The SuperJet-100 project is a family of medium-range passenger aircraft developed by the Sukhoi Design Bureau in cooperation with major American and European aviation corporations, including Boeing, Snecma, Thales, Messier Dowty, Liebherr Aerospace, and Honeywell.
"Snecma, which is part of the SAFRAN Group, will join efforts with [the Russian] NPO Saturn, to make about 1,600 SaM-146 engines for 800 [SuperJet-100] planes," said Marc Ventre, a deputy director general of the French holding.
SAFRAN is an international high-technology group with four core businesses -- aerospace propulsion, aircraft equipment, defense security, and communications. It has 61,400 employees in over 30 countries, and annual revenues exceeding 10 billion euros ($13.4 billion).
"The first deliveries of the engines are scheduled for 2008," he said, adding that SAFRAN would provide 28% of all components for the Superjet-100 aircraft.
Another SAFRAN official, Patrick Barraquand, said Tuesday that the SuperJet project was a unifying project for Russian companies that recently merged into United Aircraft Building Corporation (UABC).
UABC, which is 90% state owned, consolidates aircraft building companies and state assets engaged in the manufacture, design and sale of military, non-military, transport and unmanned aircraft in a bid to streamline the Russian aviation industry.
It incorporates commercial and military aircraft makers, such as Sukhoi, Ilyushin and Tupolev, as well as companies involved in distribution, including Aviaexport.
"Russia certainly needs to consolidate its aircraft industry, because it would allow the country to concentrate efforts on key projects and attract necessary investment," said Barraquand, who heads a SAFRAN office in Russia.
The SAFRAN official said the SuperJet-100 was the most promising project both for Russia's domestic and foreign aircraft markets.
Sukhoi plans to produce at least 700 RRJs, and intends to sell 35% of them to North America, 25% to Europe, 10% to Latin America, and 7% to Russia and China.
Russia's first deputy prime minister, Sergei Ivanov, said May 21 that Sukhoi would conclude contracts on the procurement of up to 100 SuperJet-100 regional passenger aircraft by the end of 2007.
