customer profile Climate of success Russian airline UTair in Siberia is expanding with new Boeing jets By Elena Alexandrova Winter lasts seven months in Surgut, one of the oldest cities in Siberia and now a center of oil and gas production. Temperatures can plunge to 40 degrees below zero (minus 40 Celsius)—not ideal flying conditions. But UTair Aviation’s fleet of Boeing 737s is well-equipped to operate in severe cold, enabling the ambitious and growing airline to offer service throughout Siberia while expanding to multiple destinations in Europe, Asia and Africa. The airline’s network of commercial flights covers 90 percent of the vast Russian territory, which is 1.7 times the size of the United States. The airline recently ordered 40 new Next-Generation 737s. “Boeing delivers us what we need—simplicity, reliability and low-cost airplanes,” said Chief Executive Officer Andrei Martirosov. Wintry Surgut is home base for the UTair Group, a family of aviation-related companies providing passenger and cargo transport, maintenance and repair, flight services, and training. Its helicopter fleet, which UTAir Group says is the world’s largest, operates commercially around the globe; it also is used extensively in United Nations peacekeeping missions. Boeing 737s play a supporting role in those missions, transporting people and goods to the Republic of Liberia and the Republic of Sudan. Last year UTair Aviation transported more than 8 million passengers to 110 destinations, making it the third-largest carrier by passenger count and the second-largest operator of domestic 14 BOEING FRONT IERS / AUGUST 2013 flights in Russia. The airline maintains its central hub at Vnukovo International Airport in Moscow, where about 100 of its flights depart each day. Boeing and UTair have been working together since 2006, when the airline purchased its first 737-500. Today, its fleet of more than 240 airplanes includes 63 Boeing airplanes—51 737s, nine 757s and three 767s. The airline says fleet expansion and modernization has enabled UTair to open more than 30 new routes to Russian and international destinations in the past year. The 2011 Paris Air Show set the stage for an even closer partnership as UTair announced its first direct order of Boeing airplanes. All 40 airplanes—seven 737-900ER (Extended Range) jets and 33 737-800s—will feature the Boeing Sky Interior. First delivery is scheduled for fall 2013. “Our decision to further expand our Boeing fleet of 737s is based on the Next-Generation 737’s proven efficiencies. And our passengers will enjoy the new Boeing Sky Interior,” Martirosov said. That fits with UTair’s stated mission: to provide passengers “reasonable airfare and a convenient route network ensuring a high level of safety, comfort and service.” n elena.alexandrova@boeing.com PHOTO: A Boeing 737-500 in UTair Aviation livery. The airline recently ordered 40 new Next-Generation 737s. UTA IR aviation
Frontiers August 2013 Issue
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