Russia’s S7 Group buys factory to secure aircraft components
Due to Western sanctions after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Russian companies have improvised new solutions to keep their aircraft airworthy.
Russian company S7 Group, owner of S7 Airlines, has acquired the Berdsk Electromechanical Plant (BEMZ). This will allow the firm to produce, test, and certify aircraft parts, as Russia’s civil aviation industry keeps looking for new solutions to bypass the sanctions imposed by Western countries following the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
A new solution to the lack of spares
Over the last year, we have heard about Russian airlines and companies improvising to keep their aircraft fleets airworthy. For instance, Aeroflot recently sent an Airbus A330 to Iran’s Mahan Air for maintenance on its landing gear. Another example is that new Sukhoi Superjet aircraft are rolling off the production lines wearing second-hand engines and non-Michelin tires (as it was previously done). There are reports of airlines cannibalizing new planes for spare parts in order to keep other aircraft in the sky.
This week, the Russian news agency TASS reported that S7 Group acquired the Berdsk Electromechanical Plant. S7 Group acquired an 82.18% stake in BMZ, a plant that produces equipment and parts for aircraft, rockets, and space systems. The Plant’s General Director, Vasily Yurchenko, said that S7 Group would produce, test, and certify aircraft components. He added,
“There are a number of companies in the S7 Group that have different competencies in repairing and maintaining the aircraft fleet. BEMZ is needed so the group can produce, test, and certify missing parts. It will be a modern, in-demand, high-tech production facility. In the nearest future, we are going to form an investment program and start re-equipment of the enterprise.”
The Berdsk Electromechanical Plant is a machine-building company that has been operating since 1959. Russia’s improvisation to maintain commercial planes in airworthiness condition has worried international experts. Earlier this year, Guillaume Faury, Airbus Chief Executive Officer, said,
“We start to hear about situations where they are missing parts or components or an inability to keep some of the planes in flight. But we are not speaking with the Russian airlines. We miss visibility. And yes, we are slightly concerned about the way the planes are operated, but we have no real means to act.”
S7 Airlines profile and fleet
S7 Airlines is a carrier based at Novosibirsk Tolmachevo International Airport (OVB). According to data from ch-aviation, the airline has a fleet of 102 aircraft, all produced by Western manufacturers Airbus, Boeing, and Embraer:
- 3 A319s
- 16 A320
- 31 A320neo
- 8 A321
- 8 A321neo
- 19 Boeing 737-800 (including two freighters)
- 17 Embraer E170
Earlier this year, S7 Airlines denied the rumors that it had to ground its Airbus A321neo fleet. Instead, it said that the neos were simply undergoing scheduled maintenance ahead of the summer season. Ch-aviation has 20 S7 aircraft listed as inactive as of April 2023.
S7 Airlines had an order with Boeing for new Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft. Nonetheless, these planes have now been made undeliverable due to sanctions after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In recent months, five new 737s that were supposed to go to S7 finished with Turkish Airlines subsidiary AnadoluJet. This month it was also reported that another MAX originally ordered by S7 would go to Qatar Airways shortly. ch-aviation & simplyflying.com