UAC wants to commence local production of Il-114 in Vietnam

The United Aircraft Corporation has offered Vietnam the possibility of local assembly for the regional turboprop Il-114-300 aircraft, a government source told Life.

According to the Russian Trade Mission in Vietnam, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has proposed an initial discussion on the topic of localizing the production of Il-114-300 aircraft with Vietnam Airlines as a potential operator.

"We are considering the possibility of transferring some production to Vietnam after the introduction of the aircraft, assessing the market volume and analyzing the interest and requirements of potential customers in Vietnam and regional countries", said a Cabinet source.

“By offering various IL-114-300 deliveries to certain foreign partners, we are evaluating the possibilities for partial localization of production if conditions are suitable. It is too early to speak about any specific decisions", a representative of the UAC commented to Life. Representatives of the Vietnamese air carrier have not yet responded to requests from Life.

“Let's add that, as of January 2017, the first of the series IL-114-300 aircraft will be built in 2020 - 2021, and by 2029 we planned to have built about 100 aircraft”, said President of the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) Yuri Slusar.
For reference: the regional plane Il-114-300 is a modernized version of the turboprop Il-114 aircraft. The aircraft will be manufactured in four versions. The passenger version will be the basic one.

It is possible that, via the Il-114 localization project, UAC can cooperate with customers in Vietnam on other deliveries including the Sukhoi Superjet 100 aircraft.
It is noteworthy that the promotion of this aircraft is supported by the Russian-Vietnamese intergovernmental commission on trade-economic and scientific-technical cooperation.

However, Vietnamese side has yet to commit to purchase the aircraft. Negotiations with the airlines Vietnam Airlines and VietJet have stalled on the part of the Vietnamese, complained a government source in conversation with Life.

Vietnamese Airlines operates both American and European aircraft and plans to upgrade and expand their fleet.

In September 2017, the company GSS resumed its promotion of the Dry Superjet 100 to Vietnam with a formal written request for talks to the Director General of Vietnam Airlines. It is hoping to give an extended presentation of the project "Dry Superjet 100", the creation of a joint cooperation working group from SCU and Vietnam Airlines.

According to a source in the government, they are exploring the possibility of negotiations with representatives of Vietnam Airlines at the 2018 Singapore Airshow (which will be held February 6-9).

"We are promoting Russian civilian equipment in all regions where there is interest and effective demand”, commented a representative of UAC to Life.

Oleg Panteleev, executive director of the Aviaport agency, believes that in South-East Asia, taking into account the pace of transportation development in the region, there is sales potential for several hundred turboprop aircraft. Vietnam Airlines itself has experience in operating regional aircraft - both jet Fokker and turboprop ATR. Despite the fact that today the main market is still for larger aircraft, the company can offer passenger transportation with regional aircraft such as the Superjet.

"Vietnam has ambitions to develop high-tech industries, and aircraft construction is one of the most attractive segments in terms of impact on the entire economy. Obtaining Russian technology and the right to manufacture a modern turboprop aircraft is a good prospect, notes Panteleev. However, the delay in negotiations is not unexpected. The Vietnamese side prefers to see how Russian airlines respond to the Il-114-300, and then to solve the issues of large-scale cooperation, linking together all the projects - both the development of production and the purchase of aircraft.

The Sukhoi Superjet 100 is a Russian short-haul passenger aircraft developed by the Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company (SCU) with the participation of a number of foreign companies.