The increasing isolation of Russian aviation as planes remain in place

LONDON – Russian airline Aeroflot said on Saturday it would halt flights abroad as the country’s aviation authority places restrictions on planes that can fly outside its borders. Russia’s increasing isolation of the global air transport system.

Russian airline Aeroflot SA said it will suspend nearly all international flights in response to government instructions. The company said it would continue its flights to Minsk, the capital of neighboring Belarus that has maintained close ties with Russia throughout the conflict and has been used as a staging ground for Russian forces. About a quarter of the company’s 3.5 million passengers in January were on international flights.

The action by Russia’s largest airline came shortly after the country’s Federal Air Transport Agency, Rosaviatsiya, issued a directive effectively banning more than half of the aircraft in Russia’s fleets from flying on most international routes. It is scheduled to go into effect on Sunday.

This measure removes a significant portion of international flights that Russian airlines still serve after Western countries closed its airspace For these carriers in response to Russia Invasion of Ukraine.

“This recommendation is due to the high risk of seizure or confiscation of Russian Airlines aircraft abroad,” Rosaviatsiya said. Domestic flights will continue without restrictions.

The agency said the government measure does not affect Russian airlines that operate planes registered abroad or Russia to locations where there is no risk of being detained. Domestic flights are not affected.

Russia’s second-largest airline, S7 Airlines, said on Friday it would halt all international flights from March 5.

Airlines deal with Repercussions of sanctions That largely isolated Russia from the global financial system and steps directly targeting the country’s aviation sector. The European Union has given plane leasing companies until March 28 to void contracts with Russian airlines. This has led companies, including the world’s largest chartered company, AerCap Holdings, to cancel agreements with Russian operators.

The Russian commercial aircraft fleet is highly dependent on leasing arrangements. Russian operators lease 515 aircraft from foreign leasing companies affected by the sanctions, out of 861 aircraft in service, according to flight data specialist Cirium. The Russian government agency’s decree is adding to concerns by some lessors and insurers that efforts to restore planes will become more difficult.

At least some leasing companies expected Russia to take steps to retain the planes and sought to preempt them by trying to get them back quickly, according to senior industry executives. There have been only a few successful attempts to recover the property. One example is the Boeing Co 737-800, an earlier model of the MAX, operated by Aeroflot’s discount unit, Pobeda. The plane was hijacked last week while at Istanbul airport after the plane’s owner tracked the plane’s movements and managed to convince the country’s authorities to halt the plane’s takeoff, according to a person familiar with the recovery.

The financial burden of Russian airlines not returning their planes is primarily expected to fall on insurance companies to leasing companies, which will likely face payments for the full value of the aircraft, according to Phil Seymour, president of aviation consultancy, IBA Group. The market value of foreign leased aircraft operated by Russian airlines is currently around $12 billion, according to an analysis by London-based aviation consultancy Ishka.

The Russian aviation sector faced severe disruptions in response to the country’s military attack on its neighbour. In addition to airspace bans issued by the United States, the European Union, Canada and other countries, aircraft manufacturers and maintenance companies have been prevented from providing new aircraft and spare parts necessary to maintain the existing fleet.

The companies, including Texas-based Saber Corp and Spain’s Amadeus IT Group SA, which provide the systems used to distribute fares to the public and travel agencies, said they would withdraw support for Aeroflot on their systems. European Union and the United Kingdom Issued instructions to insurance companies To withdraw coverage of Russian airlines. Some insurance companies have already given customers notice that they are canceling their policies that are required to travel under international regulations.

“Due to the unfriendly decisions of a number of foreign governments regarding the civil aviation of the Russian Federation, Russian airlines and passengers have become tools and hostages in a political struggle,” Rosaviatsiya said in its statement.

Restrictions on Russian Airlines’ flights abroad leave Russians with few flight options. Airlines from countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Qatar and Serbia are among the few that still regularly serve Russian destinations.

Doug Cameron contributed to this article.