Fifteen Irish-registered aircraft leased to the Russian state-owned airline Rossiya have been added to Russia's domestic register in breach of international aviation rules.
The Irish Aviation Authority (IAA), the State agency that manages the register, has listed the "purported" Russian RA registry marks on 10 Irish-registered aircraft after the Kremlin passed a law circumventing EU sanctions to allow Russian aircraft to continue flying on domestic routes.
At least five other Irish-registered aircraft have been added to the Russian register in breach of the Chicago Convention, the international aviation rules that prohibit dual registration of aircraft, according to searches on aircraft registration websites that track the aircraft.
This means that 15 aircraft have both EI and RA dual registrations.
One aircraft, a Boeing 737, which is owned by Merx Aviation, part of the US private equity giant Apollo Global, out of a company in Shannon, Co Clare, was also registered in Russia, according to the list of "dual registry marks" posted by the IAA on its website.
Today was the deadline for aircraft leasing companies to terminate lease agreements with Russian airlines in compliance with EU sanctions imposed to punish Moscow for the country's invasion of Ukraine.
Lease terminations
Aircraft Leasing Ireland, the industry representative body, said that all of its members had fully complied with the sanctions in the time allotted and terminated leases with Russian airlines.
“The events in Russia are unprecedented and continue to evolve. The last number of weeks have been challenging for aircraft leasing companies in their efforts to recover aircraft with limited success to date,” the group said.
Irish aircraft leasing firms are among the worst affected by the fallout from the conflict.
More than 400 leased aircraft worth more than €9 billion are held in Russia with Irish-based companies owning about two-thirds of the jets, including many that are registered in Bermuda.
Dual-registered aircraft now on both the Irish and Russian registers include 14 Boeing aircraft operated by Rossiya, a subsidiary of state airline Aeroflot, and owned by Russian aircraft leasing firms connected to Russian banks Sberbank, VEB and VTB.
The IAA has said that it has terminated all transfer arrangements with Russia, which allowed airlines in the country to operate the 35 aircraft on the Irish register.
“These aircraft may not be flown legally without prior IAA permission,” the regulator said.
There are more than 700 foreign-owned jets leased to Russian airlines.
The transfer of aircraft to the Russian aircraft registry has triggered a wave of insurance claims from leasing firms, which consider their aircraft effectively commandeered.
Western companies fear that Russia’s re-registering of foreign-owned leased aircraft on the country’s own aircraft register is a precursor by the Kremlin to seize control of the aeroplanes.
Regulators in both Ireland and Bermuda have suspended the airworthiness certificates on the aircraft because they are unable to monitor their movements and maintenance since the sanctions.
Sanctions
The sanctions triggered a scramble to recover aircraft with leasing firms attempting to seize any planes grounded at international airports. Russia said 78 aircraft were seized overseas.
Dublin-based AerCap, the world’s largest aircraft leasing company, has the largest exposure to the Ukraine crisis with 152 jets valued at €2.1 billion leased to Russian and Ukrainian airlines.
The company said last month that it planned to terminate all leases in compliance with EU sanctions.
SMBC Aviation Capital, which has 34 aircraft in Russia with airlines Aeroflot, S7, Ural, Nordwind and Nordstar, said that it issued termination notices on all of these leases.
The company said it “continues to carefully monitor developments in Ukraine and is engaged with the relevant authorities”.
Irish lessor Avolon has terminated all its Russian airline leases and repossessed four of the 14-owned aircraft that were on lease with Russian airlines while they were outside the country.
The company is attempting to recover the remaining aircraft. It declined to comment.
