Sukhoi's RRJ goes on sale

Sounds like news to me, what do commercial expert types say?

MOSCOW, December 5 (RIA Novosti) – Russian national aircraft carrier Aeroflot is set to sign a contract on the purchase of 30 RRJ (Russian Regional Jet) planes for $820 million from Sukhoi Civil Aircraft, a subsidiary of the Sukhoi state holding, December 7, Aeroflot’s press service said Monday.

Deliveries are scheduled to begin November 2008.

“RRJ planes fully meet modern and future reliability, [and] safety…demands and are designed to boost the growth and development of domestic and international networks of Russian airlines,” Aeroflot said.

The Russian Regional Jet is a project Sukhoi develops with large American and European aviation corporations, including Boeing, Snecma, Thales, Messier Dowty, Liebherr Aerospace, Honeywell and others.

RRJ will be the first Russian plane with a high export potential. Experts expect the RRJ market to include at least 800 planes by 2023.