You're reading: Medvedev: Russia needs its own regional plane

Gorki - Russia needs its own regional plane, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev told Federation Council members on Monday.

The plane will transport passengers within a region, he said.

The construction of this plane will take time, “so we will have to use foreign-made aircraft, too,” he said.

Airlines operating on regional routes must have a number of benefits, Medvedev said.

“There must be no mistakes in choosing the regional plane. There are a number of ideas but neither of them is perfect,” he said.

“The useful life of the existent fleet is over, but the country has
no aircraft [that are ready]. All the existent models require further
upgrading,” the prime minister said.

“So, on one hand, we will have to build our own plane and, on the
other hand, use foreign aircraft for a certain period of time,” he said.

Medvedev said he had suggested a number of benefits to promote
regional air traffic. He recalled the VEB Leasing potential as an
option.