In mid-September, Cubana de Aviación recovered its Tupolev 204-100B four years after sending it to Russia for major maintenance and, finally, on November 6, after seven years without operating commercial flights, it conducted its first flights with passengers.
The Tupolev 204, with registration CU-T1702, is the only Russian-origin commercial passenger jet operating in America. The airline has three other aircraft of the same model: a Tupolev 204-100B (CU-T1701) and two Tupolev 204-100CE (CU-C1700 and CU-C1703); the latter for cargo operations.
See Also: Cubana de Aviación recovers one of its Tupolev 204 after seven years
Cubana de Aviación and the Maintenance of the Tupolev 204
The CU-T1702 departed for Russia on July 4, 2019, to undergo Check-D at the Spektr-Avia Technic maintenance center (MRO) at Ulyanovsk Vostochny Airport. This aircraft, which was 16.1 years old at the time, was assembled and delivered by the manufacturer Aviastar-SP to the state airline in December 2007.
The lack of suitable components for its Russian aircraft had previously prevented Cuba from maintaining the fleet. Cubana de Aviación’s executives have attributed this difficulty to the economic blockades imposed by the United States. In 2019, Cuba and Russia reached an agreement that allowed for heavy maintenance called Check-D and Check-C on Russian-made aircraft in their country of origin.
See Also: Russia expands Tu-214 factory and seeks to increase production
The Slow Return of the Only Tupolev 204 in America
The CU-T1702 holds the title of being the only Tupolev 204 operating commercially in the Western Hemisphere.
The CU 1702 flight between Havana and Santiago de Cuba is its first (and for now, the only) route, operating an average of two flights per week.
Before being grounded, the Tupolev 204s used to fly to destinations such as Bogotá, Cancún, Caracas, Mexico City, Santo Domingo, and São Paulo/Guarulhos, according to the Cirium platform. When they were taken out of service, the airline turned to a wet-leasing contract with Avion Express to use Airbus A320 for a short period. However, due to economic restrictions that made it difficult to acquire dollars, this contract was canceled.
It is possible that the airline will resume some of these routes in the future. Recently, the Cuban ambassador in Brazil stated that talks are underway for Cubana de Aviación to restart its flights between Havana and São Paulo/Guarulhos (GRU).
Waiting for Cubana de Aviación’s Il-96
In addition to the Tupolevs, the company has four Ilyushin Il-96-300s (CU-T1250, CU-T1251, CU-T1254, and CU-T1717).
Two active Il-96s of the airline were sent to the hangars of the manufacturer Voronezh Aircraft Production Association (VASO), at Pridacha Voronezh Airport, for C-Check maintenance under the agreement with Russia. It is still unknown when they will return to the state airline.
The Cuban government stated that one of these Il 96s will soon arrive, which will allow for the resumption of operations with its own aircraft to Buenos Aires/Ezeiza (EZE), Argentina; and Madrid (MAD), Spain. Both destinations are currently operated with Airbus A340-300 via a wet-leasing agreement with Plus Ultra.
