The implementation of the LMS-901 "Baikal" project in Russia is running up against economic feasibility. Domestic companies in the small aviation sector are unable to buy these aircraft at a price of more than 200 million rubles, said Oleg Smirnov, chairman of the civil aviation commission of the Public Council of Rostransnadzor.
He noted that the "Baikal" could fill part of the niche in air transportation, but ultimately it comes down to the final cost.
Not a single company engaged in small aviation is capable of purchasing it at a price of more than 200 million rubles.
Smirnov recalled that the cost of the "Baikal" had been raised to 500 million rubles, and only then was it cut in half after a demand from the authorities.
Regional transportation by small aircraft is generally unprofitable all over the world. And under today’s conditions, how can a small airline engaged in small aviation buy such an expensive aircraft? It does not have such revenues, so state subsidies are unavoidable.
Senator Sergey Muratov stated that the Ural Civil Aviation Plant had reached the final stage of "Baikal" production, but the project needs financing to be secured. The LMS-901 project is intended to replace the obsolete Soviet An-2s.
Read more materials on the topic:
- OAK will take under its wing the projects of the manufacturer of the LMS-901 "Baikal"
- "Unfit aircraft": development of the LMS-901 "Baikal" has reached a dead end due to runway requirements
- "They haven’t been able to make a 'kukuruznik' for 20 years!": the head of the communists is sounding the alarm over the state of the aircraft industry
