The Government of Canada has updated its list of sanctioned entities from the Russian Federation to include the Volga-Dnepr Group and its subsidiaries, as well as the aircraft manufacturer UZGA (Ekaterinburg).
In the Russian group, Volga-Dnepr Airlines operates Soviet-made freighters, such as the Antonov An-124 and Il-76; AirBridgeCargo operates Western-built freighters such as the Boeing 747-400F, Boeing 747-8F, and Boeing 777-200F; while Atran operates with one Boeing 737-400F and six Boeing 737-800BCFs. Of these, only Volga-Dnepr Airlines is still active and only flies from Russia to Asian countries.
The Canadian government has also sanctioned Alexey Isaikin, founder and until recently owner of Volga-Dnepr, who sold the company to management in mid-2022 to avoid sanctions.
Isaikin has not been sanctioned by the United States or the European Union, although he falls under the general sanctions imposed on the Russian aviation sector. However, he was nominated by the UK. UZGA, in turn, has been designated by the United States Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the European Union.
One of the Volga-Dnepr Airlines An-124s was seized in Toronto at the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and remains there to this day. The carrier is already racking up around $400,000 in parking fees. The Volga-Dnepr Group and its subsidiaries, although unnamed, face Western sanctions that virtually ban any business activity with Western companies.
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