Stewardesses make infrequent appearances during flights, sometimes offering a glass of carbonated water, sometimes not; service takes a back seat to just about everything.
But Transaero, the country's first independent airline, is flying in the face of these traditions.
The rapidly expanding airline is simply trying to be everything Aeroflot, the state airline company, is not.
Transaero was the first Russian airline to offer a first-class service; it provides meals on flights and has trained its stewardesses and pilots abroad, emphasizing passenger service.
"We think if a passenger realizes they will not be treated like cattle, that they will be treated like passengers, then they will fly with us", said Grigory Gurtovoy, senior vice president of Transaero.
Transaero, whose economy seats cost from 10 to 15 percent more than Aeroflot, has just moved to gain an extra competitive advantage over other domestic carriers. In June, it opened a 24-hour computerized booking office located in the Hotel Moskva, accepting credit cards as payment and selling tickets on foreign Airlines, like United, Finnair and the Baltic airlines.
Transaero was founded in 1991, making 48 charter flights. In 1992 it became the first Russian private airline to make regularly scheduled flights, logging in about 500. By the first half of this year, Transaero had made 800 nights.
This year, Transaero became the first Russian company to fly U. S. -made jets on nights within the former Soviet Union. It leased two Boeing 737s to use on routes to Kiev, Riga, Minsk and to the Russian cities of Sochi and Surgut.
The company also uses two Russian-made IL-86s. It uses the larger jets on its routes to Almaty in Kazakhstan and Norilsk in Siberia.
A host of aviation companies own shares in Transaero, including 5-percent stakes held by the international arm of Aeroflot and the Ilyushin and Yakovlev airplane manufacturers.
While it may seem strange that Aeroflot would hold a stake in a competitor, Gurtovoy said the Russian state airline is technically not a rival. Aeroflot, in fact, was not during the Soviet Union, and is not now, a domestic carrier. All planes had Aeroflot written on them because the civil aviation code called for it. The planes, however, were owned by local airport authorities. Each airport had a stock of planes and technically constituted an airline of its own.
As privatization slowly makes its way through the airline industry, a huge stock of planes and facilities will become available. But Gurtovoy said Transaero is not interested in expanding right now because, for the moment, it has enough problems.
"We want to be efficient, we don't want to be big", he said.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.