Russia will start producing spare air parts for Boeing and Airbus aircraft due to sanctions restricting the import of these components from abroad, Russian news outlet Izvestia reported on July 10, citing Russian airline Aeroflot.
Sanctions introduced after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine included a ban on the ability of Russian airlines or Russian-owned airplanes to use EU airspace, as well as a prohibition on exporting aviation-related technology.
The domestic production of spare parts is the result of collaboration between Aeroflot, Russia's largest carrier, and a division of Rosatom, Russia's state atomic agency.
A production facility will open in August and focus on the "repair of components of onboard equipment of foreign-made Aeroflot airliners," in particular air conditioning, power supply, and lighting systems, Izvestia said.
Aeroflot told Izvestia that in the coming month, Rosatom will apply for a license to produce metal, plastic, and composite products for the aviation industry.
According to Aeroflot, Rosatom has already produced a batch of locks for baggage and cargo compartments for Airbus A320/321 aircraft.
The locks will "be installed in the coming weeks during periodic maintenance" and are "40% cheaper than the original spare part and are not inferior to them in quality and safety requirements," the airline claimed.
The safety of Russian airlines appears to have deteriorated as companies scramble to find spare parts.
In October 2023, three planes from Aeroflot broke down within one day, while in December 2023, two Russian airplanes experienced technical malfunctions that resulted in emergency landings on the same day.
Russian state-controlled media Kommersant reported in May 2023 that 2,000 flights had been recorded by planes using expired parts.
