Aeroflot negotiating purchase of 8 ECA financed Airbus aircraft

(AssumeTech, Iceland, 21 April 2022) Aeroflot is considering the purchase of 8 chartered Airbus SE aircraft after the European Union provided a mechanism for lenders to dispose of some seized aircraft in Russia after the invasion of Ukraine, TASS reported. The planes operate under so-called finance leases, which the European Union created a penalty waiver this month by allowing payments from agreements signed before February 26. Financial leases refer in to new Airbus and Boeing aircraft, with export credit agencies guaranteeing approximately 85% of the amount lent to an airline by a banking association. Most of the approximately 500 foreign-owned aircraft blocked in Russia operate under operating leases in which airlines lease planes for a specified period and can return them to the owner after the contract has expired. Russia passed a law banning foreign-owned planes from leaving without state permission after the Ukrainian invasion imposed penalties on lessors for canceling contracts and trying to return their planes.