Actuality February 14, 2008

   On February, 20 ETIRC Aviation Corporation (Luxemburg) will begin factory construction for production of civil very light jets (VLJ) Eclipse

500 in the special regional economic zone (SREZ) "Zavolzhie" near Ulyanovsk.

   Eclipse 500 is the first representative of the new generation of jets. It is a six-seat twin-engine liner, maximal flying distance of which makes 1600 nm at cruise speed 355 mph (408 km/h). Due to small weight, optimized construction and wide use of new technological decisions (for example, new generation engine Ej22) its developers promise to make jets cheaper than existent business jets and more economical in operation. At the cost of more than $1,5 mln (the costs of March, 2006), the overall operating cost per one operation hour will make about $300. For example, Cessna Mustang indices make $2,6 mln and $464 respectively, Adam A700 jet – $2,2 mln and $728 respectively, compare jet developers. The start of mass production at the Ulyanovsk plant is already planned to the end of 2009. As suppose in ETIRC, with its beginning the new segment of the Russian market of air transportations is formed – affordable air taxi that will bind the remotest regions by means of flight connection.

   Experts carefully comment both production and marketing plans of Aviation Corporation. Yevgenij Andrachnikov, the head of DEXTER air taxi project of Air Management Group marks that

the project of plant construction for Eclipse production was begun in the USA in 1996, and they produced the first certificated jet in the middle of 2007. Moreover, for plant construction in New Mexico was spent $1,6 bln, and even Bill Gates was among the investors. Therefore, Andrachnikov opens to question the Ulyanovsk perspectives of the analogical project.

   Boris Rybak, director general of Infomost Consult ing Company, rem

inds that the project of Eclipse 500 production organization in Russia is discussed within several years. In 2006 Vnesheconombank, Eclipse Aviation Eastern Europe (ETIRC structure, responsible for Eclipse project realization) and the company Russian representative office signed the memorandum about the collaboration according to which the bank entered into commitment to invest the project for Eclipse 500 development and realization on the territory of Eastern Europe and CIS countries.

Initially, jet production was planned to locate on the Voronezh Joint-Stock Aircraft Constructing Society (VASO), then it went about the ground

of Ulyanovsk plant AVIASTAR-SP.

The delay in project realization compelled observers to doubt the ETIRC intentions.

Boris Rybak even now carefully comments the today's statements of Aviation Corporation – he considers that Eclipse 500 production is expedient to develop where there are heavy import duties of such machines, and in Russia, on the contrary, they were reduced by 10% at the end of the last year.

   In ETIRC explain the choice of "Zavolzhie" as the place for production by the concentration in Ulyanovsk of specialized enterprises and objects of infrastructure for aircraft building – two airports of class "A", AVIASTAR-SP plant, Higher Civil Aviation School.

   One has to take also preferences into account that Ulyanovsk authorities promise to give the residents of promoted SREZ. The volume of the regional target purpose oriented at "Zavolzhie" support makes RUR 231 mln. These facilities go to provision of industrial ground by engineering communications and creation of other infrastructure.

At least, the Ulyanovsk region entered into such commitments during realization of other projects in SREZ.

It is two of them now – in "Zavolzhie" are constructed the factory of metal structures, the subsidiary of Samara "Elekroschit TM Samara", and factory of the brewing corporation SAB Miller.

    Boris Rybak supposes

that to build the plant from scratch, but not locate the production on the existent aircraft building enterprises, ETIRC decided because of unsatisfactory state of the last. In addition, both Voronezh and Ulyanovsk aircraft building plants are engaged in projects of "Incorporated Aircraft Building Corporation", and they simply can not have free powers, specialists and resources.

   The market perspectives of Eclipse 500 arouse more questions than choice of the ground.

Experts categorically do not agree that this jet will form the park of air taxi operators.

"To compare Eclipse 500 to those jets that are exploited at such air transportations is the same as to compare the

air taxi and ordinary taxi. These are absolutely different machines. Eclipse 500 is intended foremost for business aviation", Boris Rybak supposes. Yevgenij Andrachnikov agrees with him. "Eclipse ideally befits the private flight of jet by an owner in the conditions of the super developed infrastructure and clear sky, i.e., for example, in the USA, where there are 6 000 airports and 9 000 private jets, and in less degree – in Western Europe", he considers. "And Eclipse as a jet for earning money, especially in Russia, is a big question". DEXTER exploits now turbo propelled aircrafts ?101? produced by Nizhniy Novgorod plant Sokol and Swiss Pilatus.

   In the USA Eclipse perspectives connect exactly with the air taxi and business aviation, but also there, considers Boris Rybak, the project ideologists take this for wishful thinking.

"Impressive numbers that use creators of Eclipse 500 is rather the artistic exaggeration – in the USA are produced only first such jets, and the perspectives of this machine are not clear yet", he marks.

   However, Boris Rybak marks that doubt is in the great deal caused by ambitions of Eclipse creators and project novelty.

He acknowledges that market of business jets is, at least, in the USA, develops very dynamically, and Eclipse offer can be in demand there – the jet developers offer the product that corresponds the characteristics of jets exploited now, but considerably less expensive (the market price of Eclipse 500 should make approximately $1-1,5 mln). According to his estimations, the Russian market of aircrafts of business aviation could annually provide realization of 200-300 Eclipse.