Story ID: 
Jetallliance East launches Russia charter operations
By: Matt Thurber
Caption: Jetalliance East has launched charter operations in Russia and the CIS.
Word Count: 218
Jetalliance East has launched charter operations in Russia and the CIS. Jetalliance East (exhibiting here at the static display) is a joint venture between Aeroflot Russian Airlines and Jetalliance Holding of Austria. The two companies formed the joint venture in July and applied for a Russian air operator's certificate (AOC) under which to fly two new Cessna Citations-a CJ3 and a Sovereign-on Russia and CIS charter flights. Jetalliance is also the authorized sales representative for Citations in Russia.
The Russian authorities were very accommodating in helping Jetalliance East obtain its AOC, according to Michael Holy, director of marketing for Jetalliance Group. "Everything was very professional and without any surprises," he told AIN. The two jets are registered in Austria, thanks to a bilateral agreement between the two countries, but fly under Russian regulations. "We have to fulfill the same requirements as RA-registered aircraft," he explained. Flight crews are Russian, he added, by regulatory requirement, and are fluent in English.
The two Citations are based at Sheremetyevo Airport, although trips can be booked from any airport in the Moscow area, according to Holy. Aeroflot business aviation subsidiary Aeroflot Plus is based at Sheremetyevo. When the joint venture was formed, Aeroflot brought Aeroflot Plus to the new organization, while Jetalliance contributed the two Citations.