Returned? Russia passes law to keep over 500 foreign leased aircraft grounded in South Korea

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] As Russia faces the crisis of having to return over 500 foreign aircraft leased due to sanctions imposed by Western countries, Russian President Vladimir Putin has decided to implement a law allowing these aircraft to be used for domestic flights.

On the 14th (local time), according to BBC and other sources, Russia passed a law enabling foreign aircraft to be included in the country's aircraft registration list to ensure that civil aviation activities within Russia do not come to a halt. President Putin has already signed the law. Currently, Russia operates about 510 of its approximately 720 aircraft leased from foreign aircraft leasing companies. The value of these 500-plus aircraft is estimated at around $10 billion (approximately 12.4 trillion KRW).

After Russia began airstrikes on Ukraine on the 24th of last month, AirCap, the world's largest aircraft leasing company, decided to withdraw from Russia and has been pushing for the return of leased aircraft to Russian airlines by the 28th, before Western sanctions fully take effect.

All leased Russian aircraft were registered in Bermuda or Ireland, but following the start of the Ukraine airstrikes, these countries suspended the validity of airworthiness certificates, citing an inability to guarantee safety. Faced with the need to return leased aircraft, Russia established a legal basis to directly register leased aircraft domestically and utilize them for domestic flights.

Foreign media report that the possibility of foreign leasing companies reclaiming their aircraft appears very low. Due to Western sanctions, Russia is expected to deploy these aircraft on domestic routes instead of international routes. BBC explained that this would allow these aircraft to continue flying at least within Russia and former Soviet states.

However, some analysts suggest that from the perspective of Russian airlines, using this law to register leased aircraft in Russia without the leasing companies' consent and operating them domestically could lead to difficulties after the Ukraine airstrikes end, placing them in a dilemma. One foreign media outlet cited a source from a Russian airline stating that these airlines do not want to register leased aircraft in Russia due to potential future legal issues, but if they register under government pressure, they effectively become accomplices, raising concerns.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.