Russia delays delivery of 38 military planes to China till 2010
17/12/2008 15:55 MOSCOW, December 17 (RIA Novosti) - Russia will deliver 38 military planes to China, when a new aircraft production line is up and running, but not before 2010, the head of the federal military cooperation service said on Wednesday.
Russia has run into problems over its $1.5 billion contract with China, signed in 2005, to supply 34 Il-76 cargo planes and four Il-78 fuel tankers.
Originally, these planes were to be built in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, but then a decision was made to move production to Russia. Experts have put the cost of equipping the Ulyanovsk plant to manufacture the planes at $100 million.
The new production line is not expected to be up and running before December 2010.
"At the moment we have no aircraft ready [for delivery] and we are waiting for a signal when the [Ulyanovsk] plant will be ready. After that we will start work on the contract," Mikhail Dmitriyev said.
He did not say when deliveries would start or be completed under the contract.
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