Mexico's Interjet may buy 20 SSJ-100 airliners

Mexico's Interjet airline may take up an option to buy 20 Sukhoi Superjet 100 airliners in addition to the 15 planes previously ordered, Astro Noticias news portal reported on Friday quoting Interjet Board Chairman Miguel Alem?n Velasco. SuperJet International signed a $650 million contract to supply Interjet with 15 SSJ-100s this January. Velasco said then the key factors for the company were the plane's quality and price. Velasco said last week's crash in which 45 people died when SSJ-100 hit a mountain in Indonesia had no influence on the company's desire to purchase additional Superjets. The Superjet 100 is a short-medium haul passenger aircraft developed by Sukhoi in cooperation with U.S. and European aviation corporations, including Boeing, Snecma, Thales, Messier Dowty, Liebherr Aerospace and Honeywell. The aircraft is capable of carrying up to 100 passengers for up to 4,500 kilometers. Sukhoi has received over 200 firm orders for Superjet 100 airliners so far. The SSJ 100 received its Type Certificate from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in early February.