SUPER LOW Pilot's View Cockpit Landing Saab 340, SHORT & OLD ex-Soviet Runway, MUST SEE! [AirClips]

Takeoff in Kropyvnytskyi from Kiev Zhuliany (former Kirovograd) further east in the Ukraine operated by Air Urga. If you like this, please watch our FREE full COCKPIT MOVIE of Air Urga: https://youtu.be/fFxxAGK2C-g

URGA International Joint Stock Aviation Company is a charter airline based in Kropyvnytskyi, Ukraine. It operates charter passenger and cargo flights from various Ukrainian airports to destinations in Greece, Slovakia, the Republic of Macedonia, Turkey, Syria, United Arab Emirates, Germany, Italy, Denmark, Bulgaria, and Cyprus. Its main base is the Kropyvnytskyi Airport (KGO). The airline was established and started operations in August 1993. It was founded as International Joint Stock Aviation Company URGA, initially concentrating on charter flights. Regular passenger flights from Kiev and Kryvyi Rih were added in May 1997. Air Urga is owned by the State Property Fund of Ukraine (51%) and American International Consulting Corp (43.5%). It has 378 employees. The Air URGA fleet includes seven Saab 340B, three Saab 340B Plus, four Antonov An-26-100 combi, one single Antonov An-26 full cargo plane and one Cessna 172 for training and sightseeing flights as well as local transport missions.

The Saab 340 is a Swedish twin-engine turboprop aircraft designed and initially produced by a partnership between Saab AB and Fairchild Aircraft in a 65:35 ratio. Under the initial arrangement, Saab constructed the all-aluminium fuselage and vertical stabilizer along with final assembly of the aircraft in Linköping, Sweden, while Fairchild was responsible for the wings, empennage, and wing-mounted nacelles for the two turboprop engines. After Fairchild ceased this work, production of these components was transferred to Sweden.
On 25 January 1983, the Saab 340 conducted its maiden flight. During the early 1990s, an enlarged derivative of the airliner, designated as the Saab 2000, was introduced. However, sales of the type declined due to intense competition within the regional aircraft market. In 1998, Saab decided to terminate production of the Saab 340.
On 6 June 1984, the Saab 340's launch customer, Swiss operator Crossair, received their first 340 aircraft. One week later, the type performed its first flight with paying customers onboard; passengers onboard this flight included Pope John Paul II.
During 1989, US region airline AMR Eagle placed a large order for the type, procuring a total of 50 340Bs along with options for an additional 50 aircraft. However, business conditions and demand for turboprop-powered regional airliner transformed dramatically during the 1990s; this can be perhaps best summarised by AMR Eagle's decision in October 1999 to announce its intention to phase out its 340 fleet. Faced with diminished value and demand for the 340, Saab chose to shutter production in 1999.
While production of the type ceased in 1999, Saab continued to develop and heavily market the 340 for various purposes in both the civil and military markets. In July 2001, the company announced that it had launched a new partnership with service provider Piedmonth Hawthorne to remarket used regional 340s to corporate customers. In April 2002, it was announced that Canadian company Field Aviation had been contracted by Saab to produce a freighter version of the 340, initially focusing on conversions of the earlier 340A model.
Even after production was terminated, a large number of 340s have remained in commercial service in the following decades. By 2006, there was a resurgence in demand for turboprop-powered airliners, in part due to the rising price of oil; during this year, Saab announced the largest ever leasing deal for the 340, providing a total of 25 340s to Australian operator Regional Express Airlines. By late 2010, Saab was evaluating the option of extending the certified lifespan of the 340 which, under the Maintenance Review Board programme, is typically limited to 60,000 hours; the company believes the maintenance programme could be extended to accommodate up to a 75,000 hour limit.
The existing aircraft have remained relatively active and competitive into the following decade. In late 2008, following a merger between US carriers Northwest Airlines and Delta Air Lines, the latter announced that a new Saab 340 base was being formed in Atlanta, after which the merged airline would replace its inventory of 12 ATR 72s in its regional fleet with 49 former Northwest 340s. During early 2009, Russian operator Polet Airlines conducted talks with American Eagle to lease 25 340s to increase its breadth of regional flights.