In Russia, the discussion of the problems of small civil aviation continues, which almost completely ceased to exist with the collapse of the USSR. The regional air transportation market collapsed rapidly, but the state, most likely, finally got around to solving this problem. The development of regional aviation in different regions of the country is approached in different ways. So the Governor of Primorye Vladimir Miklushevsky told reporters that the regional administration is ready to consider a proposal to purchase 19-seat Canadian DHC-6 aircraft, which can be easily used even from relatively small airfields.
This aircraft only needs a runway with a length of only 360 meters, which is less than what is needed for the famous An-2 maize. The head of the Primorsky Territory stressed that the region plans to purchase 3 aircraft for domestic airlines, since business activity and the development of tourism are simply impossible to imagine without the development of regional aviation. In addition, today some of the settlements of Primorye can only be reached by air.
According to the press service of the regional administration, the development of regional aviation in the Primorsky Territory today is one of the strategically important tasks. By 2015, the regional center - Vladivostok - is planned to be connected by air with 25 settlements in the region. The operator of regional air transportation within Primorye should be a new Far Eastern airline, which will be created under the wing of Aeroflot on the basis of OJSC VladAvia, OJSC Sakhalin Air Routes and other air carriers. In addition to transportations in the Far East and international flights, this company will also operate air flights across the territory of Primorye. It is assumed that the creation of such an air carrier will increase the passenger traffic from 8 to 83 thousand passengers per year.
However, it is worth noting that the Primorye administration has not yet chosen the method of purchasing Canadian passenger planes - it is possible that funds can be found in the regional budget, but, most likely, a mechanism for reimbursing the air carrier will be applied. According to Kommersant, the cost of one DHC-6 aircraft today is about 6-7 million dollars. It is noteworthy that the aircraft of this model can be equipped with various chassis, thanks to which the DHC-6 can be able to land on snow or even water.
Currently, in the Primorsky Territory, which is the most densely populated region of Russia in the Far East, the local aviation is, in fact, in deep suspended animation. 3 passenger helicopters Mi-8 of the VladAvia company are engaged in the transportation of passengers to the village of Kavalerovo and the Terneisky district of the region. Therefore, the plans announced by the regional authorities still look fantastic. Despite this, the interest of Russian regions in the development of local aviation today looks logical and justified. Although people in Russia have lost the habit of flying short distances over the past 20 years, no alternatives to airplanes, as a means of sufficiently fast relocation from one place to another, have yet been invented. Therefore, one should not be surprised by the fact that plans for the development of the regional aviation market have recently been announced by the authorities of many Russian regions.
It is also necessary to take into account the fact that the federal budget is ready to provide all possible assistance to small airlines in purchasing new aircraft. Back in 2012, it was decided to subsidize Russian air carriers buying new cars on lease. Last year, under this program, Russian companies were able to receive 26 aircraft for a total amount of 1.2 billion rubles. In 2013, the total subsidies under lease agreements already amount to 2.1 billion rubles (the Ministry of Transport believes that these funds will provide subsidies for the purchase of up to 40 new aircraft for local airlines).
First of all, the Russian budget will subsidize the purchase of small aircraft - 10-12 seats, then - up to 20 seats, and finally - up to 40 seats and more. In 2013, Russian An-148 aircraft (from 68 to 85 seats) will receive up to 30% of the total quota of the subsidy program. But carriers who need planes of smaller capacity have to turn their attention to the foreign market - today in Russia such "babies" are simply not produced.
According to the Interregional Association "Siberian Agreement" (MASS), in early June 2013, representatives of the governments of the republics of Altai and Buryatia, Altai Territory, as well as Irkutsk, Novosibirsk and Tomsk regions, together with the heads of regional airlines "Altai Airlines" and "Tomsk-Avia" signed a letter of intent for the purchase of Czech aircraft L-410 UVP-E20, which are manufactured at the Aicraft Industries plant (owned by the Russian company UGMK Holding). This model is a modified Let L-410 Turbolet, a small Czech versatile twin-engine aircraft with a capacity of up to 19 passengers and intended for use on local airlines.
This aircraft was delivered back to the USSR and has already flown in Siberia. It is assumed that new aircraft (at least 15 aircraft, although so far the plant is able to produce no more than 20 aircraft per year) will also be purchased on terms of subsidies from the federal budget. According to MASS, 4 different options for the application of the leasing scheme and subsidies from the state are being discussed. The cost of the L-410 UVP-E20, depending on the configuration, is today estimated at 145-190 million rubles, and the size of the subsidy for aircraft of this type can be up to 49 million rubles.
It also remains to add that in the near future (in 2014) the Vityaz aviation corporation plans to start assembling Canadian DHC-6 aircraft on the territory of the Ulyanovsk region, at the site of the special economic zone. Perhaps it is for this reason that the authorities of Primorye turned their attention to this aircraft.
It is worth noting that the Canadian aircraft has excellent takeoff and landing characteristics, the ability to land on almost any suitable site, and good weight return. All these qualities made the Canadian car a real world standard for small transport aircraft - "all-terrain vehicle". The first production aircraft DHC-6 Twin Otter was commissioned back in 1966. Serial admission of this aircraft at de Havilland Canada plants continued until 1988. In 2007, production of the aircraft was resumed again, this time by the Canadian company Viking Air. The new model received the designation Series-400, the first aircraft of this type were delivered to customers in 2010. In total, over the years of production in Canada, more than 850 aircraft of this type have been produced in various modifications.
The versatility of the DHC-6 Twin Otter made it an almost ideal general-purpose aircraft for a large number of operators around the world. That is why one of the leading Canadian aviation manufacturers, Viking Air, once bought a certificate for DHC-6Twin Otter production from the well-known Bombardier company. These aircraft are currently being produced at the Viking Air plant in Calgary. The new vehicle received the designation Viking Air DHC-6-400 and is equipped with more powerful Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-34 turboprop engines.
The first serial DHC-6-400 took off on February 16, 2010 in Calgary. It was handed over to the buyer, Zimex Aviation, during the Farnborough Air Show in July of the same year. In addition to existing DHC-6 operators, Canadians have received orders from new customers. In particular, the Vietnamese Navy purchased 6 aircraft (2 in the VIP version). The four remaining aircraft, designated Guardian 400, are used by the Vietnamese Navy for search and rescue operations and patrolling in coastal waters. All 6 aircraft of the Vietnamese order were equipped with an amphibious landing gear.
Flight performance DHC-6-400:
Dimensions: wingspan - 19, 8 m, length - 15, 8 m, height - 5, 9 m.
Wing area - 39.0 sq. m.
The empty weight of the aircraft is 3120 kg, the maximum take-off weight is 5670 kg.
Engine type - 2 HPT Two Pratt Whitney Canada PT6A-34, 2x750 hp
Maximum speed - 340 km / h, cruising speed - 265 km / h.
Takeoff run - 360 m, run length - 320 m.
The maximum flight range is 1800 km.
The maximum ceiling is 8140 m.
The number of seats in the cabin (economy) is 19-20.
Maximum payload - 1940 kg.
Crew - 1-2 people.
