The Russian Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsia) has ceased publishing data on the number of aircraft in the fleets of Russian airlines.
This information was previously publicly available in the airline register on the agency’s website, indicating the type and number of aircraft included in each carrier’s operator certificate.
However, as first noted by the aviation portal ATO.ru, the latest version of the register, dated April 18, 2024, only lists the types of aircraft included in each airline’s air operator certificate without specifying the numbers.
The last register to include detailed aircraft numbers was published on October 20, 2023. At that time, 116 Russian companies held operator certificates for 2,228 aircraft and helicopters.
Rosaviation explained to Kommersant that removing fleet numbers from the public website is necessary to “optimize published information.”
Industry sources told the publication that this change could help Russian carriers circumvent sanctions and enable them to replenish their fleets by using secondary markets in so-called “friendly countries.”
On June 24, 2024, the European Union added Ural Airlines, one of Russia’s largest airlines, air logistics company Volga-Dnepr, and airport operator Novaport to an updated list of sanctioned entities due to their participation or support in Russia’s invasion and occupation of Ukraine.