ZHUKOVSKY (the Moscow region), August 17 (RIA Novosti) - Russia and Jordan signed a contract Wednesday on the sale of two Russian IL-76MF military transport planes to Jordan, a senior aircraft manufacturing representative told a news conference.
Viktor Livanov, General Director of the Ilyushin aircraft manufacturing company, said the contract was signed in the presence of King Abdullah II of Jordan, who observed the IL-76MF plane at the MAKS-2005 air show.
Livanov said the main difference between the IL-76MF and its predecessors was its new PS-90 engine. The plane, manufactured at a Tashkent plant, is a bit longer and uses better technology than its predecessors.
Speaking about other company projects, Livanov said Ilyushin manufactured and sold an IL-96-300 passenger plane to Cubana airlines. "So far, the contract is for the sale of two passenger planes, although our Cuban partners may purchase two more planes in the future," he said.
Ilyushin is also working on a prototype of the IL-114 special-purpose plane in a contract with Radar and modernizing the IL-38 aircraft for the Russian and Indian navies.
Among other prototypes currently under development, Livanov mentioned the IL-112B, a light military transport plane. Its first flight tests will be conducted in 2007. In addition, the company plans to continue the development of the IL-214 medium military transport plane together with Indian partners to market it in 2012. At present, Russia and Ukraine occupy 27% of the global market of transport aircraft.
Speaking about other unique company projects, Livanov said Ilyushin has developed new anti-terrorist mechanisms for passenger planes together with the Special Materials company. "We developed a special on-board safety system for the IL-96 plane. We have tested it using a 500-gram TNT charge and liked what we saw because the plane remained flight-capable even after the explosion," Livanov said. He said the safety device was a special container designed to isolate an explosive charge after it has been discovered aboard a plane.
