Nato Considering Using Ruslan Aircraft on Permanent Basis – Antonov Director

KYIV. Jan 16 (Interfax) – NATO is considering using Antonov An- 124-100 Ruslan heavy transport aircraft belonging to Ukrainian and Russian companies in its operations on a permanent basis, Executive Director of Antonov Airlines Kostyantyn Lushakov said.

At a Tuesday meeting with the press in Kyiv he said the decision may be made after the resumption of the serial production of upgraded An-124-100M-1500 with a payload of 150 tonnes, stressing the importance of the political aspect of such a decision.

A maintenance service center for Ukrainian and Russian Ruslans operated in the interests of NATO and the EU will be opened in Leipzig later this week. The Ukrainian side has invested $5 million. The center was built with due account taken of requests by our colleagues from NATO, Lushakov said.

Two leading operators of Ruslans, Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines and Russia’s Volga-Dnepr airlines, are working to resume the serial production of upgraded modifications of the plane. Prominent Western companies have shown interest in the project, he said.

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