According to journalists, since the introduction of restrictions in the airspace of the European Union, about 30 flights of private Russian planes and helicopters have been recorded.
Planes of Russian oligarchs and businessmen continue to fly through the airspace of the European Union, despite the statement of the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen about the closure of the sky for jets from Russia. According to Die Welt, since the imposition of sanctions against Russian oligarchs, about 30 flights of private planes and helicopters through European airspace have been detected.
The newspaper writes that flight restrictions only partially work, as the authorities sometimes cannot access information about who owns the plane.
Data on these flights are publicly available on flight tracking sites. There is credible evidence that the planes are owned or controlled by Russian businessmen, the article said.
For example, in mid-March, British authorities detained a Cessna aircraft registered as a G-LATO, which crossed EU airspace eight times. The Department of Transport in London attributes Cessna to Russian oil billionaire Eugene Schwidler.
It is also said that on February 28, the day after the ban was imposed, at 6:20 pm, an Airbus took off from Munich airport, which, according to the US sanctions list, is attributed to oligarch Alisher Usmanov. The plane went to Tashkent without hindrance, but none of the German aviation authorities took responsibility for it.
The flight routes of the alleged Russian aircraft from February 28
At the request of the Federal Aviation Administration, appealed to the local air traffic control. The Southern Bavarian Aviation Agency considered the Upper Bavarian government responsible. It was explained that information about the flight can be provided only by the Federal Ministry of Transport. However, the ministry returned the matter to the Federal Aviation Administration. Today, the ministry denies that any mistakes were made.
“Sanctions against business jets and helicopters registered outside Russia and owned by non-Russian companies are sometimes more difficult due to non-transparency of ownership,” the newspaper quoted a European official as saying, adding that even such planes were withdrawn as they accumulated evidence.
He also added that it is often difficult to determine the real owner due to the use of fictitious companies and offshore registrations.
One such example is the B7ardier T7-7AA. The aircraft is registered in San Marino and operated by a Swiss company. It is reportedly owned by Russian businessman Albert Avdolyan. However, the plane was able to take off from Nice to Istanbul on March 2.
The conclusion is that the British authorities are conducting a more thorough investigation than their counterparts from the EU, and are more likely to take action against aircraft that may be associated with Russia. On April 1, a Gulfstream G550 aircraft en route from Dubai was detained at London Luton Airport. As it turned out, it was used by Eugene Prigogine, who is suspected of links with Putin and the financing of the Wagner APC. After four weeks, it was established that the car is officially owned by a company based in the United Arab Emirates. Only after that the plane was allowed to take off again.
