Summary
- Russia quickly seized foreign-leased aircraft to forestall the key impact of sanctions on its aviation industry.
- Over 170 foreign-owned aircraft have been re-registered by Russian airlines in response to sanctions.
- Despite challenges with maintenance and foreign parts, Russia is working to exchange domestic aircraft which were delayed by the sanctions.
In February 2022, Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In horror, the West reacted by not only supporting Ukraine but additionally by sanctioning the country. The sanctions had immediate and consequential impacts on Russian aviation. Most business aircraft are leased and never owned by the airline operating them – this meant the majority of the business airliners in Russia were Western-owned.
Russia seized around 400 foreign-leased aircraft before the country could possibly be essentially bereft of business airliners. Over the past two years, that saga has continued to unfold as Russia has purchased a lot of these seized aircraft. Recent reporting suggests many more aircraft shall be bought and re-registered in Russia (a minority of aircraft are also being repossessed).
The 2022 sanctions
The sanctions imposed on Russia required leasing corporations to repossess all of the planes they’d leased to Russian airlines. Had this happened, it will have been devastating for Russia. Russia hurried and seized a whole lot of business airliners owned by US and European leasing corporations to maintain them within the country. Based on CNN’s reporting, 85% of foreign-made planes in Russia were owned by leasing corporations (valued at $12.4 billion). Russian airlines on the time of the sanctions operated 305 Airbus jets, 332 Boeing jets, and 83 regional jets built by Bombardier, Embraer, and others. Only 144 of the planes lively in Russia on the time were built by Russia.
Photo: Tupungato | Shutterstock.com
In July 2022, The Washington Post reported an incident in Sri Lanka where the country almost seized an Irish-owned airliner operated by Aeroflot. An worker of Sri Lanka’s court system entered the airport with a judicial order grounding an Aeroflot flight set to take off for Moscow. The aircraft’s almost 200 passengers were deplaned and sent to local hotels. A diplomatic row ensued and Aeroflot halted all flights to the island.
Based on the Washington Post, Russia threatened to chop off energy deliveries to Sri Lanka (the country was already in a severe economic crisis). After a request from the federal government, Sri Lankan courts issued a brand new ruling allowing the aircraft to fly back to Russia. Aeroflot can have been in a position to retrieve its jet this time, but this shouldn’t be a threat environment airlines are keen on operating in.
![Aeroflot Boeing 777-300 ER taking off](https://static1.simpleflyingimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/aeroflot-boeing-777-3m0-er-vq-buc.jpg)
Sanctions: What Happened To Russian Aviation During 2022?
Let’s take a have a look at how the yr began and the way it has unfolded for the reason that fateful events of February 24.
The acquisition of seized Western jets
Over the past two years, the saga has continued to unfold. Cut off from Western parts and being extremely restricted to where planes can fly internationally, Russia has continued to operate the seized aircraft. It is also questionable how much the leasing corporations even want the aircraft back (they do not have acceptable valid airworthiness certificates and haven’t any access to Western parts). This was not a establishment that suited anyone.
Photo: Vladimir Zhupanenko | Shutterstock
Consequently, Russia has been purchasing the seized aircraft. In December 2023, Reuters reported Russia had bought out one other 92 aircraft from foreign leasing corporations using 190 billion rubles ($2.06 billion) from Russia’s National Welfare Fund. On the time, Aeroflot said they’d purchased 28 of their aircraft, while 19 had been purchased for Ural Airlines and 45 for S7 Airlines. One other Russian company, Charter iFly, requested these early funds but received none.
Bought-out seized aircraft:
- Aeroflot: 93 aircraft
- S7 Airlines: 45 aircraft
- Ural Airlines: 19 aircraft
- Aurora Airlines: 8+ aircraft
- Charter iFly: 0 aircraft
In late January 2024, Reuters again reported that aircraft leasing firms had secured settlements for around 1 / 4 of the roughly 400 seized aircraft (totaling over $2.5 billion). Reuters also stated that the National Welfare Fund had been allocated 296.8 billion rubles ($3.31 billion) by then to purchase out the aircraft.
![Two individuals in business attire walking away from a private aircraft parked on an airport apron.](https://static1.simpleflyingimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/shutterstock_441516670-2.jpg)
How Russia’s Private Jet Owners Are Getting Around Sanctions To Fly To Europe
Just one plane per week chartered by a wealthy Russian enters the EU.
More purchases are set to follow
The Russian newspaper Kommersant (one in all Russia’s major business dailies) reported that the Ministry of Transport in Russia requested one other 295 billion to purchase out more leased aircraft. The Kommersant noted that some 162 aircraft had already been purchased by mid-March 2024. This amounts to over a 3rd of the foreign-owned fleet in Russia, as a request. In total, adding individual transactions where corporations have used their very own funds, Russian airlines have re-registered over 170 aircraft of the 400-ish foreign-leased aircraft. In return, the foreign lessors have dropped any claims to the aircraft, and Russia can feel safer flying the aircraft overseas and never having them counter-seized after touching down.
Photo: Media Works | Shutterstock
Russia would really like to legalize your entire fleet if it may well – but this process takes time to work out. The newspaper stated that the majority funds were requested for the national carrier Aeroflot to accumulate around 90 aircraft. Aeroflot Group alone has re-registered 93 aircraft for the reason that starting of the debacle in February 2022. The airline operates a fleet of 349 aircraft.
The last couple of years have not been easy for Russian aviation. The sanctions have made it difficult to take care of foreign aircraft (because of an absence of parts) and fly them abroad (because of the dearth of airworthy certificates and the chance of being counter-seized). The sanctions have also crippled Russia’s own domestic aviation industry. Because the starting of the war, Russia’s once-touted Sukhoi 100 Superjet has been in limbo, and none have been produced. The Kommersant reported in March 2024 that many domestically built Russian aircraft (MS-21, SJ-100, Tu-214, Il-114, and Baikal) are being delayed. The delays in domestic Russian replacements have made buying out the foreign aircraft all of the more vital Kommersant noted.
Photo: Fasttailwind | Shutterstock
A tale of repossessions
Not all foreign aircraft are being re-registered in Russia – a couple of are being repossessed. It has recently been reported that the Singapore-based aircraft lessor, BOC Aviation, has repossessed three Boeing 747 freighter aircraft. These had been on lease to AirBridgeCargo in Russia. While the primary of the three was in a position to be repossessed immediately (it was in Hong Kong for maintenance), the last of the freighters – a Boeing 747-8F (registration VQ-BFU) has just arrived at Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport, ending its 2-year internment in Russia.