ex-head of IFC Sergey Turkin about old planes and repaid debts

The United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) changed the management of its leasing company IFC last week. It was headed by Mikhail Podkhvatilin, general director of VSP-Leasing, whose beneficiary is Boris Aleshin, adviser to the UAC general director and owner of the Sky Gates cargo airline. The reshuffle took place against the backdrop of the cancellation of the deal to transfer the Il-96 aircraft owned by IFC to the Volga-Dnepr group – instead, the liner may receive Red Wings, which is going to buy Sky Gates. Former director of IFC Sergey Turkin told “Kommersant” about the reasons for his departure and the circumstances of the cancellation of the deal for the Il-96.

– Did you leave the IFC voluntarily? Was there a conflict?

– There were no conflicts, we are with the head of the UAC (Yuri Slyusar. – “b”) agreed to terminate the employment relationship ahead of schedule. Initially, back in 2019, I had a clear understanding that the day would come when I would have to leave, and that day has come. I did the almost impossible: in 2019, almost no one believed that IFC would be able to avoid bankruptcy, but I succeeded, and now I left the company, which has no bad debts, has an interesting project and prospects, and has a team that is ready to perform assigned tasks.

Moreover, I am sincerely grateful to UAC General Director Yuri Slyusar for his trust and assistance in resolving emerging issues related to IFC activities in 2019-2023.

— Due to which, by 2019-2020, billions of losses of IFC were formed? How fair is the opinion that the IFC closed its debts solely at the expense of state support through the UAC?

— By 2019, the state of the IFC became critical. The main reasons were the accumulated debt of airlines to pay lease payments and the poor condition of the fleet, various unsuccessful deals and, of course, debts to banks and other creditors, which were the main threat of bankruptcy. In 2019–2020, I managed to settle almost all claims of creditors, and at the end of 2020, relations with banks were settled as part of a deal on the total debt of PJSC UAC: most of the loans were repaid through a capital contribution from UAC, and part of the debt was restructured for a long period. The combination of these actions made it possible to prevent the bankruptcy of the IFC and made it possible to think about a new development strategy.

– To you Do you know the reasons for the change in leadership at IFC and the arrival of a manager associated with the structures of the owner of Sky Gates?

– I have no information about the new director, his connections with Sky Gates and the tasks that lie ahead of him. But it is obvious that the main task for the next year and a half is to restore the airworthiness of the Tu-204/214 and Il-96-400T aircraft. I hope that the agreements that I managed to reach with the main suppliers of PKI (purchased components.— “b”) and future operators, the new management of the IFC will be implemented, and the aircraft will be restored in the required time frame and handed over to the airlines.

– How many planes eventually participate in the restoration program, for which the budget has allocated 15 billion rubles. in 2022? What was their condition and are the terms of their recovery realistic?

– In total, it is planned to restore three Tu-204-300 aircraft (and one has already been restored in 2022), two Tu-204-100 aircraft, three Tu-214 aircraft, two Il-96-400T aircraft and one An-124-100 aircraft. All these 11 aircraft (AC) belong to IFC. Another Tu-204, which should also be restored, belongs to the KLA. When this project was initiated, the main idea was that with the help of these 11 aircraft we will be able to revive the industrial enterprises. It is obvious that the enterprises supplying PKI for Tu-204/214 and Il-96-400T aircraft, and these are practically the same enterprises, need to gradually increase their production capabilities. And our order would help them gradually build up their forces and come fully equipped to serial deliveries for the Tu-214, Il-96 and import-substituting MS-21 and SSJ. Plus, restoring an aircraft is definitely faster than making a new one from scratch.

At the time of the decision, not a single aircraft had an airworthiness certificate and was not in operation, and, accordingly, all of them required a certain amount of work related both to the repair of the main units – engines, APU, landing gear, and so on, and the purchase of new components, repair of which is impossible due to resource constraints.

According to the plan, all work should be completed within 2023-2024. If the supply of components is ensured, then it is quite possible to hand over the aircraft within these terms.

– Are the main difficulties associated with the shortage of components? How were priority recipients chosen? Did the UAC, for example, have a schedule according to which IFC received PKI immediately after the conditional “Irkut” or the Kazan Aviation Plant?

– The main stages of restoring the airworthiness of any aircraft are the development and implementation of a special developer program, the purchase / repair of PKI, the restoration of airworthiness by a specialized organization certified according to FAP-285 at the location of the aircraft. In our case, these are Voronezh, Ulyanovsk and Kazan. That is, in addition to the repair and purchase of PKI, there are many more stages that need to be implemented in the implementation of this complex project.

With regard to the purchase or repair of PKI, I resolved this issue on my own by negotiating with the heads of enterprises supplying PKI. We must thank the management and staff of all these enterprises. Unfortunately, at the UAC level, I have not seen any consolidated schedule of all PKIs (except for PS-90A engines), which would provide for prioritization for suppliers. Although it seems to me that such a schedule would help not only UAC enterprises, aircraft manufacturers and IFC, which produce final products, but also the suppliers themselves. But I am sure that in the near future such a schedule can be formed at the UAC level, at least for the needs of the civilian sector, and communicated to suppliers.

– Whom are the restored “Tu” intended for?

– Part of the restored Tu-204 aircraft was planned to be leased to a subsidiary of IFC Red Wings. Part of the aircraft planned to sell.

– In 2021, as Kommersant wrote, IFC offered Tu-204/214 carriers from 1.5 billion rubles, and then the carriers considered the price too high. In 2022, the airlines already called the cost of the offer closer to 2.5 billion rubles. Will there be buyers for them at this price?

– I can say that the cost has increased due to the rise in the cost of components. But due to the growth in demand against the backdrop of the absence of Western aircraft, I think that each aircraft will find its buyer. In addition, the final price will depend on the configuration of the aircraft.

– Can you tell us about the technical condition of the two Il-96s, which, according to sources, the Red Wings intercepted from the Volga-Dnepr group?

– Il-96-400T aircraft have little flying time, and are in satisfactory condition, and require a certain amount of work. The main difficulties, as far as I know, are connected with the purchase of missing PKI, but there is nothing critical here.

– One of Kommersant’s sources says that Volga-Dnepr was almost glad to abandon these aircraft, since they have no economy: there are no spare parts, it is expensive and inefficient to fly even to China. What do you think about their prospects?

– Regarding the operation of these two aircraft, I can answer with a joke: the Il-96-400T aircraft is not some kind of Boeing that flies by itself … But seriously, any aircraft, and even more so as unique as the Il-96- 400T, requires a warehouse of spare parts and the corresponding infrastructure, which is exactly what IFC did.

– What did IFC plan to do after the completion of the project related to the restoration of the airworthiness of 11 aircraft?

— Naturally, IFC had plans for further activities, which were formed back in 2021, and they were associated with the remarketing of the first Russian SSJ aircraft, the lease term of which ended in 2023–2027. The events of 2022 slightly adjusted these plans. But in general, I believe that when the main volume of new products of the civil aircraft industry will be sold through the leasing companies STLC and AKS (Aviacapital-Service of Rostec.— “b”), the role of the IFC should be in the formation of the residual value of these aircraft. It is important that after the first lease, the aircraft is bought on the secondary market at a normal price, and not at the price of scrap metal. Without solving this most important task, the promotion of UAC civil aircraft to the market will be impossible.

— Are you considering continuing to work in civil aviation?

– I did not set any restrictions for myself here: as they say, never say “never”, so I will consider various options for continuing work, including in the field of aircraft manufacturing and aviation.

— Do you generally believe in the prospects of the domestic aircraft industry?

– I believe that the domestic aircraft industry has good prospects, but I would pay attention to one important detail, without which these prospects may remain prospects. I believe that it is not a plane that needs to be sold, but a complex service for transporting passengers and goods from point A to point B. Please note that airlines are in no hurry to buy planes: they want to get a carrying capacity on certain conditions. And the main task is precisely to ensure these conditions. This, of course, includes the price of the aircraft, and the conditions for its acquisition (credit or leasing), of course, flight performance. But maintenance of airworthiness, personnel training and the residual value of the aircraft are also very important. If you do not have at least one of the above conditions, then you should not even talk about any profit from aircraft sales. And, of course, the aircraft manufacturer should not be allowed to say that it is only a manufacturer, and maintaining the airworthiness of this aircraft is the task of the owner and / or operator, who is left alone with these problems.

I am sure that the current management of the UAC understands this very well and, taking into account the accumulated experience and knowledge, including in bringing the SSJ aircraft to the market, will be able to solve the difficult task of saturating the market with domestic civil aircraft.

Interviewed by Aigul Abdullina