Despite Western Sanctions... Boeing and Airbus Planes Still Fly in Russian Skies

As the war between Russia and Ukraine enters its second year, Bloomberg reported on the 2nd (local time) that despite sanctions from the United States and major European countries, Western companies' aircraft such as Boeing and Airbus are still operating in Russian airspace.

According to the report, Russian airlines operate 467 Airbus and Boeing aircraft. Although this is a 14% decrease compared to the 544 aircraft operated a year ago, most of them are still in operation.

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

Russia has eliminated flights to the United States and Western Europe but has increased flights to former Soviet countries such as Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan, as well as to Thailand, T?rkiye (Turkey), and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Within Russia, domestic flights have decreased by 15% compared to before the Ukraine war, but still, 1,100 domestic flights operate daily.

When Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24 last year, Western countries imposed a flood of sanctions against Russia. Consequently, Boeing and Airbus stopped providing parts, equipment, and technical support to Russian airlines and maintenance companies. Nevertheless, the Russian government prohibited its airlines from returning leased aircraft to meet aviation demand.

As a result, it has been reported that Russia continues to operate older aircraft that have not undergone regular inspections or parts repairs. Aircraft operators must have thorough maintenance and inspections by qualified engineers. Inspections are conducted daily, and detailed inspections are required if the aircraft has flown more than 200 times or is over 10 years old.

However, Guillaume Faury, CEO of Airbus, cited company data on the 16th of last month, stating that in the second half of last year, Russian airlines flew more Airbus aircraft than before the pandemic. Although he is not in direct contact with Russian airlines, he added that reports have started to emerge that Russian airlines are struggling to find alternative parts.

Meanwhile, Russian aviation regulatory authorities recently stated in an interview with domestic media that they are sourcing scarce parts from countries friendly to Russia. They also announced that last month they approved a contract with Global Jet Technic, a Dubai-based engineering company, to perform pre-flight inspections of Boeing and Airbus aircraft.