this year we plan to deliver 12 fighter jets to India,” Oleg Demchenko, director of the plant in Russia’s Siberian region of Irkutsk told the newspaper. “In the first quarter of this year, five unassembled jets have already been delivered,” Demchenko said.

Irkut would also begin delivering jets to Algeria “from 2007”, he added. As MosNews reported, Algeria agreed in March to buy up to 7.5-billion-dollars’ worth of Russian weaponry, including 28 Su-30 jets, in return for Russian debt write-off.

Also from 2007 “we will deliver nine jets to Malaysia and we will supply the remaining six out of 18 fighter jets to India” to replace 18 jets exported to India in 1997 and 1999, Demchenko also said. “We are increasing production to 32 jets per year, while in Soviet times the factory made 28. It’s a very tough production plan,” Irkut’s general director continued.

Factory executives estimate that Irkut’s current orders have a total value of $5 billion.