Russian authorities started taking effort to reanimate the national aircraft building industry. The recent resolution of the governmental commission for provision of integration of enterprises of the aircraft building industry into United Aircraft Building Corporation (OAK) was dedicated to this topic. In a few days the Federal Agency for Management of Federal Property will register the new corporation. OAK finally received the head in the person of Alexei Fedorov. Before his appointment Fedorov was General Director and General Designer of Russian airplane building corporation (RSK) MiG.
Fedorov was born in 1952, in Ulan-Ude. He graduated from the aviation department of the Irkutsk polytechnic institute and business school of the University of Oklahoma City. Fedorov made career from a post of ordinary designer to the post of chief engineer of the Irkutsk aviation production association (IAPO). In 1993, he became General Director of IAPO. Between December 1996 and August 1998, Fedorov was the head of Sukhoi aviation holding and afterwards he was the head of Irkut. In September 2006, Fedorov was appointed General Director and General Designer of RSK MiG. Two months later, he became the head of OAK.
According to Andrei Kokoshin, chair of the parliamentary committee for CIS affairs and relations with compatriots and former Secretary of the Security Council, appointment of Alexei Fedorov as the head of OAK “is a very successful decision. In the very difficult circumstances of the 1990s, he did very much for development of the aircraft building industry.”
Kokoshin adds, “Due to these efforts our products still enjoy demand on international markets and we do have serious research and technological achievements and technological base for transition to aviation of the next generation and mass renovation of our military aviation fleet.”
Officials of the Ministry of Industry and Energy say that “establishment of OAK has entered the final stage and fits the long-term strategy of Russian aircraft building industry development. The super task of OAK is to provide for competitiveness of the Russian aircraft building industry in conditions of global industrial and technological competition.”
It is planned that the structure of OAK will consist of three links. Officials of the Ministry of Industry and Energy say, “The head company will determine the strategy and settle the key financial issues. The next stage is represented by sub-holdings producing various kinds of finished products including civil airliners, combat airplanes and helicopters. The lower level consists of the plants producing certain components, units and assemblies.”
Government officials state that concentration of resources of the aircraft building industry in the framework of OAK will enable Russia to triple its market of aircraft increasing it to $16 billion. Along with this, it is expected that the ratio of military and civil products of OAK will be 50:50.
To the authorized capital of OAK the state will contribute the state-owned stakes of Sukhoi, Aviaexport, Ilyushin Finance Co, Komsomolsk-on-Amur aviation production association (Khabarovsk Territory), Ilyushin airplane building company, aircraft building plant Sokol (Nizhny Novgorod), Novosibirsk aviation production association, Tupolev and Financial Leasing Company.
Along with this, the stake of the state in authorized capital of OAK should be not less than 75%. By the end of the year the government plans to incorporate RSK MiG and Kazan aviation production association and to contribute 100% of shares of these companies to OAK.
Fedorov states that after registration of the corporation separation of assets in the form of business units will finally begin. Fedorov adds, “The first business unit to be established in the framework of OAK is a transport company. It will be named Aviation Transport Systems. The next business unit will be civil aviation and hydro-amphibian aviation.”
Fedorov concludes that the last business unit will be combat aviation.
Fedorov states, “It is clear why it is the last. Both Sukhoi and MiG are currently working both for the domestic and for the foreign market, that is why we will take establishment of this business unit very cautiously not to cut the hen laying gold eggs.”
General Director of Rosoboroneksport, Sergei Chemezov, also thinks that the helicopter building holding Oboronprom may be included in OAK. Alexander Denisov, Senior Deputy Director of the Federal Service for Military Technological Cooperation, reports that the enterprises included in OAK will retain the right for independent foreign economic activities.
Denisov emphasized, “The Federal Service of Military Technological Cooperation states that the enterprises should have this right and that all contracts signed by them should be fulfilled. Moreover so that MiG and Sukhoi have proven their ability to act as armament exporters.”
Commenting on the fact of real establishment of OAK in Russia, Kokoshin said that formation of OAK would make entrance of Russia into the top three international leaders of aircraft building realistic.
According to him, establishment of such large company “is a big event not only for the aircraft building industry but for Russia in general. It has been growing for a long time and I actively advocated such integration of civil and military aircraft building industries as soon as possible.”
Kokoshin says with regret that so far Russia lags behind the leading Western countries including the US in this process. Russia also lags behind Europe where the major part of aircraft building industry including production of airborne armament is integrated in the framework of a giant as EADS.
This way or the other, the light is already seen at the end of the tunnel.
