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Aeroflot shareholders OK purchase of Airbus, Boeing planes

MOSCOW, September 5 (RIA Novosti) - Aeroflot [RTS: AFLT] shareholders approved a deal to buy 22 Airbus-350 and 22 Boeing-787 airliners, the general director of the Russian air carrier said Wednesday.

"Almost 89% of shareholders attended the meeting, and 99.8% of those present voted in favor of the deal," Valery Okulov told journalists.

Okulov said Airbus and Boeing had offered very favorable conditions to Aeroflot -- both aircraft makers made a discount of at least 30% for the Russian company.

The deal with each manufacturer "was worth $2.96-2.97 billion," Okulov said.

A350 jets can fly between 270 and 350 passengers over a distance of up to 8,100 nautical miles.

The 787-8 Dreamliner can carry 210-250 passengers on routes of 7,650 to 8,200 nautical miles, while the 787-9 Dreamliner can fly 250-290 passengers on routes of 8,000 to 8,500 nautical miles.

A third version of the 787, the 787-3 Dreamliner, can accommodate 290-330 passengers and be optimized for routes of 2,500 to 3,050 nautical miles.