Krasnodar-based Simavia has received approval from Daher, which enables it to operate as an authorised service centre for TBM aircraft in Russia as well as Armenia, Belarus, Ukraine and Kazakhstan. The FAP-285 certification, issued by Russia's Federal Agency for Air Transport (Rosaviatsiya), recognises Simavia's engineering quality and skills to maintain TBM-family airplanes. Personnel were given a four-week training course at the Daher TBM factory in Tarbes, France.

Simavia offers general aviation and business aviation services, operating from its Krasnodar headquarters in the Kuban region near the Black Sea, and at a base in St. Petersburg. It has four main activities: Aircraft sales, maintenance services, aviation training and VIP charter. The organisation is well-known as the organiser for the Kuban Airshow, one of the largest annual aviation events in Russia.

The company began its relationship with Daher as an area sales representative for TBM aircraft in Russia, including the TBM 940 version. Simavia has sold and delivered a new TBM 940 to a Russian customer, which the company will maintain, along with a TBM 910 that recently was registered in Russia.

Simavia CEO Simon Mnoyan says: “Our Rosaviatsiya approval as a TBM service centre officially recognises the quality of services that we can provide for such a high-end general aviation airplane. This is one more step toward our goal of developing the use of personal aircraft within Russia, and Daher's TBM very fast turboprop aircraft is fully aligned with this strategy.”

“We salute the expanding TBM activities at Simavia, which is a dynamic, dedicated and high-quality promoter of general aviation in Russia,” adds Nicolas Chabbert, senior VP of Daher's aircraft division. “We are fully committed to supporting on-demand transportation in Russia, as well as across Eastern Europe and Eurasia, especially from remote community airports where operators will benefit from the TBM's speed, economical operating costs and the ability to serve smaller runways.”