MOSCOW, February 21 (RIA Novosti) – Russian leasing company Ilyushin Finance Co. (IFC) has signed a $2.56 billion deal with Canadian airplane manufacturer Bombardier to buy 32 CS-300 medium-haul aircraft, Bombardier said on Thursday.

The deal includes an option for ten more CS-300 planes.

“Based on the list price for the CS300 aircraft, a firm order from IFC for 32 aircraft would be valued at approximately $2.56 billion. Should IFC also exercise its 10 options, the contract would have a total value of approximately $3.42 billion,” Bombardier said in a statement.

The planes will be delivered in 2015-2018, the IFC press office said.

The deal was signed on Wednesday during a visit by IFC officials to Bombardier’s final assembly facility for the CSeries aircraft in Mirabel, Québec, following a letter of intent signed in August 2011.

“The aircraft leasing world is changing rapidly,” IFC CEO Alexander Rubtsov said.

“As older, less efficient designs present ongoing challenges to airlines – given high fuel costs and heightened environmental concerns – the CSeries aircraft offers transcontinental range, superior field and runway performance, and a superb cabin that will bring air transport into the 21st century.”

The CS-300 narrow-body medium-range airliner can seat from 130 to 150 passengers and has a maximum range of 5,463 km (2,950 nautical miles).

Currently, 95 Bombardier’s CRJ regional jets and Dash 8/Q-Series aircraft are in service or on order in Russia and former Soviet republics. Bombardier is also exploring opportunities for its Q400 NextGen turboprop aircraft in Russia, the company says.