Russia’s aviation industry has taken another hit as sanctions imposed by the West continue to cripple its airline fleets.
Half of Vladimir Putin’s Airbus A320neo and A321neo jets have been grounded due to maintenance issues, according to Russian news outlet Kommersant.
The sanctions were introduced after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and have since left the country’s airlines cut off from official maintenance and spare parts for their Airbus and Boeing planes.
This has created a growing crisis, particularly for Russia’s S7 Airlines, which has 31 out of 39 A320neo and A321neo jets parked.
These planes are equipped with CFM International LEAP engines and are relatively new.
They are only three to seven years old, but their engines have already been exhausted.
The grounded planes account for about 10 percent of Russia’s foreign aircraft fleet.
Some jets have been placed in reserve to preserve their engine life for peak travel seasons, but Kommersant reports that 15 to 20 of these planes may never fly again.
Eight A321neo jets, in particular, haven’t taken to the skies since 2023.
Maintenance issues are proving extremely difficult because the planes are too complex to repair domestically and Western sanctions block the import of essential parts.
Experts are now predicting that a large-scale withdrawal of these planes could take place as soon as 2026.
While domestic production of aircraft has been suggested as a solution, progress has been slow.
The planned PD-8 engines for Russia’s SuperJet have reportedly failed ground tests, and the ambitious MC-21 project has faced massive setbacks, becoming heavier, underpowered, and more expensive than anticipated.
China’s new Comac C919 aircraft has also been proposed as an alternative to Airbus and Boeing planes.
However, it too uses Western-made CFM International LEAP engines.
Nonetheless, Roman Starovoit, Russia’s transport minister, has downplayed the crisis, blaming Airbus for producing engines that he claims were “not fully developed.”
He also insisted that the groundings would not have a major impact on Russian air travel.
