Sukhoi SuperJet 100's first flight "is imminent," Superjet International CEO Alessandro Franzoni said yesterday at the SpeedNews Commercial Aviation Suppliers Conference in Los Angeles. To date, the 78/98-seat regional jet family has garnered 73 firm orders plus 46 options, the bulk of them from Russian customers. But after first flight, the company intends to make a major sales push to win US airline customers. "We will certainly focus our efforts on this market, which is very important," Franzoni stated. He also acknowledged that the aircraft first has to prove itself to skeptical US carriers. "The US market is very difficult for an aircraft that has not yet flown, unless you are Boeing, and we are not," he told attendees.
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