Just before the end of last year, Aeroflot claimed it had bought ten Boeing 777-300ERs from an Irish lessor. The EU Commission wants to take a closer look at this and has asked the Irish government to provide further information.
The sanctions imposed by the European Union in response to the Russian Federation army's invasion of Ukraine also include a ban on deliveries of aircraft and spare parts to Russia. Lease contracts also have to be terminated, with many aircraft not yet being returned, but being transferred to the Russian register without the consent of the owners.
The specific case, which the EU Commission would like to take a closer look at, involves ten Boeing 777-330ERs that were leased through an Irish subsidiary of the Russian VEB Bank. These are said to have been sold to Aeroflot. The financial institution, which is State owned, has at least 24 companies in Ireland. These are the official owners of various aircraft. Thus, a sale to Aeroflot would have fallen under the sanctions and not been possible.
The matter is causing quite a stir in Ireland, but it is currently not possible to say with certainty whether this is deliberate misinformation from Russia or whether the sale actually took place. This is exactly what the EU Commission wants to clarify and has asked the Irish government to submit documents. The Irish Department for Enterprise, Trade and Employment is now investigating the alleged sale with the support of the Foreign Office and the Central Bank of Ireland. All three institutions are national authorities responsible for enforcing EU sanctions.
The sanctions provide for the possibility that aircraft that are not returned against the will of the owner can be sold to Russia at the current market price. Requirements for this: The full price must be paid and the respective government must issue a special permit for this. However, the Irish authorities emphasize that they have not even received an application in connection with the ten Boeing 777-300ER.
Aeroflot describes the situation as follows: The machines in question were leased from 2013 or 2014 as part of a so-called finance lease. This would result in a transfer of ownership after payment of the full price. They also emphasized that they are currently working on the purchase of further commercial aircraft from non-Russian manufacturers.
and 