Russia’s Aeroflot, the leading carrier in the country, eyes more growth despite the sanctions imposed. The airline aims to decrease orders for foreign-built aircraft since they plan to have 70% of their fleet Russian-made by 2030, enabling Aeroflot to reach its goal of flying 65 million passengers by the end of a decade.
The sanctions imposed are due to the ongoing Ukraine-Russia conflict making Russian carriers struggle to obtain parts for maintaining their Airbus and Boeing fleet. Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency approved parts from the grounded aircraft fleet to be reinstalled on other planes. This follows reports of Aeroflot cannibalising one of its Airbus A350-900s for spare parts to enable them to maintain its aircraft fleet.
Aeroflot aims to fly 43.5 million passengers in 2023, up from 40.7 million in 2022. Moreover, this will give the airline a 50% share of the Russian market. Currently, the carrier’s major markets in the US and EU have been cut off, making it unclear if Aeroflot’s ambition will be achieved.
In a statement regarding the carrier’s growth, Aeroflot’s CEO Sergey Aleksandrovsk said:
“By 2030, we plan to put into operation 339 domestic aircraft and develop competencies to maintain airworthiness. The ratio of foreign and domestic aircraft in the fleet will be 30 to 70%, respectively.”
Aircraft In Aeroflot’s Fleet
Aeroflot replaced older Ilyushin and Tupolev aircraft after the fall of the Soviet Union with foreign-built planes. In Aeroflot’s current fleet, Russian-built planes account for a small minority.
Currently, the carrier’s active fleet includes the following:
- 52 Airbus A320s
- 27 Airbus A321
- 7 Airbus A330-300s
- 2 Airbus A350- 900s
- 23 Boeing 737-800s
- 17 Boeing 777- 300ERs
76 Sukhoi Superjet operated on behalf of Aeroflot by the airline’s subsidiary Rossiya Airlines. The airline has nine Airbus A350-900s and 70 Sukhoi Superjet 100s on order. This will go some way to balance Aeroflot’s ratio of foreign to domestic-built planes.
Russia’s Aeroflot Plans To Rebuild Its Network
In 2022 all Russian airlines managed to carry 95 million passengers despite sanctions and international travel bans. Aeroflot plans to gradually expand international routes once again to boost its passenger capacity but to a limited number of destinations where the airline is allowed to fly.
The airline announced that it would resume flights to three destinations in Kazakhstan this week. The carrier also plans to resume its presence in China following the ease of pandemic-related restrictions. Aeroflot plans to operate four routes from its central hub at Sheremetyevo International Airport (SVO). They include three weekly flights to Beijing, Guangzhou, and Shanghai and one to Chengdu.
What do you think about Aeroflot’s growth? Will they achieve their ambitious targets? Let us know in the comment section below.
