The Russian Association of Air Transport Operators (RAATO) has proposed to the Russian Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsiya) to expand the list of countries from which aircraft parts can be purchased, according to reports from the Russian news agency RBC, citing two sources in the local aviation industry.
In May 2022, the United States, Canada, and the European Union imposed restrictions on the supply of original components for aircraft to Russian airlines. In response, the Russian government allowed local companies to procure components from countries other than the aircraft developers. The initial list included Iran, Egypt, Uzbekistan, Israel, Mexico, Turkey, India, Brazil, China, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Thailand, Aruba, and South Africa.
Now, Russian airlines are requesting the addition of Indonesia, Ethiopia, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, Malaysia, and Pakistan to the list of approved suppliers. The request has been submitted to Rosaviatsiya, which believes that these countries and their aviation authorities have achieved high audit results from the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), indicating a well-organized flight safety system.
Rosaviatsiya acknowledges that there has been limited interaction with the aviation authorities of these countries and lacks sufficient information about their certification and manufacturing control systems for aviation components. The move to expand the list comes as Russian airlines face increasing challenges due to the unavailability of original parts, leading to a rise in aviation incidents. Between January and August 2023, over 120 aviation incidents involving Russian airlines were recorded, a 2.2-fold increase compared to the average of 55 incidents reported from 2018 to 2022.
