Russians perform well at Paris Air Show

PARIS, June 17 (UPI) -- For the first time, Russian jet manufacturers Sukhoi and MiG are taking part in the Paris Air Show as a team, and they appear to be stealing the show from established rivals.

Of course European and U.S. aircraft makers are still dominating with sheer presence this week's Paris Air Show, which runs until June 21. But as Boeing's hopes for new orders were so far denied, Sukhoi's new SuperJet 100 defied the overall aviation industry trend by raking in several orders.

Hungarian airline Malev signed a letter of intent to buy 30 SuperJets in a deal worth up to $1 billion; on Monday the Moscow-based Avia leasing company placed a firm order for 24 planes. Spain's Gadair European Airlines ordered two jets and has an option for two more. The plane made its flight debut Tuesday, cruising over the Paris sky near Le Bourget Airport.

The SuperJet is the key product in Russia's bid to revive its civilian aviation industry. The regional jet is built by a consortium of Sukhoi and Italy's Alenia Aeronautica.

Aside from civil aviation, Sukhoi is also dominating the Russian military market with its bomber and fighter planes.

The company hopes that its new Su-35 model, a highly maneuverable, multifunctional generation 4.5 fighter jet, will dominate the domestic and Asian markets. Topping off Sukhoi's developments is the T-50, a generation 5 jet that could see its maiden flight as early as next year. The T-50 is intended to compete with the world's first generation 5 jets, the U.S. F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II.

That doesn't mean MiG -- the other iconic Cold War fighter jet maker -- is forgotten.

The Indian air force will get its new MiG-29 fighter jets this year, and the company is bidding with its MiG-35 model for additional orders from New Delhi.

The joint demonstration at the Paris Air Show is aimed at unearthing possible synergies between both companies, officials said.

"We are aimed at sustainable growth, and Sukhoi and MiG will market together as one unit called Military Aviation," said Mikhail Pogosyan, director general of MiG, according to defensenews.com. "We're working on commonality and integration between Sukhoi and MiG. It is important to integrate both companies in order to be a success in the market. In the long run, integration of Sukhoi and MiG will lead to development of future products."

Russia is optimistic that it can beat the trend in the aviation industry, which has been embattled by the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and most recently the financial crisis.

"The airline industry, collectively, hasn't made money in a long time," Steve Lott of the International Air Transportation Association told CNN. "After 9/11, the industry faced revenue drops of 7 percent. This year, we are facing a revenue drop of 15 percent."

European aviation giant Airbus has made $6 billion in sales at the air show, a decent performance, but well below the order tally of recent years. Boeing hasn't made a single sale yet.