APEC leaders to see rolling out of N-250 aircraft
BANDUNG (JP): Fifteen leaders of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum will witness the rolling out of the first N-250 aircraft, fully designed and engineered by the state- owned Nusantara Aircraft Industry (IPTN), in Bandung on Nov. 17.
"IPTN will use the second informal summit of APEC to promote the N-250 plane and we hope some of them will be interested in buying the aircraft," said Hari Laksono, a senior executive vice president of IPTN at a coffee morning meeting with journalists yesterday.
Indonesia will host the second informal leaders meeting of the 17-member APEC forum in the middle of November. The ministerial meeting will be held in Jakarta and the summit in Bogor, West Java.
He added that 24 foreign and 133 domestic potential buyers had expressed interest in the new aircraft and hopefully many of them will eventually file orders.
According to him, IPTN has set up sales teams which will promote the plane in such countries such as Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan and Japan.
"There will be a meeting with a team of an American aircraft manufacturer who will visit Indonesia in August," Hari explained.
Meanwhile the vice president of N-250 program, Djoko Sartono, said that the N-250, which will use two turbo propellers and fly- by-wire technology, will be sold for US$13.5 million each.
Break even
"We hope to sell 700 N-250s within the next 20 years," Sartono said, adding that to break even 259 planes will have to be sold.
"We are optimistic about our sales projections. The world potential market for this type of aircraft is predicted to reach 4,500, consisting 2,200 as replacement of new aircraft and 2,300 to fill in the jet type which does not fulfill the decibel standard requirement," Sartono added.
He sees the SAAB-2000 made by Sweden and the ATR 720, a joint product of Italy and France, as the main competitors for the N- 250.
"But the N-250 has an advantage in that its carrying capacity can be extended to 60-70 passengers, compared to the maximum 50 that can be carried by the other two types of aircraft," Sartono said.
After the rolling out, the aircraft will undergo several tests and will make its maiden flight on Indonesian Independence Day (Aug.17).
He considers IPTN's plan to set up an assembling plant for N- 250 in the United States as a boon to its sales promotion since 60 percent of the planes components will be made in that country.
He estimated that the U.S. will need 1,200 aircraft of the N- 250 type.(pet/yns)