Aviastar-TU Airlines (Russian: Авиастар-ТУ) is a Russian cargo charter airline which operates principally out of Ramenskoye Airport in Moscow, Russia. Its headquarters is located in Zhukovsky, Moscow Oblast.[2]

Aviastar-TU Airlines
Авиастар-ТУ
IATA ICAO Call sign
4B TUP TUPOLEVAIR
Founded2000
Commenced operationsMarch 2000[1]
HubsZhukovsky International Airport
Secondary hubs
Fleet size8
Parent companyAviastar-SP
HeadquartersZhukovsky, Russia
Key peopleIvan Ivanovich Sukhomlin (General Director)
Websitewww.aviastartu.com

History

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The airline began operating domestic and international charter flights in 2000. Aviastar-TU, as an aircraft operator, has a historical affiliation with Aviastar-SP, an aircraft builder.

After the incident of Flight 1906, the Federal Air Transport Agency imposed a ban on passenger transport due to the airline's lack of a spare aircraft. In November 2011, after a number of deficiencies were identified by European inspectors, the European Aviation Safety Agency also imposed an additional ban on flights to EU countries, which was lifted at the end of December 2011.

On 8 April 2022, the US Department of Commerce restricted flights on aircraft manufactured in the US for Aeroflot, Aviastar, Azur Air, Belavia, Rossiya and Utair. It seems the US wants to reclaim ownership of the intellectual property.[3] On 16 June, the US broadened its restrictions on the six airlines after violations of the sanctions regime were detected. The effect of the restrictions is to ground the US-manufactured part of its fleet.[3]

Fleet

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Aviastar-TU Tupolev Tu-204
 
Aviastar-TU Tupolev Tu-204 in Russian Post livery

Current fleet

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The Aviastar-TU fleet consists of the following aircraft (as of December 2022):[citation needed]

Aviastar-TU Airlines fleet
Aircraft In service Orders Notes
Boeing 757-200PCF 5 RA-73354 operating for SDEK.[4]
Tupolev Tu-204-100C 3 Two in Russian Post livery.[citation needed]
Total 8

Former fleet

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Aviastar-TU fleet formerly operated the following aircraft:[citation needed]

Aviastar-TU Airlines former fleet
Aircraft Total Introduced Retired Notes
Tupolev Tu-204-100 4 2000 2010
Tupolev Tu-204-300 1 2003 2004 Transferred to Vladivostok Air

Accidents and incidents

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  • On 22 March 2010, Aviastar-TU Flight 1906, a Tupolev Tu-204-100 (RA-64011) crashed on approach to Moscow Domodedovo International Airport. Only eight crew members were on board, and all of them survived.[5] Immediately upon the accident, the Russian aviation supervisory authority suspended Aviastar-TU from carrying passengers, pending an examination of the airline's flight operations.[5] In September 2010, the Russian aviation supervisory authority, МАК, released its final report into the accident.[6] The cause of the accident was attributed to pilot error, with a number of factors contributing to the accident including inadequate crew training and lack of cockpit resource management, failure of autoflight systems and regulatory violations by Aviastar-TU.
  • On 24 August 2016, a Tupolev Tu-204-100C (RA-64021) operating Flight 9625, suffered a hard landing at Alykel Airport. Information from the investigation shows that the aircraft bounced on touchdown, the spoilers then automatically extended, after which the aircraft landed hard with an acceleration of +3,05G. The aircraft taxied to the parking position, where examination revealed that the rear spar of the wing sustained. All 4 crew members on board were safely evacuated.[7]
  • On 8 January 2022, a Tupolev Tu-204-100C (RA-64032), operating Flight 6534 for Cainiao, was written off after a fire started during pushback from its gate at Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport and burnt through the fuselage, causing the rear of the aircraft to collapse.[8] All 8 crew members on board were safely evacuated.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ http://aviastartu.com/about shows the timeline of the airline 31 August 2019
  2. ^ "Contact information Archived 2016-07-03 at the Wayback Machine." Aviastar-TU. Retrieved on June 7, 2016. "Addess: [sic] 4 Grishchenko street, Zhukovsky, Moscow Region, Russian Federation, 140180 " - Russian address: "Адрес: 140180, Россия, Московская область, г. Жуковский, ул. Грищенко д. 4"
  3. ^ a b "US Broadens Restrictions on Belarus National Airline After Violations". VOA News. 16 June 2022.
  4. ^ "CDEK Express Fleet Details and History". Planespotters.net. Retrieved December 3, 2022.
  5. ^ a b See an Archived News Report, originally published on 22 March 2010 at Flightglobal.com. See also The Aviation Herald, 22 March 2010.
  6. ^ "Accident: Aviastar-TU T204 at Moscow on Mar 22nd 2010, landed short of runway". 2010-09-20. Retrieved 2011-06-12. Formal investigation report in Russian is at MAK.ru Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine.
  7. ^ "ASN Aircraft accident Tupolev Tu-204S RA-64021 Noril'sk Airport". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
  8. ^ @ChinaAvReview (8 January 2022). "Aviastar's TU204 fire accident in Hangzhou (HGH/ZSHC).RA-64032 (Cainiao Special Livery)" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
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