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Aeroflot
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OJSC "AeroflotRussian Airlines" , commonly known as Aeroflot , is the largest airline in Russia, based on passengers carried per year. Aeroflot is one of the oldest airlines in the world, tracing its history back to 1923. Based at Sheremetyevo International Airport near Moscow, the airline operates domestic and international passenger services to 96 cities in 49 countries.
During the Soviet era, Aeroflot was the Soviet national airline and the largest airline in the world.
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Encyclopedia
OJSC "AeroflotRussian Airlines" , commonly known as Aeroflot , is the largest airline in Russia, based on passengers carried per year. Aeroflot is one of the oldest airlines in the world, tracing its history back to 1923. Based at Sheremetyevo International Airport near Moscow, the airline operates domestic and international passenger services to 96 cities in 49 countries.
During the Soviet era, Aeroflot was the Soviet national airline and the largest airline in the world. Since the dissolution of the USSR, Aeroflot has been transformed from a state-owned bureaucracy into a semi-privatised airline which ranks amongst the most profitable in the world. Aeroflot is still considered the de facto national airline of Russia.
Aeroflot has embarked on a fleet modernisation program, extensive route restructuring, and an image overhaul, in order to bring the airline up to world standards. The airline joined SkyTeam in April 2006.
History
In 1921, shortly after the end of civil war in European Russia, the new government established the Chief Administration of the Civil Air Fleet to oversee new air transport projects. One of its first acts was to help found Deutsch-Russische Luftverkehrs A.G. (Deruluft), a German-Russian joint venture to provide air transport from Russia to the West. Domestic air service began around the same time, when Dobrolyot was established on 9 February 1923. It started operations on 15 July 1923 between Moscow and Nizhni Novgorod. On 25 February 1932 all civil aviation activities were consolidated under the name of Grazhdanskiy Vozdushnyy Flot (Civil Air Fleet), known simply as Aeroflot. International flights started in 1937; before that date they had been carried out by Deruluft.
By the end of the 1930s Aeroflot had become the world's largest airline, employing more than 400,000 people and operating around 4,000 aircraft. During the Soviet era Aeroflot was synonymous with Russian civil aviation. It became the first airline in the world to operate sustained regular jet services on 15 September 1956 with the Tupolev Tu-104.
In January 1971 the Aeroflot Central Administration of International Air Traffic was established within the framework of IATA, and became the industry's sole enterprise authorised to operate international flights. Abroad, the airline was known as Aeroflot Soviet Airlines. In 1976 Aeroflot carried its 100 millionth passenger. Its flights were mainly concentrated around the Soviet Union, but the airline also had an international network covering five continents: North and South America, Europe, Africa and Asia. The network included countries such as the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Spain, Cuba, Mexico, and People's Republic of China. Since the 1970s some transatlantic flights were flown using Shannon Airport in Ireland as an intermediate stop, as it was the westernmost non-NATO airport in Europe.
Aeroflot also performed myriad other functions, including aeromedical, crop-dusting, heavy lifting for the Soviet Space Agency (see Soviet Space Programme), offshore oil platform support, exploration for natural resources, support for construction projects, transport of military troops and supplies (as an adjunct to the Soviet Air Force), atmospheric research, and remote area patrol. It operated hundreds of helicopters and cargo aircraft in addition to civil airliners. It also operated the Soviet equivalent of a presidential aircraft and other VIP transports of government and communist party officials. Aeroflot joined IATA in 1989.
Aeroflot service to and from the United States was interrupted from September 15, 1983 until August 2, 1990 following an executive order by U.S. President Ronald Reagan revoking Aeroflot's license to operate flights into and out of the United States. (See Korean Air Flight 007 for more information). At the start of the 1990s Aeroflot reorganised again giving more autonomy to territorial divisions.
In 1992 it was divided into more than 300 regional airlines. International routes were operated separately as Aeroflot - Russian International Airlines (ARIA). Some airline companies which were created from the old Aeroflot are now flag carriers of the newly independent countries — for example, Uzbekistan Airlines, and Lithuanian Airlines. Smaller regional airlines which emerged out of the old Aeroflot — sometimes just one-plane operations — were sometimes referred to as Babyflots.
In 1994 Aeroflot was registered as a joint stock company and the government sold off 49% of its stake to Aeroflot employees. During the 1990s, Aeroflot was primarily focused on international flights from Moscow. However, by the end of the decade Aeroflot started an expansion in the domestic market. In 2000 the company name was changed to Aeroflot — Russian Airlines to reflect the change in the company strategy.
Recent developments
Aeroflot has been working towards redefining itself as a safe and reliable airline, hiring British consultants for rebranding at the beginning of the 2000s. A new livery and uniforms for flight attendants were designed and a promotional campaign launched in 2003.
Plans were afoot to replace the old Soviet-era hammer and sickle logo, which some people in the West treat as a reminder of Soviet communism. However, as it was for over 70 years the most recognizable symbol of the company, the logo was, in the end, retained.
Aeroflot has also upgraded its fleet of western-built aircraft. It has a total of 24 A320/A319 jet planes for short-haul flights in Europe and 11 Boeing 767 planes for long-haul routes. The total number of planes is 93. It carried 5.9 million passengers in 2003.
In the spring of 2004 the airline started an aggressive expansion on the domestic market aiming to gain 30% share by 2010 (as of 2006 it holds approximately 9%). The first task was to outperform one of its major rivals S7 Airlines, the leader in the Russian domestic market. On July 29, 2004 the company adopted a new corporate slogan: "Sincerely Yours. Aeroflot".
On April 14, 2006 Aeroflot became the first air carrier in the former Soviet Union to join a global alliance, SkyTeam. The airline will also get its own terminal at Sheremetyevo International Airport known as Sheremetyevo terminal 3 which will be finished in 2009.
The company has announced its plan to increase cargo operations. It registered the "Aeroflot-Cargo" trademark in 2004.
The airline is owned (as of March 2007) by the Russian Government via Rosimushchestvo (51.17%), National Reserve Corporation (27%) and employees and others (19%) and has 14,900 employees.
In 2006 Aeroflot carried 7,290,000 passengers and 145,300 tons of mail and cargo to 89 destinations in 47 countries.
Aeroflot has seen a significant financial improvement, both seen in its earnings and number of passengers carried. The net profit of the company reached $309.4 million (RUB 7.98 billion) in 2006, a 32.3% increase from 2005 earnings of only $234 million (RUB6.03 billion). The revenue for the same 2005-2006 period rose by 13.5% to reach $2.77 billion with an 8.7% gain in passenger numbers.
Cargo
Destinations
As of December 2008 Aeroflot - Russian Airlines operates its own scheduled passenger flights from Sheremetyevo International Airport in Moscow to 48 countries (including 5 countries in CIS), serving 95 destinations: 28 in Russia and 6 in CIS, 2 in Africa, 10 in Asia, 38 in Europe, 6 in Middle East and 5 in North America. The service to Toronto will be suspended as of March 29, 2009.
Fleet
Passenger
For most of its history, Aeroflot's fleet consisted entirely of planes built by Russian manufacturers Antonov, Ilyushin, and Tupolev. Following the Soviet Union's disolution and subsequent partition of the airline, Aeroflot has begun to replace its old Soviet aircraft with modern Western ones. The Aeroflot fleet includes the following aircraft as of March 2009
Aeroflot Fleet | Type | In
Service | Passengers
(Business/Economy) | Notes |
|---|
| Airbus A319-100 | 12
(3 orders) | 116 (20/96) | | | Airbus A320-200 | 27
(20 orders) | 140 (20/120) | | | Airbus A321-200 | 10
(14 orders) | 170 (28/142) | | | Airbus A330-200 | 2
(3 orders) | 241 (34/207) | | | Airbus A330-300 | (5 orders) | | Entry into service: 2009-2010 | | Airbus A350-800 | (18 orders) | | Entry into service: 2014 | | Airbus A350-900 | (4 orders) | | Entry into service: 2014 | | Boeing 767-300ER | 11 | 218 (30/188) | | | Boeing 787-8 | (22 orders) | | Entry into service: 2014 | | Ilyushin Il-96-300 | 6 | 256 (22/234) | Undergo Cabin Refit 2009 - In-Seat PTV - New Interior Panels | | Sukhoi Superjet 100-95 | (30 orders)
(15 options) | | Launch customer
Entry into service: Q3 2009
Replacing: Tupolev TU-154 | | Tupolev Tu-154M | 25 | 131 (14/117) | | |
As of June 3, 2008, the average age of the Aeroflot fleet was 6.9 years.
Aeroflot's Western-made fleet is young, whereas the Tupolev 154 fleet are due to retire between 2008 and 2010, because of high operating cost and an average age of 17 years (Tupolev 154). The Tupolev 134s had an average age of 30 years, but were phased out in early 2008. Aeroflot used to operate but later returned their 737s, A310s, and 777s.
Although there are a large amount of other Soviet aircraft in Aeroflot colors, they operate for other companies. As of 2007 Aeroflot operates Il-86 retired planes during summer rushes (e.g. night flight to Yerevan).
Retired
During the Soviet era, almost all Aeroflot's airliners were built by Soviet manufacturers. Virtually all civilian aircraft (and also some military) in the Soviet Union were considered Aeroflot. This meant that Aeroflot was the airline with most planes, since everything from small planes used for cropdusting fields to the Ilyushin 62 with more than 200 seats were Aeroflot.
During the 1940s and the early 1950s, the main aircraft was a licensed version of the Douglas DC-3. Soviet-made, modified versions of this airliner were named the PS-84 and the Lisunov Li-2. The first to be produced in the Soviet Union was completed in 1939.
Later, the Li-2 were replaced by the Ilyushin Il-12, which entered service in 1947, and the Ilyushin Il-14, which entered service in 1954. Aeroflot also operated large numbers of the Antonov An-2 STOL biplane (first flying in 1947), in passenger and cargo roles. The An-2 remained in service until the 1980s.
On September 15, 1956 Aeroflot began to operate Tupolev Tu-104s, the USSR's first jet airliner in regular service. The first passenger-carrying flight was from Moscow to Irkutsk, Russia. The first international route was Moscow–Prague, Czech Republic (then Czechoslovakia).
The Tupolev Tu-114, originally used to transport Soviet leaders, came into service in 1961 on the Moscow (Vnukovo International Airport) - Khabarovsk, Russia route. It also served international routes such as Moscow–Tokyo, Japan and Moscow–Havana, Cuba, the airline's longest non-stop route at that time.
In 1962 Aeroflot began operating the Tupolev Tu-124, the smaller version of the Tu-104, on regional routes. These were later replaced by the Tupolev Tu-134, which entered service in 1967. Upgraded versions of the Tu-134 still make up much of the Russian regional fleet today.
The first Ilyushin Il-62 long-range four-engined airliner entered service with Aeroflot in 1967, with an inaugural flight from Moscow to Montreal on September 15.
In 1972 the first Tupolev Tu-154 began regular flights. This jet is the most popular Russian airliner, with more than 1,000 made. The latest modification, Tu-154M, is still in service. These aircraft serve most of the Russian domestic flights.
On November 1, 1977 Aeroflot started to use the Tupolev Tu-144, nicknamed the Concordski, the world's first civil supersonic aircraft, on its regular route from Moscow (Domodedovo International Airport) to Alma-Ata (now Almaty, Kazakhstan). The Tu-144 was suspended from passenger service in 1978, having made 55 regular flights.
In 1980 the Ilyushin Il-86, the first Russian-made wide-body aeroplane, joined the fleet, reaching a total of 11. These were phased out by the end of 2006.
The first Western-made aircraft, the Airbus A310, was acquired in 1992. The company also became a Boeing customer, acquiring new Boeing 767 jets in 1994. Since then Aeroflot has also operated Boeing 737s, Airbus A320s, and the cargo version of the Douglas DC-10s.
From 1998 to 2005, Aeroflot leased two Boeing 777s, using the type on routes to the USA.
6 January 2008, Aeroflot removed the last eight Tupolev 134 after 40 years. The last flight was Kaliningrad-Moscow.
Fleet expansion
In 1993 Aeroflot began operating the Ilyushin Il-96-300 aircraft on the Moscow - New York route. The company now flies 6 aircraft of the type - about one half of all Il-96s in commercial service worldwide - and promised to buy 6 more if the Russian State allowed it not to pay import duty on Western-built aircraft. Industry experts claim the company is trying to terminate the deal with Ilyushin as operating the Il-96 is not cost-effective.
In 2006 it leased 3 used Boeing 767-300ER from ILFC for 5 years. The first two aircraft were delivered in November 2006 and January 2007, the third one was delivered in March 2007. The company had previously leased 2 Boeing 767-300ER from ILFC.
As of 2007, Aeroflot is in the midst of an overhaul of its fleet structure. The ageing Tupolev 134s used on the short- and mid-haul routes are being phased out - the former to be replaced by the Sukhoi Superjet 100 by November, 2008.
For long-haul routes the company has ordered the Airbus A330, the Airbus A350 and the Boeing 787.
In May 2007, Finnair has announced the sale of its last two self-owned MD-11s to Aeroflot which are thus to become part of the Russian airline cargo fleet in 2008 and 2009.
Matters came to a head in September 2006 as Aeroflot's Board of Directors convened to vote on the Boeing contract. Unfortunately for Boeing, this coincided with the USA imposing sanctions on various Russian companies (including a major aircraft maker, Sukhoi) for allegedly supplying Iran in violation of the US's Iran Nonproliferation Act of 2000 and with the Russian state-owned Vneshtorgbank buying 5% of the stock in EADS, the corporation behind Airbus. The State's representatives on the board abstained from the vote and another round of lobbying ensued, with Russian news sources reporting Aeroflot's efforts to placate the State by offering to order both 22 Boeing 787s and 22 Airbus 350s, effectively doubling its long-range fleet. Banker Alexander Lebedev, the man behind National Reserve Corporation, reached a deal with Boeing to prolong the deadline, using his corporation's money.
- On March 22, 2007, Aeroflot signed a protocol with Airbus for the delivery of 22 Airbus 350-800/900 XWB aircraft starting in 2015
- Ten Airbus A330-200 aircraft have also been ordered to arrive on operating leases from the end of 2008 to provide interim capacity.
However, several months later - and mere days after Aeroflot's main domestic competitor, S7 Airlines, became the 787's launch customer in Russia, on June 9, 2007 Aeroflot and Boeing signed a deal for the 22 Dreamliners on the sidelines of Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum, with deliveries starting in 2014 . Aeroflot's CEO Okulov confirmed that the existing Airbus order "would not be affected".
Aeroflot Bonus
Aeroflot Bonus is Aeroflot's frequent flyer program. It supports three levels:
- Regular
- Silver, attained if member has flown 25000 miles or 25 segments during calendar year (SkyTeam Elite)
- Gold, attained if member has flown 50000 miles or 50 segments during calendar year (SkyTeam Elite Plus)
Codeshare agreements
As of February 2009, Aeroflot has codeshare agreements with the following airlines:
Incidents and accidents
There are records of approximately 127 accidents involving Aeroflot aircraft and 6,875 fatalities (plus 20 people killed on the ground), making an average of 54.13 fatalities per accident since 1953. Until 1991, all civil aviation and aircraft in the Soviet Union, from the An-2 to the Il-86, (as well as some military aircraft), operated with Aeroflot's name on it. This list includes accidents and incidents from Aeroflot-branded aircraft and excludes most accidents and incidents from subsidiaries such as Aeroflot-Nord.
- In 1984, Aeroflot Flight 3352 with 179 onboard slams lands during poor visibility, and slams into 3 maintenance vehicles, exploding into flames and killing 178,including 4 from the maintenance vehicles.
- On 10 July 1985, the deadliest published accident on Aeroflot occurred at Uchkuduk, Uzbek SSR when a Tu-154B-2 on Aeroflot Flight 7425 killing all 200 aboard.
- On 14 September 2008, Boeing 737-500, Aeroflot Flight 821 crashed. The flight was operated by Aeroflot-Nord in a service agreement with Aeroflot. The air traffic controller noted that the plane was climbing and descending erratically. He instructed the plane to abort the approach and to line back up with the runway. The plane confirmed that everything was fine but continued its approach. ATC again instructed it to abort the approach and to contact another controller. The plane again did not follow its instructions and the first controller checked back in with the flight and told it to go around. The plane crashed into railroad tracks in the city of Perm in the Ural region of Russia. There were no survivors .
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