RuAviation

As part of its route network expansion to the Far East, Aeroflot has signed a preliminary agreement with iFly Airlines to lease three Airbus A330 wide-body aircraft. The aircraft will be transferred to the flagship carrier on a wet lease basis – with flight and cabin crews. In conditions of impossibility to purchase new long-haul aircraft abroad, additional aircraft of large capacity will allow Aeroflot to increase the frequency of continental flights during the peak period. The airline’s press service said.

‘We plan to operate leased long-haul airliners for flights within Russia. Flights on iFly liners under the code SU at the first stage of cooperation will be performed in addition to the existing Aeroflot’s transport programme from Moscow to points in the Far East during the period of high demand,’ explained the carrier’s official representative.

This agreement provides for additional flights from Moscow to a number of cities in the Far East: Vladivostok – 12 paired flights from 22 December to 12 January, Khabarovsk – 13 paired flights from 25 December to 11 January, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk – 12 paired flights from 25 December to 13 January and Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky – 4 paired flights from 28 December to 10 January. In the future it is planned to use iFly liners to perform regular flights within the framework of Aeroflot’s flight programme from Moscow to Vladivostok, Khabarovsk and Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.

At the same time, Aeroflot is developing its strategy for the development of the Siberian aviation hub. From 16 December flights from Krasnoyarsk to Vladivostok (three times a week) and Khabarovsk (twice a week) will start, and from 19 and 22 December – to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk and Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky respectively. The frequency of direct flights from Moscow to the cities of the Far Eastern Federal District will remain unchanged, state-subsidised transportations and Aeroflot’s own ‘flat’ fares will be preserved, the airline explained.

At present Aeroflot’s fleet includes 12 Airbus A330 aircraft (modifications -200 and -300). One of them, the aircraft with the aircraft number RA-73702, is in storage at Sheremetyevo Airport. Attracting additional A330 aircraft under wet leasing will allow the airline to respond quickly to fluctuations in demand and increase capacity during the most demanded periods. It will also allow us to optimise the use of our own fleet on other demanded routes.

The new provisions of the Air Code of the Russian Federation, adopted on the basis of the Federal Law signed by the President of Russia on 8 August 2024, became the legal basis for the agreements with iFly Airlines. They came into force on 1 September. Article 104 of the new version of the code allows airlines to lease aircraft together with crews for the carriage of passengers, baggage, cargo and mail. Legally, this form of leasing is formalised as a civil aircraft charter contract.

Wet leasing of Airbus A330 for Aeroflot is a temporary measure aimed at solving seasonal peak loads on long-haul routes both in Russia and abroad. This decision does not imply long-term changes in the airline’s fleet development strategy. In the future, Aeroflot will be able to evaluate the effectiveness of using wet leasing for seasonal regulation of passenger traffic on long-haul routes. The results obtained will serve as a basis for making decisions on the further operation of such a scheme.